The Productivity and Sustainability of Southern Forest Ecosystems in a Changing Environment

The health and productivity of forest ecosystems in the southern United States are currently limited by temperature, precipitation, and soil nutrition. In a changing global environment, these forest ecosystems face an unprecedented rate of change by additional stresses from air pollution and climatic change, including increasing concentrations of carbon dioxide, trace gases and atmospheric aerosols, and altered land use patterns. This volume focuses on the effects of global climate change across spatial and temporal scales in southern U.S. forest ecosystems.

A sound scientific basis for management and policy decisions

A synthesis of 5 years of field and laboratory research

Invaluable for policy makers and land use managers

Inhalt
Acknowledgments.- Contributors.- Section 1. An Introduction to Southern Forests in a Changing Environment.- 1. Southern Forest Ecosystems in a Changing Chemical and Physical Environment.- 2. General Circulation Model Scenarios for the Southern United States.- 3. Developing Policy-Relevant Global Climate Change Research.- Section 2. Global Change Impacts on Tree Physiology and Growth.- 4. Influence of Drought Stress on the Response of Shortleaf Pine to Ozone.- 5. Effects of Elevated Carbon Dioxide on the Growth and Physiology of Loblolly Pine.- 6. Environmental Stresses and Reproductive Biology of Loblolly Pine (Pinus taeda L.) and Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida L.).- 7. Interactions of Elevated Carbon Dioxide, Nutrient Status, and Water Stress on Physiological Processes and Competitive Interactions Among Three Forest Tree Species.- 8. Effects of Elevated Carbon Dioxide Levels and Air Temperature on Carbon Assimilation of Loblolly Pine.- 9. An Investigation of the Impacts of Elevated Carbon Dioxide, Irrigation, and Fertilization on the Physiology and Growth of Loblolly Pine.- 10. Effects of Elevated Carbon Dioxode, Water, and Nutrients on Photosynthesis, Stomatal Conductance, and Total Chlorophyll Content of Young Loblolly Pine (Pinus taeda L.) Trees.- 11. Ecophysiological Response of Managed Loblolly Pine to Changes in Stand Environment.- 12. Dynamic Responses of Mature Forest Trees to Changes in Physical and Chemical Climate.- 13. Productivity of Natural Stands of Longleaf Pine in Relation to Competition and Climatic Factors.- 14. The Impacts of Acidic Deposition and Global Change on High Elevation Southern Appalachian Spruce-Fir Forests.- 15. The Influences of Global Change on Tree Physiology and Growth.- Section 3. Modeling the Biophysical Effects of Global Change.- 16. Modeling Nutrient Uptake as a Component of Loblolly Pine Response to Environmental Stress.- 17. A Linked Model for Simulating Stand Development and Growth Processes of Loblolly Pine.- 18. MAESTRO Simulations of the Response of Loblolly Pine to Elevated Temperatures and Carbon Dioxide.- 19. Projections of Growth of Loblolly Pine Stands Under Elevated Temperatures and Carbon Dioxide.- 20. Modeling the Potential Sensitivity of Slash Pine Stem Growth to Increasing Temperature and Carbon Dixode.- 21. An Index for Assessing Climate Change and Elevated Carbon Dioxide Effects on Loblolly Pine Productivity.- 22. Predictions and Projections of Pine Productivity and Hydrology in Response to Climate Change Across the Southern United States.- 23. Scaling Up Physiological Responses of Loblolly Pine to Ambient Ozone Exposure Under Natural Weather Variations.- 24. Intregrating Research on Climate Change Effects on Loblolly Pine: A Probability Regional Modeling Approach.- 25. Projected Impacts of Global Climate Change on Forests and Water Resources of the Southeastern United States.- 26. Summary of Simulated Forest Responses to Climate Change in the Southeastern United States.- Section 4. The Effects of Climate Change on Forest Soils.- 27. Simulated Effects of Atmospheric Deposition and Species Change on Nutrient Cycling in Loblolly Pine and Mixed Deciduous Forests.- 28. Influence of Microclimate on Short-Term Litter Decomposition in Loblolly Pine Ecosystems.- 29. Soil Organic Matter and Soil Productivity: Searching for the Missing Link.- 30. Effects of Soil Warming on Organic Matter Decomposition and Soil-Nitrogen Cycling in a High Elevation Red Spruce Stand.- 31. Effects of Soil Warming, Atmospheric Deposition, and Elevated Carbon Dioxide on Forest Soils in the Southeastern United States.- Section 5. Disturbance Interactions With Global Change.- 32. Environmental Effects on Pine Tree Carbon Budgets and Resistance to Bark Beetles.- 33. Predictions of Southern Pine Beetle Populations Using a Forest Ecosystem Model.- 34. Soil Effects Mediate Interaction of Dogwood Anthracnose and Acidic Precipitation.- 35. Effects of Temperature and Drought Stress on Physiological Processes Associated With Oak Decline.- 36. Effects of Global Climate Change on Biodiversity in Forests of the Southern United States.- 37. Regional Climate Change in the Southern United States: The Implications for Wildfire Occurrence.- 38. Detecting and Predicting Climatic Variation from Old-Growth Baldcypress.- 39. Modeling the Differential Sensitivity of Loblolly Pine to Climatic Change Using Tree Rings.- 40. Global Change and Disturbance in Southern Forest Ecosystems.- Section 6. Socioeconomic Impacts of Global Change.- 41. Evaluation of Effects of Forestry and Agricultural Policies on Forest Carbon and Markets.- 42. Economic Dimensions of Climate Change Impacts on Southern Forests.- 43. Assessing Present Biological Information for Valuating the Economic Impacts of Climate Change on Softwood Stumpage Supply in the South.- 44. An Integrated Assessment of Climate Change on Timber Markets of the Southern United States.- 45. Integrating Local and Global Objectives in Forest Management: A Value-Based, Multiscalar Approach.- 46. Sensitivity of Protection Value to Forest Condition in the Southern Appalachian SpruceFir Forest.- 47. Economics and Global Climate Change.