From fsamson@fs.fed.us Mon Aug 19 06:37:19 2002 Received: from mailscan4.cac.washington.edu (mailscan4.cac.washington.edu [140.142.33.15]) by lists.u.washington.edu (8.12.1+UW01.12/8.12.1+UW02.01) with SMTP id g7JDbHeY070902 for ; Mon, 19 Aug 2002 06:37:17 -0700 Received: FROM mxu3.u.washington.edu BY mailscan4.cac.washington.edu ; Mon Aug 19 06:37:16 2002 -0700 Received: from sv8.r1.fs.fed.us (sv8.r1.fs.fed.us [166.7.3.70]) by mxu3.u.washington.edu (8.12.1+UW01.12/8.12.1+UW02.06) with ESMTP id g7JDbAbq021118; Mon, 19 Aug 2002 06:37:15 -0700 Received: from sv62.r1.fs.fed.us by sv8.r1.fs.fed.us (USDA-FS/MissoulaMT/4-1-2002) using ESMTP; id HAA58498 for multiple recipients; Mon, 19 Aug 2002 07:36:05 -0600 Subject: Re: New book on woody plants for prairies To: AHerbert@BlackburnPress.com Cc: consbio@u.washington.edu, CONSBIO-owner@u.washington.edu X-Mailer: Lotus Notes Release 5.0.3 March 21, 2000 Message-ID: From: "Fred Samson/R1/USDAFS" Date: Sun, 18 Aug 2002 18:51:41 -0600 X-MIMETrack: Serialize by Router on ENTR1A/E/USDAFS(Release 5.0.8 |June 18, 2001) at 08/19/2002 07:36:05 AM MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii The following is a AP review of another article pointing to the problems that trees create on the Great Plains. As numerous authors and articles show, trees were virtually non-existent on the plains at least to the point about 12-13000 yr bp. They clearly provide habitat to species never know to be endemic to the Plains and both directly and indirectly impact endemics in a negative manner. Higgens in his excellent review of fire on the northern Great Plains showed any record after 1770 was open to question--thus the records also show the open character that in part defines the grasslands (as Besser in 1870s to Pool in the early part of this century to Weaver's classic and so on. Conservationists should be interested in maintaining the historic character of any ecosystem as well as the species unique to that system. Thus, the open character of the plains is important as is the turbid nature of many streams and rivers--many fish have evolved very specific features to such an environment and trees do little but trap needed sediment. The book on trees for the Plains is no doubt an excellent contribution but issues in conservation on the Plains are clear and the invasion of trees is among the foremost. Fred Samson Study: Benefit of Trees Misjudged Wed Aug 7, 6:45 PM ET By ANDREW BRIDGES, AP Science Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) - Scientists have overestimated the potential of trees and shrubs to soak up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, according to a new study. The reassessment casts doubt on whether planting trees is always a positive step in the fight against global warming ( news - web sites), as President Bush ( news - web sites) and others have suggested. In the study, published in Thursday's issue of the journal Nature, Duke University scientists say trees and shrubs growing in areas of abundant rainfall are less effective storehouses for carbon than native grasslands they have steadily replaced across much of the western United States. Vegetation stores carbon that otherwise might trap heat in the atmosphere, driving up temperatures and leading to climate change. Previous studies have ignored what was going on below ground, said Robert Jackson lead author of the study and an associate professor of biology at Duke University. In wet locations, replacing grass with shrubs and trees actually can lead to a decrease in the amount of carbon locked up in organic matter mixed in the soil, Jackson said. The amount can be enough to offset any gains achieved above ground. "The study suggests that we need to look very closely at what's below ground before we add up just what's stored above ground in tree trunks," Jackson said. Scientists studied six pairs of adjacent western grasslands. In one of each pair, trees and shrubs had cropped up sometime in the last 100 years. In the drier sites, the invasive growth led to an increase in the amount of carbon locked up in the soil. In wetter areas, however, the opposite was the case, Jackson said. It is not clear what caused the change. "Grasses are deceptively productive," Jackson said. "You don't see where all the carbon goes so there is a misconception that woody species store more carbon. That's just not always the case." Previously, studies estimated that U.S. shrublands contain about 440 million tons of carbon. The number may be closer to 280 million tons, Jackson said. That result suggests shrublands, by absorbing carbon from the atmosphere, do less to balance emissions from the burning of fossil fuels than previously thought, Jackson said. "It would not surprise me at all if they were absolutely spot-on right," said Steve Pacala, a Princeton University professor ecology, who wasn't involved in the study. However, he said he didn't consider the study definitive, given uncertainties in its measurements of the carbon contained in woody roots. The study helps dispel the notion that humans can plant their way out of global warming, said Daniel Becker, director of the Sierra Club ( news - web sites) global warming and energy program. "We are going to need to tackle the industrial sources of emissions head-on rather than just plant a bunch of trees," Becker said. As part of his administration's strategy for curtailing carbon dioxide emissions, Bush has proposed tax incentives for farmers who plant trees. "Andrea Herbert" ress.com> cc: Sent by: Subject: New book on woody plants for prairies CONSBIO-owner@u.wash ington.edu 08/18/2002 03:21 PM Please respond to AHerbert NEW BOOK: Woody Plants for the Central and Northern Prairies Written for professional and amateur horticulturalists, landscape designers, conservationists, ecologists, foresters, students, farmers and prairie dwellers, Woody Plants for the Central and Northern Prairies provides descriptions and sketches of most of the native and exotic woody plants likely to be found on the prairies of the U.S. and Canada. The book, by Walter Thaine Bagley and Richard K. Sutton, illustrated by Nancy Scott, builds on the foundation of knowledge provided by prairie pioneers. Species were selected for inclusion based on their usefulness for many purposes, including yard and garden beautification, and creation of windbreaks, woodlands, orchards and wildlife habitats in a region more hospitable to grasses and associated forbs than it is to woody plants. Plants are described in non-technical language with the appropriate botanical terms added in parentheses. Botanical names are used for plant parts. A complete glossary is included for readers who would like to increase their vocabulary. For more information, we invite you to point your browser to: http://www.blackburnpress.com/woodplanforc.html or http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1930665504/qid%3D1027966963/sr%3D11-1/ref%3Dsr%5F11%5F1/102-1224297-3847355 Andrea Herbert The Blackburn Press Publishers of classic scientific and technical books P.O.Box 287, Caldwell, N.J. 07006 973-228-7077 Fax: 973-228-7276 AHerbert@BlackburnPress.com Explore the latest additions to our list at http://www.BlackburnPress.com .