Future of America's Forests and Rangelands

Future of America's Forests and Rangelands PDF Author: United States Department of Agriculture
Publisher: CreateSpace
ISBN: 9781505905878
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 218

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Book Description
The 2010 Resources Planning Act (RPA) Assessment is the fifth report prepared in response to the mandate in the 1974 Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act (Public Law 93-378, 88 Stat 475, as amended). This report summarizes findings about the status, trends, and projected future of forests, rangelands, wildlife and fish, biodiversity, water, outdoor recreation, wilderness, and urban forests, and the effects of climate change upon these resources. The results will be useful to resource managers and policymakers as they develop strategies to sustain natural resources. The Forest Service, an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, will continue to use the results to inform strategic planning and forest planning

Future of America's Forests and Rangelands

Future of America's Forests and Rangelands PDF Author: United States Department of Agriculture
Publisher: CreateSpace
ISBN: 9781505905878
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 218

Get Book

Book Description
The 2010 Resources Planning Act (RPA) Assessment is the fifth report prepared in response to the mandate in the 1974 Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act (Public Law 93-378, 88 Stat 475, as amended). This report summarizes findings about the status, trends, and projected future of forests, rangelands, wildlife and fish, biodiversity, water, outdoor recreation, wilderness, and urban forests, and the effects of climate change upon these resources. The results will be useful to resource managers and policymakers as they develop strategies to sustain natural resources. The Forest Service, an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, will continue to use the results to inform strategic planning and forest planning

Invasive Species in Forests and Rangelands of the United States

Invasive Species in Forests and Rangelands of the United States PDF Author: Therese M. Poland
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3030453677
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 455

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Book Description
This open access book describes the serious threat of invasive species to native ecosystems. Invasive species have caused and will continue to cause enormous ecological and economic damage with ever increasing world trade. This multi-disciplinary book, written by over 100 national experts, presents the latest research on a wide range of natural science and social science fields that explore the ecology, impacts, and practical tools for management of invasive species. It covers species of all taxonomic groups from insects and pathogens, to plants, vertebrates, and aquatic organisms that impact a diversity of habitats in forests, rangelands and grasslands of the United States. It is well-illustrated, provides summaries of the most important invasive species and issues impacting all regions of the country, and includes a comprehensive primary reference list for each topic. This scientific synthesis provides the cultural, economic, scientific and social context for addressing environmental challenges posed by invasive species and will be a valuable resource for scholars, policy makers, natural resource managers and practitioners.

Forests for America's Future

Forests for America's Future PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Forests and forestry
Languages : en
Pages : 36

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Book Description


Resources Planning Act

Resources Planning Act PDF Author: United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. Subcommittee on Environment, Soil Conservation, and Forestry
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Forest management
Languages : en
Pages : 172

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Book Description


Forest and Rangeland Soils of the United States Under Changing Conditions

Forest and Rangeland Soils of the United States Under Changing Conditions PDF Author: Richard V. Pouyat
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3030452166
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 306

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Book Description
This open access book synthesizes leading-edge science and management information about forest and rangeland soils of the United States. It offers ways to better understand changing conditions and their impacts on soils, and explores directions that positively affect the future of forest and rangeland soil health. This book outlines soil processes and identifies the research needed to manage forest and rangeland soils in the United States. Chapters give an overview of the state of forest and rangeland soils research in the Nation, including multi-decadal programs (chapter 1), then summarizes various human-caused and natural impacts and their effects on soil carbon, hydrology, biogeochemistry, and biological diversity (chapters 2–5). Other chapters look at the effects of changing conditions on forest soils in wetland and urban settings (chapters 6–7). Impacts include: climate change, severe wildfires, invasive species, pests and diseases, pollution, and land use change. Chapter 8 considers approaches to maintaining or regaining forest and rangeland soil health in the face of these varied impacts. Mapping, monitoring, and data sharing are discussed in chapter 9 as ways to leverage scientific and human resources to address soil health at scales from the landscape to the individual parcel (monitoring networks, data sharing Web sites, and educational soils-centered programs are tabulated in appendix B). Chapter 10 highlights opportunities for deepening our understanding of soils and for sustaining long-term ecosystem health and appendix C summarizes research needs. Nine regional summaries (appendix A) offer a more detailed look at forest and rangeland soils in the United States and its Affiliates.

The Forest Service Program for Forest and Rangeland Resources

The Forest Service Program for Forest and Rangeland Resources PDF Author: United States. Forest Service
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Conservation of natural resources
Languages : en
Pages : 314

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Book Description


Effects of Drought on Forests and Rangelands in the United States

Effects of Drought on Forests and Rangelands in the United States PDF Author: James M. Vose
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Climatic changes
Languages : en
Pages : 302

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Book Description
This assessment provides input to the reauthorized National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) and the National Climate Assessment (NCA), and it establishes the scientific foundation needed to manage for drought resilience and adaptation. Focal areas include drought characterization; drought impacts on forest processes and disturbances such as insect outbreaks and wildfire; and consequences for forest and rangeland values. Drought can be a severe natural disaster with substantial social and economic consequences. Drought becomes most obvious when large-scale changes are observed; however, even moderate drought can have long-lasting impacts on the structure and function of forests and rangelands without these obvious large-scale changes. Large, stand-level impacts of drought are already underway in the West, but all U.S. forests are vulnerable to drought. Drought-associated forest disturbances are expected to increase with climatic change. Management actions can either mitigate or exacerbate the effects of drought. A first principal for increasing resilience and adaptation is to avoid management actions that exacerbate the effects of current or future drought. Options to mitigate drought include altering structural or functional components of vegetation, minimizing drought-mediated disturbance such as wildfire or insect outbreaks, and managing for reliable flow of water.

"The future of the United States Forest Service"

Author: United States. Congress. House. Committee on Resources
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 60

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Book Description


The Forest Service Program for Forest and Rangeland Resources

The Forest Service Program for Forest and Rangeland Resources PDF Author: United States. Forest Service
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Conservation of natural resources
Languages : en
Pages : 236

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Book Description


Rangeland Resource Trends in the United States: a Technical Document Supporting the 2000 USDA Forest Service RPA Assessment

Rangeland Resource Trends in the United States: a Technical Document Supporting the 2000 USDA Forest Service RPA Assessment PDF Author: John E. Mitchell
Publisher: Createspace Independent Pub
ISBN: 9781480146884
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 86

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Book Description
The status of rangelands in the United States has been of continual interest to the Congress and American people since the western states were occupied by Europeans. Until 1854, the issue for the federal government was one of acquisition. A decade later, however, the Homestead Act of 1862 marked the beginning of an era of land disposal. This western expansion for minerals, forage, and timber was considered our country's “manifest destiny” (Clawson 1983).During the 100 years following the Civil War, U.S. rangelands were almost exclusively used for livestock grazing. During the 1880's, the number of cattle in the 17 western states proliferated almost six-fold from 4.5 million head to nearly 27 million head (Poling 1991). This was the high water mark of the prominent cattle barons financed by European capital (Mitchell and Hart 1987). At the same time, the number of domestic sheep was also multiplying—from less than one million head in 1850 to 20 million head by 1890 (Stoddart and Smith 1943). The first national problem involving rangelands originated from the joint effects of land disposal and rapidly increasing livestock numbers. Large cumulative areas were awarded for railroad expansion and to states when they jointed the Union. Counting Alaska, 17 percent of the total state land area of the 30 states receiving land grants was obtained from the federal government; for the 16 western states (Texas received no land), the figure was more than 91 million acres or almost 10 percent of their cumulative area (Public Land Law Review Commission 1970). The Homestead Act of 1862 was followed by the Enlarged Homestead Act of 1909 (which allowed settlers to claim 320 acres) and the Stock Raising Homestead Act of 1916 (which provided 640 acres). In total, about 285 million acres were claimed under the Homestead Acts (Ross 1984). All lands containing water and good grazing were occupied during this era. Even a section of land was insufficient for homesteaders to make a living through-out much of the West, however, so grazing started on the public domain (Carpenter 1981). This Range Assessment, like those preceding it, addresses contemporary topics while continuing a baseline appraisal of the central theme for all range assessments: the demand for and supply of forage in the United States. It examines both anticipated supply and future demand from a different perspective, however. The U.S. Department of Agriculture no longer maintains a model system with a 50-year outlook like that used in the previous two rangeland assessments. Therefore, an alternative approach, scenario analysis, was selected to project forage demand, and is described in a separate report (Van Tassell et al. 1999). Supply projections are still tied to land use changes, but increases in rangeland resulting from conservation programs are no longer anticipated (Chapter 2: Extent of Rangelands). Advances in technology are not expected to significantly change the overall forage supply (Chapter 4: Maintenance of Productive Capacity), although this opinion is not unanimous. Van Tassell et al. (1999) concluded that changes in forage production technology would enhance the use of some grazing lands, especially in the South. Four Assessment Regions are used to describe data and other information on U.S. rangelands: the Pacific Coast (PC), Rocky Mountain (RM), Northern (NO), and Southern (SO).