Impacts and management of forest fires in the Republic of Sakha, Russia: A local perspective for a global problem

Narita, Daiju; Gavrilyeva, Tuyara; Isaev, Aleksandr

doi:10.1016/j.polar.2020.100573

Cited by 23 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…Based on impact size and frequency we focus on two main disturbance classes: forestry and fire (see Figure 1). We further specify three different intensity classes based on literature values of mortality and defoliation, organic and litter layer damage, and a change in ground surface albedo (Averensky et al., 2010; Kirichenko et al., 2009; Narita et al., 2020; Shvidenko & Nilsson, 2000).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In Yakutia, the forestry industry started recovering around 2000 after a sharp reduction between 1990 and 2000. In 2015, 1,000,000 m 3 of wood have been sold (Narita et al., 2020). Low‐developed transport infrastructure and remoteness of the foreign and domestic markets hinder large‐scale timber production in the Sakha republic, which is therefore not of importance to the republic's economy and only accounts for roughly 1% of the exports.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Disturbed permafrost‐forest ecosystems can develop into the dry or swampy bush‐ or grasslands (X. Y. Jin et al., 2020), the shift toward broadleaf‐ or evergreen needleleaf‐dominated forests (Rogers et al., 2015; Takahashi, 2006), or recover to the pre‐disturbance state. An increase in the number and intensity of fires, and the lengthening of the fire season (Holloway et al., 2020; Narita et al., 2020), as well as intensified logging activities, could lead to partial or complete permafrost degradation and vegetation shifts away from deciduous‐dominated forest stands (V. I. Kharuk et al., 2019). Especially permafrost at the southern margin might not remain resilient under a warming climate because of its dependence on ecosystem protection (Yershov, 2004).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Jin et al, 2020), the shift toward broadleaf-or evergreen needleleaf-dominated forests (Rogers et al, 2015;Takahashi, 2006), or recover to the pre-disturbance state. An increase in the number and intensity of fires, and the lengthening of the fire season (Holloway et al, 2020;Narita et al, 2020), as well as intensified logging activities, could lead to partial or complete permafrost degradation and vegetation shifts away from deciduous-dominated forest stands (V. I. Kharuk et al, 2019).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Thermohydrological Impact of Forest Disturbances on Ecosystem‐Protected Permafrost

et al. 2022

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Boreal forests cover over half of the global permafrost area and protect underlying permafrost. Boreal forest development, therefore, has an impact on permafrost evolution, especially under a warming climate. Forest disturbances and changing climate conditions cause vegetation shifts and potentially destabilize the carbon stored within the vegetation and permafrost. Disturbed permafrost‐forest ecosystems can develop into a dry or swampy bush‐ or grasslands, shift toward broadleaf‐ or evergreen needleleaf‐dominated forests, or recover to the pre‐disturbance state. An increase in the number and intensity of fires, as well as intensified logging activities, could lead to a partial or complete ecosystem and permafrost degradation. We study the impact of forest disturbances (logging, surface, and canopy fires) on the thermal and hydrological permafrost conditions and ecosystem resilience. We use a dynamic multilayer canopy‐permafrost model to simulate different scenarios at a study site in eastern Siberia. We implement expected mortality, defoliation, and ground surface changes and analyze the interplay between forest recovery and permafrost. We find that forest loss induces soil drying of up to 44%, leading to lower active layer thicknesses and abrupt or steady decline of a larch forest, depending on disturbance intensity. Only after surface fires, the most common disturbances, inducing low mortality rates, forests can recover and overpass pre‐disturbance leaf area index values. We find that the trajectory of larch forests after surface fires is dependent on the precipitation conditions in the years after the disturbance. Dryer years can drastically change the direction of the larch forest development within the studied period.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Thermohydrological Impact of Forest Disturbances on Ecosystem‐Protected Permafrost

et al. 2022

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“…Similarly, it is unlikely that a sudden shift in the share of human-caused fires occurred around 2010 CE. Even though the forest management system of Yakutia has undergone several adjustments in recent years (e.g., abstaining from extinguishing fires far from populated regions), a persistent shortage of funding exacerbated broad-scale suppression even before (Narita et al, 2021). With its close proximity to the Vilyuy highway, multiple settlements, and agriculturally used lands, these management changes are thus not assumed to have caused the most recent increase in burnt area.…”

Section: Fire-vegetation Feedbacks On Millennial Timescalesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Holocene wildfire and vegetation dynamics in Central Yakutia, Siberia, reconstructed from lake-sediment proxies

et al. 2022

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Wildfires play an essential role in the ecology of boreal forests. In eastern Siberia, fire activity has been increasing in recent years, challenging the livelihoods of local communities. Intensifying fire regimes also increase disturbance pressure on the boreal forests, which currently protect the permafrost beneath from accelerated degradation. However, long-term relationships between changes in fire regime and forest structure remain largely unknown. We assess past fire-vegetation feedbacks using sedimentary proxy records from Lake Satagay, Central Yakutia, Siberia, covering the past c. 10,800 years. Results from macroscopic and microscopic charcoal analyses indicate high amounts of burnt biomass during the Early Holocene, and that the present-day, low-severity surface fire regime has been in place since c. 4,500 years before present. A pollen-based quantitative reconstruction of vegetation cover and a terrestrial plant record based on sedimentary ancient DNA metabarcoding suggest a pronounced shift in forest structure toward the Late Holocene. Whereas the Early Holocene was characterized by postglacial open larch-birch woodlands, forest structure changed toward the modern, mixed larch-dominated closed-canopy forest during the Mid-Holocene. We propose a potential relationship between open woodlands and high amounts of burnt biomass, as well as a mediating effect of dense larch forest on the climate-driven intensification of fire regimes. Considering the anticipated increase in forest disturbances (droughts, insect invasions, and wildfires), higher tree mortality may force the modern state of the forest to shift toward an open woodland state comparable to the Early Holocene. Such a shift in forest structure may result in a positive feedback on currently intensifying wildfires. These new long-term data improve our understanding of millennial-scale fire regime changes and their relationships to changes of vegetation in Central Yakutia, where the local population is already being confronted with intensifying wildfire seasons.

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Russia in a changing climate

Javeline,

Orttung,

Robertson

et al. 2023

WIREs Climate Change

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Climate change will shape the future of Russia, and vice versa, regardless of who rules in the Kremlin. The world's largest country is warming faster than Earth as a whole, occupies more than half the Arctic Ocean coastline, and is waging a carbon‐intensive war while increasingly isolated from the international community and its efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Officially, the Russian government argues that, as a major exporter of hydrocarbons, Russia benefits from maintaining global reliance on fossil fuels and from climate change itself, because warming may increase the extent and quality of its arable land, open a new year‐round Arctic sea route, and make its harsh climate more livable. Drawing on the collective expertise of a large group of Russia‐focused social scientists and a comprehensive literature review, we challenge this narrative. We find that Russia suffers from a variety of impacts due to climate change and is poorly prepared to adapt to these impacts. The literature review reveals that the fates of Russia's hydrocarbon‐dependent economy, centralized political system, and climate‐impacted population are intertwined and that research is needed on this evolving interrelationship, as global temperatures rise and the international economy decarbonizes in response.This article is categorized under: Policy and Governance > National Climate Change Policy Trans‐disciplinary Perspectives > National Reviews Trans‐disciplinary Perspectives > Regional Reviews

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Impacts and management of forest fires in the Republic of Sakha, Russia: A local perspective for a global problem

Cited by 23 publications

References 11 publications

Thermohydrological Impact of Forest Disturbances on Ecosystem‐Protected Permafrost

Thermohydrological Impact of Forest Disturbances on Ecosystem‐Protected Permafrost

Holocene wildfire and vegetation dynamics in Central Yakutia, Siberia, reconstructed from lake-sediment proxies

Russia in a changing climate

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