Climate: Fires affect carbon balance in boreal forest


Carbon balance in the Canadian boreal forest is driven primarily by fire disturbance rather than by climate change. The researchers claim that overall changes in climate have not yet been felt in this large boreal region, and that variations in the landscape carbon balance and vegetation dominance have so far been largely driven by increases in fire frequency.

Ben Bond-Lamberty and colleagues use a process model with three competing vegetation types to examine the effects of climate, carbon dioxide concentrations and fire disturbance on a large area of Canadian boreal forest. They report that the carbon balance between 1948 and 2005 was driven largely by changes in fire disturbance. More frequent and larger fires in the late twentieth century resulted in deciduous trees and mosses increasing production at the expense of coniferous trees. They also find that poor soil drainage decreased the variability of the landscape carbon balance, suggesting that increased climate and hydrological changes do have the potential to affect disproportionately the carbon dynamics of these areas.

CONTACT

Ben Bond-Lamberty (University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA)

Tel: +1 608 265-5628; E-mail: bpbond@wisc.edu