Managing Forest Carbon in a Changing Climate

About this book

The goal of Managing Forest Carbon in a Changing Climate is to provide guidance for advanced students, land managers and policymakers seeking to understand the complex science and policy of forest carbon as it relates to tangible problems of forest management and the more abstract problems of addressing drivers of deforestation and negotiating policy frameworks for reducing emissions from forests. It is an attempt at a comprehensive state-of-the-art review, encompassing the science of carbon sequestration in forests, management of forests for carbon and other values, and the socio-economic and policy implications and challenges of managing forests for carbon.

Forests are critical to mitigating the effects of global climate change because they are large storehouses of carbon and have the ability to continually absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. But today, emissions from land use, land use change, and forestry, mostly due to deforestation in the tropics, are estimated at 17% of total annual global CO₂ emissions, a figure larger than the transportation sector. While the basic principles of the carbon cycle are well known, there are significant uncertainties about the actual behavior of many of its sinks and sources. Much work has been done on the science of forest carbon, deforestation, and various climate policy responses, however, what is lacking is a comprehensive review of all aspects of the challenge. Managing Forest Carbon in a Changing Climate provides such a review by taking a holistic perspective on the subject. By creating a publication that outlines the research that has been done on forest carbon, pointing out what we know and what we don't know, and the implications for policy decisions.

Contents

Chapter 1 Introduction Lauren Goers, Mark S. Ashton, and Mary Tyrrell

PART I The Science of Forest Carbon
Chapter 2 Characterizing Organic Carbon Stocks and Flows in Forest Soils Samuel Price, Mark A. Bradford and Mark S. Ashton
Chapter 3 The Physiological Ecology of Carbon Science in Forest Stands Kristofer R. Covey, Joseph Orefice, and Xuhui Lee
Chapter 4 Carbon Dynamics of Tropical Forests Kyle Meister, Mark S. Ashton, Dylan Craven and Heather Griscom
Chapter 5 Carbon Dynamics in Temperate Forests Mary L. Tyrrell, Jeffery Ross and Matthew Kelty
Chapter 6 Carbon Dynamics in the Boreal Forest Brian Milakovsky, Brent Frey and Thomas James

PART II Measuring Carbon in Forests
Chapter 7 Methods of Measuring Carbon in Forests Xin Zhang, Yong Zhao, Mark S. Ashton and Xuhui Lee
Chapter 8 The Role of Forests in Global Carbon Budgetting Deborah Spalding, Elif Kendirli, and Chadwick Dearing Oliver

PART III The Management of Carbon in Forests and Forest Products
Chapter 9 Managing Carbon Sequestration in Tropical Forests Cecelia Del Cid-Liccardi, Tim Kramer, Mark S. Ashton and Bronson Griscom
Chapter 10 Managing Carbon Sequestration and Storage in Temperate and Boreal Forests Matthew Carroll, Brian Milakovsky , Alex Finkral, Alexander Evans and Mark S. Ashton
Chapter 11 Managing Afforestation and Reforestation for Carbon Sequestration: Considerations for Land Managers and Policy Makers Thomas Hodgman, Jacob Munger, Jefferson Hall and Mark S. Ashton
Chapter 12 Role of Forest Products in the Global Carbon Cycle: From the Forest to Final Disposal Christopher Larson, Jeffrey Chatellier, Reid Lifset, and Thomas Graedel

PART IV Socioeconomic and Policy Considerations for Carbon Management in Forests
Chapter 13 Large and Intact Forests: Drivers and Inhibitors of Deforestation and Forest Degradation Benjamin Blom, Ian Cummins, and Mark S. Ashton
Chapter 14 Economic Drivers of Tropical Deforestation for Agriculture Lauren Goers, Janet Lawson and Eva Garen
Chapter 15 The Economic Drivers of Forest Land Use and the Role of Markets in the United States Lisa Henke, Caitlin O'Brady, Deborah Spalding and Mary L.Tyrrell
Chapter 16 United States Legilative Proposals on forest Carbon Jaime Carlson, Ramon Olivas, Bradford Gentry and Anton Chiono
Chapter 17 REDD+ Policy Options: Including Forests in an International Climate Change Agreement Eliot Logan-Hines, Lauren Goers, Mark Evidente, and Benjamin Cashore
Chapter 18 Synthesis and Conclusions Mary L. Tyrrell, Mark S. Ashton, Deborah Spalding, and Bradford Gentry

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