Projecting Future Effects of Land Management, Natural Disturbance,a nd CO2 on Woody Encorchment in the Northern Great Plains in a Changing Climate

Project ID: G12AC20241

Federal Agency: U.S. Geological Survey

Partner Institution: Oregon State University

Fiscal Year: 2012

Initial Funding: $155,985

Total Funding: $155,985

Project Type: Research

Project Disciplines: Biological

Principal Investigator: Bachelet, Dominique

Abstract: The goals of this research are to identify appropriate regional climate model projections for the northern Great Plains (NGP), customize the MC1 model for the NGP region with a woody encroachment focus, and use the climate projections and the MC1 model to project future vegetation in the NGP under likely climate, CO2, and management scenarios. This information can be used by federal, state, and private land managers to understand how woody encroachment into NGP grasslands, as well as other vegetation changes, are likely to be influenced by increasing atmospheric CO2 concentration, the accompanying climate changes, and land management practices such as prescribed burning, fire suppression, and grazing.