Premium
Biophysical considerations in forestry for climate protection
Author(s) -
Anderson Ray G,
Canadell Josep G,
Randerson James T,
Jackson Robert B,
Hungate Bruce A,
Baldocchi Dennis D,
Ban-Weiss George A,
Bonan Gordon B,
Caldeira Ken,
Cao Long,
Diffenbaugh Noah S,
Gurney Kevin R,
Kueppers Lara M,
Law Beverly E,
Luyssaert Sebastiaan,
O'Halloran Thomas L
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
frontiers in ecology and the environment
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.918
H-Index - 164
eISSN - 1540-9309
pISSN - 1540-9295
DOI - 10.1890/090179
Subject(s) - reforestation , afforestation , albedo (alchemy) , climate change , environmental science , carbon sequestration , deforestation (computer science) , climate change mitigation , agroforestry , vegetation (pathology) , ecoforestry , forestry , environmental resource management , forest ecology , ecosystem , forest restoration , geography , ecology , carbon dioxide , art , performance art , computer science , programming language , biology , art history , medicine , pathology
Forestry – including afforestation (the planting of trees on land where they have not recently existed), reforestation, avoided deforestation, and forest management – can lead to increased sequestration of atmospheric carbon dioxide and has therefore been proposed as a strategy to mitigate climate change. However, forestry also influences land‐surface properties, including albedo (the fraction of incident sunlight reflected back to space), surface roughness, and evapotranspiration, all of which affect the amount and forms of energy transfer to the atmosphere. In some circumstances, these biophysical feedbacks can result in local climate warming, thereby counteracting the effects of carbon sequestration on global mean temperature and reducing or eliminating the net value of climate‐change mitigation projects. Here, we review published and emerging research that suggests ways in which forestry projects can counteract the consequences associated with biophysical interactions, and highlight knowledge gaps in managing forests for climate protection. We also outline several ways in which biophysical effects can be incorporated into frameworks that use the maintenance of forests as a climate protection strategy.