Global warming killing old-growth forests?
More and more evidence accumulates as deniers work harder and harder to deny it. Here’s a story in the Scientific American:
The majestic old-growth forests of western North America, greening patches of the landscape from Arizona to British Columbia, may be far more vulnerable to subtle climate change than scientists previously believed. A study published today in the journal Science reveals that these western forests are dying at faster rates as regional average temperatures climb more rapidly than the global average.
"Tree death rates have more than doubled," says study co-author Phillip van Mantgem, a research ecologist with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).He and his team analyzed data (collected from 1955 to 2007) on about 58,000 trees, including firs, pines, hemlocks and others, in 76 old-growth forest plots covering six western states and a Canadian province: Arizona, Colorado, California, Idaho, Washington, Oregon and British Columbia. Their findings: …
Continue reading. The core problem: trees can’t afford lobbyists.
