Boreal forests in a sustainable world
Symposium Organiser(s):
Jon Moen and Lucy Rist, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
Boreal forests constitute almost one-third of the earth’s extant forests, contain 35% of the terrestrial carbon stocks in forests and soils, and support diverse biological communities in perhaps the last large wilderness areas in the world. Despite this, boreal forests have received limited attention in comparison to that currently centered on the loss and degradation of tropical forests. While this biome is at present relatively intact, natural disturbance regimes are increasingly being replaced by human-driven processes. Rising resource demands from society and climate changes are two major challenges. In particular, as much of the systems carbon is stored below-ground, there is considerable concern over how this will respond to changes in climate. However, specific characteristics of the boreal forest also present opportunities. Management to maximize carbon sequestration, and increasing the scale of reforestation in heavily disturbed areas, represent significant prospects for climate mitigation. Ecosystem service provisioning in the form of fibre (combined with product substitution to replace fossil sources) and biomass for biofuels, suggesting more intensive management, are also important mitigation and adaptation measures that should be further explored. Boreal forest management must develop to respond to these future influences and opportunities. This symposium will address these questions at the biome level and will initiate an in-depth discussion on the future role of the boreal forest in a sustainable future.
Keywords: Climate change, Carbon, REDD, timber
Symposium Presentations:
Towards ecologically sustainable management of the circumboreal forest: Should we reassess the paradigm?
Yves Bergeron, NSERC UQAT/UQAM Chair in sustainable forest Management, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Rouyn-Noranda PQ Canada
The boreal forest as a socio-ecological system: Challenges and opportunities
Terry Chapin, Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska, Fairbanks, AK, USA
Trade-offs and synergies among ecosystem services from the boreal forest
Jon Moen, Department of Ecology and Environmental Science, Umeå Universitet, Umeå, Sweden
Preserving boreal forest carbon stocks and biodiversity
Corey Bradshaw, The Environment Institute and School of Earth & Environmental Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia
Management of boreal forests for mitigation of climate change: Carbon dept in substitution and biofuels
Olga Krankina, Department of Forest Ecosystems and Society, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA
The scientific basis for a new forestry
Klaus Puettmann, Department of Forest Ecosystems and Society, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA
Global forest governance and the boreal forest
Benjamin Cashore, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
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