Tuesday, August 4, 2009: 8:00 PM-10:00 PM
Brazos, Albuquerque Convention Center
SS 17 - Natural Resources and Climate Change: Effects and Adaptation
Climate change is a critical issue for our time. Ecosystems are changing in response to climate: fire seasons are longer and forest fires are larger and more frequent; snowmelt in the western US occurs earlier; agricultural production is approaching critical thresholds in some areas; critical habitat is lost or threatened. Recent synthesis and assessments by the US Climate Change Science Program show that the scope and magnitude of climate change impacts often exceed expectations for both the extent and rate of change. As a result, natural resource managers are adapting to climate change either intentionally or unintentionally, often without any larger framework or understanding for those actions. Management designed to adapt to climate change is rarely evaluated, and effects and adaptation are often separated when they should be linked. Maintaining ecosystem function is critical to sustainability, and will rely heavily on understanding the effects of climate change on natural resources and the potential for adaptation to those changes.
Organizer:Margaret K. Walsh, US Department of Agriculture
Co-organizer:Michael G. Ryan, USDA Forest Service
Moderator:Margaret K. Walsh, US Department of Agriculture
8:00 PMSS 17-1Introduction and background
Margaret K. Walsh, US Department of Agriculture
8:15 PMSS 17-2Synthesis overview
Peter Backlund, UCAR
8:30 PMSS 17-3Climate change effects
David S. Schimel, National Ecological Observatory Network
8:45 PMSS 17-4Agriculture and climate change
Chuck Rice, Kansas State University
9:00 PMSS 17-5Forests and climate change
Michael G. Ryan, USDA Forest Service
9:15 PMSS 17-6Climate change and biodiversity
Anthony Janetos, PNNL/UMD
9:30 PMSS 17-7Adaptation in national parks
Jill Baron, United States Geological Survey
9:45 PMSS 17-8Synthesis and adaptation overview
Susan Julius, US Environmental Protection Agency

See more of Special Session

See more of The 94th ESA Annual Meeting (August 2 -- 7, 2009)