Regional land-cover conversion in the U.S. upper Midwest: magnitude of change and limited recovery (1850–1935–1993)

Rhemtulla, Jeanine M.; Mladenoff, David J.; Clayton, Murray K.

doi:10.1007/s10980-007-9117-3

Cited by 122 publications

(96 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…Agriculture-grassland land cover increased from 29.5 to 38.6%. This is a notable increase compared to regionwide decline (Rhemtulla et al 2007), associated with farm abandonment (Carstensen 1958). Furthermore, agricultural land increased despite a 34% population decrease from 11,916 in 1920 to 7856 in 1950.…”

Section: Frontier/euro-american Settlement/imposed Assimilation (1860mentioning

confidence: 99%

Historical framework to explain long-term coupled human and natural system feedbacks: application to a multiple-ownership forest landscape in the northern Great Lakes region, USA

Steen-Adams¹,

Langston²,

Adams³

et al. 2015

E&S

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Section: Frontier/euro-american Settlement/imposed Assimilation (1860mentioning

confidence: 99%

Historical framework to explain long-term coupled human and natural system feedbacks: application to a multiple-ownership forest landscape in the northern Great Lakes region, USA

Steen-Adams¹,

Langston²,

Adams³

et al. 2015

E&S

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“…The landscape has experienced pronounced changes in land cover over the last century and half, as much of the savanna and prairie were replaced by agricultural lands (Rhemtulla et al, 2007) and the suppression of fire promoted a greater extent of closed-canopy forests (Curtis, 1959). Currently the landscape is composed primarily of agricultural lands and deciduous forest (Fry et al, 2011).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Forest change in the Driftless Area of the Midwest: From a preferred to undesirable future

Knoot

Shea

Schulte

et al. 2015

Forest Ecology and Management

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In the midwestern and eastern U.S., oaks (Quercus spp.) have been a dominant component of forests for at least the last 10,000 years, providing vital habitat for numerous wildlife and plant species that have adapted to oak forest conditions. However, the current state of these oak systems, in which there has been a general lack of successful oak regeneration and recruitment and an increase in the relative dominance of mesophytic species, may be nearing critical thresholds. If reached, restoring oak systems through natural regeneration and other methods, such as prescribed fire, may become especially challenging if not impossible. An understanding of spatial variation in oak dominance over time can inform and potentially improve the efficacy of intervention strategies. Using Public Land Survey and Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) inventories, we evaluated changes in the composition of timberland across ecoregional subsections in the Driftless Area of the Midwest at three time periods (pre-settlement 1800s, 1990s, and 2000s). We identified an overall decrease in oak dominance, and particularly dominance of the white oak (Quercus alba L., Q. macrocarpa Michx., and Q. bicolor Willd.) species group since the presettlement era, and an increase in other eastern soft hardwoods. Within the last 20 years, both the red oak (Q. rubra L., Q. ellipsoidalis E.J. Hill and Q. velutina Lam.) and white oak species groups decreased in dominance, with an increase in hard maple-basswood (A. saccharum Marsh., A. nigra L., and Tilia americana L.) species group dominance, indicating further mesophication of forests in the region. However, we found a notable decrease in hard maple-basswood relative dominance within the small diameter class across most of the regions within the last 10-20 years, with an increase in dominance of other, non-oak, species. Our findings complement qualitative evidence from interviews with natural resource professionals from the region and offer further information on the potential for forest conversion to ''undesirable'' forest conditions, as identified as a source of concern by some professionals. There was spatial variation in these trends, however, with some pronounced differences across adjacent state boundaries. The variation in forest change across state boundaries suggests the role of state-level socioeconomic and policy factors in affecting forest conditions, and thus the potential for a targeted and timely approach to promoting preferred pathways of change. RightsWorks produced by employees of the U.S. Government as part of their official duties are not copyrighted within the U.S. The content of this document is not copyrighted. a b s t r a c tIn the midwestern and eastern U.S., oaks (Quercus spp.) have been a dominant component of forests for at least the last 10,000 years, providing vital habitat for numerous wildlife and plant species that have adapted to oak forest conditions. However, the current state of these oak systems, in which there has been a general lack of successful oak reg...

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“…Here, we draw on 2 remarkable historical surveys, the first conducted before widespread EuroAmerican settlement, and the second at the period of peak agricultural clearing, to reconstruct fineresolution historical vegetation and land-use data. Using a case study from Wisconsin where primary forests were almost entirely cut by the turn of the 20th century and have since undergone considerable regrowth (13), we use these data to compare current pools of aboveground live forest carbon (AGC) with those before settlement and at the period of peak agricultural conversion. Because Wisconsin is composed of 2 distinct biomes-formerly dense forests in the north and former prairiesavanna in the south-each with differing land-use histories, we also compare trajectories of change in carbon stocks and the potential for future sequestration through both forest recovery and afforestation on current agricultural lands.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although former savanna and prairie ecosystems stored little carbon aboveground, they likely stored in the range of 100 MgC/ha in the soil, 30-35% of which may have been lost on conversion to agriculture (28,29). This loss in soil C belowground is of a similar magnitude (per ha) to the gain in aboveground carbon from forest ingrowth elsewhere in southern Wisconsin, but given that 4 times more prairie and savanna was converted to agriculture (for a potential loss of Ϸ120 Tg of soil C) than subject to forest ingrowth (13), there was almost certainly a net loss in total carbon in southern Wisconsin (30).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Historical forest baselines reveal potential for continued carbon sequestration

Rhemtulla

Mladenoff²,

Clayton

2009

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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115

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One-third of net CO2 emissions to the atmosphere since 1850 are the result of land-use change, primarily from the clearing of forests for timber and agriculture, but quantifying these changes is complicated by the lack of historical data on both former ecosystem conditions and the extent and spatial configuration of subsequent land use. Using fine-resolution historical survey records, we reconstruct pre-EuroAmerican settlement (1850s) forest carbon in the state of Wisconsin, examine changes in carbon after logging and agricultural conversion, and assess the potential for future sequestration through forest recovery. Results suggest that total aboveground live forest carbon (AGC) fell from 434 TgC before settlement to 120 TgC at the peak of agricultural clearing in the 1930s and has since recovered to approximately 276 TgC. The spatial distribution of AGC, however, has shifted significantly. Former savanna ecosystems in the south now store more AGC because of fire suppression and forest ingrowth, despite the fact that most of the region remains in agriculture, whereas northern forests still store much less carbon than before settlement. Across the state, continued sequestration in existing forests has the potential to contribute an additional 69 TgC. Reforestation of agricultural lands, in particular, the formerly high C-density forests in the north-central region that are now agricultural lands less optimal than those in the south, could contribute 150 TgC. Restoring historical carbon stocks across the landscape will therefore require reassessing overall land-use choices, but a range of options can be ranked and considered under changing needs for ecosystem services.forest-agriculture trade-offs ͉ old-growth forest ͉ Eastern North America ͉ land-use history ͉ carbon sink

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Regional land-cover conversion in the U.S. upper Midwest: magnitude of change and limited recovery (1850–1935–1993)

Cited by 122 publications

References 40 publications

Historical framework to explain long-term coupled human and natural system feedbacks: application to a multiple-ownership forest landscape in the northern Great Lakes region, USA

Historical framework to explain long-term coupled human and natural system feedbacks: application to a multiple-ownership forest landscape in the northern Great Lakes region, USA

Forest change in the Driftless Area of the Midwest: From a preferred to undesirable future

Historical forest baselines reveal potential for continued carbon sequestration

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