Encyclopedia of Forest Environmental Threats

Threats Conference Glyph

North America's forests and rangelands face many environmental threats. These often act in concert and with no regard for land ownership and administrative boundaries. As such, they are difficult to identify and anticipate, much less manage or control. Researchers and managers are developing a growing foundation of knowledge which can help assess and/or minimize these threats. For example, detailed soil resource data can be used to determine the stress level and ecosystem health of stands, and may be one method used to determine the risk of disease or insect outbreak.

Forest environmental threats are numerous and widespread. Insect outbreaks such as bark beetle infestations have widespread implications for current and future forest management, affecting timber supply and operations, wildlife habitat, and aesthetics. Forests are vulnerable to conversion to other land uses, and an increasing number of houses and other buildings in and near forests may signify growing costs and complications in fire suppression and the potential loss of many values derived from forests. Other threats to forests include diseases, severe weather, and climate change. The Encyclopedia of Forest Threats addresses these topics and more within four major sections: Land, Air and Water, Fire, and Pests/Biota.

Threats to the land include loss of soil quality and wildland area. Soil quality is potentially affected by management and wildfire, as well as acid deposition and calcium depletion. Recent conversions of forestland to other uses pose ecological and economic risks beyond loss of wild resources. Air and water threats include severe weather and flooding. Fire is often used as a beneficial management tool yet the severity, spread, and manner of ignition of wildfires can threaten management goals. Attention is increasingly paid to threats that both native and exotic biota can introduce into the environment. These sections provide both generally synthesized topics as well as more specific case studies.