Understanding the magnitude and longevity of wildfire effects in forested watersheds and subsequent impacts to downstream aquatic ecosystems and communities requires congruent investigation into post-fire aquatic and terrestrial processes. However, results from wildfire studies are often confounded by pre- and post-fire land management actions and based on either hydrologic or...
Severe wildfires are increasing in the western United States, impacting vegetation structure, and in turn, forest regeneration conditions. These wildfires are also raising a substantial amount of scientific and management concern regarding the resilience of forested ecosystems, or the ability of the ecosystem to return to a pre-fire condition. This...
Native populations of forest trees are specifically adapted to the climates they inhabit. The farther trees are moved from their local climates (i.e., as the climatic transfer distance increases), the more growth and survival tend to decrease. The transfer limit is the climatic transfer distance beyond which plantation performance is...
The spread of nonnative species across the globe has contributed to biodiversity loss and changes in ecosystem structure and function. Monitoring the introduction, naturalization, and spread of introduced species is critical in abating negative impacts wrought by species invasions. However, providing basic information concerning the presence or spread of many...
Juniper (Juniperus spp.) woodlands are native but expanding ecological communities that were historically limited by the natural fire return interval of the sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) steppe. These woodlands are often a mix of pinyon pine (Pinus spp.) and juniper that have increased significantly over the last century. This expansion has...
The woodlands of New York City's Central Park have seen varying levels of management and neglect since the creation of the park over 150 years ago. The Central Park Conservancy has aimed to restore, enhance, and elevate the stewardship of the park, including its woodlands and other Natural Areas, since...
An impediment to use of exotic and bioengineered trees in many places is their propensity for spread by pollen and/or seeds. Our laboratory has been using gene editing to induce mutations in floral genes as means to impart stable and reliable genetic containment when this is desirable from social (markets,...
Every year in North America homes in the Wildland-Urban interface (WUI) are destroyed by wildfires. The creation of defensible space around homes in the WUI, through the management of vegetation can help mitigate some of the risk posed by fire. While many homeowners recognize the need for defensible space around...
The City of Pittsburgh, formerly the capital of the American steel industry, suffered economic and social collapse in the late 1980s and 1990s. Since then, it has experienced an economic renaissance supported by the tech and medical care industries. However, despite the surprising recovery of the city, collapsed tax bases...
The Red Dog Mine transports concentrated zinc and lead ore in northwestern Alaska through Cape Krusenstern National monument along a haul road. High metal levels in the moss Hylocomium splendens along the haul road have been attributed to ore dust released during transport. The mine has implemented several pollution abatement...