All US Forests Threatened, Study Finds, Thanks to Drought

All U.S. forests are threatened by increased drought and climate change, according to a new study published Monday in the science journal Global Change Biology.

Forests in the western portion of the United States have sustained damage from wildfires because of drought and an increase in temperatures, but other portions of the country could now be affected as well, according to the Global Change Biology study.

"In the eastern U.S., the effects of increasing drought are becoming better understood at the level of individual trees, but this knowledge cannot yet be confidently translated to predictions of changing structure and diversity of forest stands," the research stated.

"While eastern forests have not experienced the types of changes seen in western forests in recent decades, they too are vulnerable to drought and could experience significant changes with increased severity, frequency, or duration in drought."

James Clark, the lead author of the study and an environmental scientist at Duke University, said that the lack of rain could be devastating for these forest areas in the coming years, according to a statement from the National Science Foundation.

"Over the last two decades, warming temperatures and variable precipitation have increased the severity of forest droughts across much of the continental United States," Clark said in the statement.

"While the effects have been most pronounced in the West, our analysis shows virtually that all U.S. forests are now experiencing change and are vulnerable to future declines," Clark continued.

The research examined management practices needed to help reduce problems caused by drought-plagued forests in different parts of the country, according to a statement from Duke University. The study also addressed knowledge gaps that prevent researchers from predicting the effects climate change could play in these areas.

"We currently have a pretty good handle on predicting the impacts of climate change and drought on individual trees," Clark said in the Duke statement. "Ecologists have identified many of the important differences between species that explain how they respond differently to drought."

"But there's still uncertainty about what might happen at the species-wide or stand-wide levels, particularly in Eastern forests. These are the scales where we really need reliable predictions so forest managers can take steps now to help reduce large-scale problems," he continued.

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