Climate warming feedback from mountain birch forest expansion: Reduced albedo dominates carbon uptake
Expanding high elevation and high latitude forest has contrasting climate feedbacks through carbon sequestration (cooling) and reduced surface reflectance (warming), which are yet poorly quantified. Here, we present an empirically-based projection of mountain birch forest expansion in south-central...
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ftcicerosfk:oai:pub.cicero.oslo.no:11250/2753988 2024-09-15T18:39:54+00:00 Climate warming feedback from mountain birch forest expansion: Reduced albedo dominates carbon uptake de Wit, Heleen Bryn, Anders Hofgaard, Annika Karstensen, Jonas Kvalevåg, Maria Malene Peters, Glen Philip 2013 application/pdf https://hdl.handle.net/11250/2753988 https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.12483 eng eng Norges forskningsråd: 184681 Norges forskningsråd: 189977 Norges forskningsråd: 176065 Global Change Biology. 2013, 20 (7), 2344-2355. urn:issn:1354-1013 https://hdl.handle.net/11250/2753988 https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.12483 cristin:1111421 2344-2355 20 Global Change Biology 7 Peer reviewed Journal article 2013 ftcicerosfk https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.12483 2024-08-28T03:02:32Z Expanding high elevation and high latitude forest has contrasting climate feedbacks through carbon sequestration (cooling) and reduced surface reflectance (warming), which are yet poorly quantified. Here, we present an empirically-based projection of mountain birch forest expansion in south-central Norway under climate change and absence of land use. Climate effects of carbon sequestration and albedo change are compared using four emission metrics. Forest expansion was modeled for a projected 2.6 °C increase of summer temperature in 2100, with associated reduced snow cover. We find that the current (year 2000) forest line of the region is circa 100 m lower than its climatic potential due to land use history. In the future scenarios, forest cover increased from 12 to 27% between 2000 and 2100, resulting in a 59% increase in biomass carbon storage and an albedo change from 0.46 to 0.30. Forest expansion in 2100 was behind its climatic potential, forest migration rates being the primary limiting factor. In 2100, the warming caused by lower albedo from expanding forest was 10 to 17 times stronger than the cooling effect from carbon sequestration for all emission metrics considered. Reduced snow cover further exacerbated the net warming feedback. The warming effect is considerably stronger than previously reported for boreal forest cover, because of the typically low biomass density in mountain forests and the large changes in albedo of snow-covered tundra areas. The positive climate feedback of high latitude and high elevation expanding mountain forests with seasonal snow cover exceeds those of afforestation at lower elevation, and calls for further attention of both modelers and empiricists. The inclusion and upscaling of these climate feedbacks from mountain forests into global models is warranted to assess the potential global impacts. Climate warming feedback from mountain birch forest expansion: Reduced albedo dominates carbon uptake acceptedVersion Article in Journal/Newspaper Tundra Center for International Climate and Environmental Research Oslo (BIBSYS Brage) Global Change Biology 20 7 2344 2355 |
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Open Polar |
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Center for International Climate and Environmental Research Oslo (BIBSYS Brage) |
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ftcicerosfk |
language |
English |
description |
Expanding high elevation and high latitude forest has contrasting climate feedbacks through carbon sequestration (cooling) and reduced surface reflectance (warming), which are yet poorly quantified. Here, we present an empirically-based projection of mountain birch forest expansion in south-central Norway under climate change and absence of land use. Climate effects of carbon sequestration and albedo change are compared using four emission metrics. Forest expansion was modeled for a projected 2.6 °C increase of summer temperature in 2100, with associated reduced snow cover. We find that the current (year 2000) forest line of the region is circa 100 m lower than its climatic potential due to land use history. In the future scenarios, forest cover increased from 12 to 27% between 2000 and 2100, resulting in a 59% increase in biomass carbon storage and an albedo change from 0.46 to 0.30. Forest expansion in 2100 was behind its climatic potential, forest migration rates being the primary limiting factor. In 2100, the warming caused by lower albedo from expanding forest was 10 to 17 times stronger than the cooling effect from carbon sequestration for all emission metrics considered. Reduced snow cover further exacerbated the net warming feedback. The warming effect is considerably stronger than previously reported for boreal forest cover, because of the typically low biomass density in mountain forests and the large changes in albedo of snow-covered tundra areas. The positive climate feedback of high latitude and high elevation expanding mountain forests with seasonal snow cover exceeds those of afforestation at lower elevation, and calls for further attention of both modelers and empiricists. The inclusion and upscaling of these climate feedbacks from mountain forests into global models is warranted to assess the potential global impacts. Climate warming feedback from mountain birch forest expansion: Reduced albedo dominates carbon uptake acceptedVersion |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
de Wit, Heleen Bryn, Anders Hofgaard, Annika Karstensen, Jonas Kvalevåg, Maria Malene Peters, Glen Philip |
spellingShingle |
de Wit, Heleen Bryn, Anders Hofgaard, Annika Karstensen, Jonas Kvalevåg, Maria Malene Peters, Glen Philip Climate warming feedback from mountain birch forest expansion: Reduced albedo dominates carbon uptake |
author_facet |
de Wit, Heleen Bryn, Anders Hofgaard, Annika Karstensen, Jonas Kvalevåg, Maria Malene Peters, Glen Philip |
author_sort |
de Wit, Heleen |
title |
Climate warming feedback from mountain birch forest expansion: Reduced albedo dominates carbon uptake |
title_short |
Climate warming feedback from mountain birch forest expansion: Reduced albedo dominates carbon uptake |
title_full |
Climate warming feedback from mountain birch forest expansion: Reduced albedo dominates carbon uptake |
title_fullStr |
Climate warming feedback from mountain birch forest expansion: Reduced albedo dominates carbon uptake |
title_full_unstemmed |
Climate warming feedback from mountain birch forest expansion: Reduced albedo dominates carbon uptake |
title_sort |
climate warming feedback from mountain birch forest expansion: reduced albedo dominates carbon uptake |
publishDate |
2013 |
url |
https://hdl.handle.net/11250/2753988 https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.12483 |
genre |
Tundra |
genre_facet |
Tundra |
op_source |
2344-2355 20 Global Change Biology 7 |
op_relation |
Norges forskningsråd: 184681 Norges forskningsråd: 189977 Norges forskningsråd: 176065 Global Change Biology. 2013, 20 (7), 2344-2355. urn:issn:1354-1013 https://hdl.handle.net/11250/2753988 https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.12483 cristin:1111421 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.12483 |
container_title |
Global Change Biology |
container_volume |
20 |
container_issue |
7 |
container_start_page |
2344 |
op_container_end_page |
2355 |
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1810484244481310720 |