alaskan tundra fires in a time of rapid climate change · 10/10/2017 · arctic tundra biome…. _...
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2017 Fall Alaska Fire Science Workshop Fairbanks, AK
Alaskan tundra fires in a time of rapid climate change
Dan Mann1, Carson Baughman2, Ben Gaglioti3, Ben Jones2
1 Geosciences Department, University of Alaska2 US Geological Survey3 Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University
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NATURE (2015)
Arctic and Subarcticcontain ½ of all soil carbon worldwide1035 +- 150 Pg of C
(1 Pg = 1 billion tons)
ArcticOcean
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GreenlandIce Sheet
Some of this high-latitude organic C is stored in tundra.
The tundra biome covers 11.5 million km2.
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Tundra fires can contribute to global warming.
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tundra fires release:
CO2
CH4
N2Oblack carbon
Forster et al (2007). IPCC. Chapter 2
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annual area of tundra burned in Alaskacorrelates with climate
Frontiers Ecology Environment (2015)thresholds
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Climate is changing (warmer and drier)
McAfee et al (2013) JGR-A
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Key Uncertainties re tundra fire regimes
1) Fire frequency: Is it actually increasing?
2) Global effects: How does fire affect the trace-gas budget of tundra?
ARF
Mack et al (2011) SI material
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3) Impacts on permafrost and geomorphology
4) Post-fire responses of biota
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1) Tundra fire frequency: Is it increasing?
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lake inside ANAK Fire lake outside ANAK FireChipman et al (2015) Biogeosciences
area of Anak. River Fire last burned 7000 years ago
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threshold signifying a fire was determined for boreal forest fires
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Rocha et al
(despite long fire-return interval suggested by existing lake-charcoal records)….
observational records suggest fire frequency isincreasing
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fire
em
issi
on
s (T
gC
/yr)
On the other hand…..34 experts feel major increase in
burning of circumboreal tundra is unlikely.
Environmental Research Letters (2016)
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On the other hand …. fire history of North Slope is more complex than previously thought.
Ben Jones keeps finding new fire scars.
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1) Is tundra fire frequency increasing?
maybe
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2) Global effects: How do fires affect the trace-gas
budget of tundra?
2013 Kucher Creek fire
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trace-gas budgets
CO2CO2
How much? How fast? How does sequestration compare to release during fires?
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without fire, organic C accumulates at many tundra sites
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Jason Stuckey, Toolik Field Station
Mack et al (2011)
NATURE
Anaktuvuk River fire, 2007
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Jason Stuckey, Toolik Field Station
Mack et al (2011)
NATURE
“
“
1 teragram = 1 trillion grams
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Mack et al (2011) NATURE
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“(The Anaktuvuk River fire) released….an amount of carbon similar in magnitude to the annual net C sink for the entire Arctic tundra biome….”
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“(The Anaktuvuk River fire) released….an amount of carbon similar in magnitude to the annual net C sink for the entire Arctic tundra biome….”
accumulated in just 50 years
2.1 Tg C fire-1 versus 3-4 Tg C yr-1
1 teragram = 1 trillion grams
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ARF burned just 1000 km2 of a biome covering 11.5 million km2.
2% of all the C sequestered in the tundra biome accumulates in the 1000 km2 area of the Anaktuvuk River Fire every year (!?)
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Eriphorum grows fast, but not that fast.
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2) Global effects of tundra fires remain uncertain
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3) Impacts on permafrost and geomorphology
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Doubling in micro-topographic relief in burn areas;340% increase in yedoma terrain…. LIDAR data.
Burning of vegetation and organic matter trigger rapid deepening of active layer
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Increased ground heat flux causes rapid deepening of active layers
Noatak valley
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thermokarst detachment slidesafter Anaktuvuk River fire
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3) Impacts on permafrost and geomorphology
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3) Impacts on permafrost and geomorphology
Could widespread tundra fires trigger an ecological regime shift?
dreaded shrubbery invasion?
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4) Post-fire responses of biota?
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Eriophorum vaginatum:superbly fire-adapted
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Anaktuvuk River Fire2017 Site Visits
But….severe burning causes widespread establishment of grass and shrubs (and other things)
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severe burn; white spruce invades
moderate severity; shrub recovery,no spruce
treeline expansion after a ca. 1920 fire in Noatak valley
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Uncertainties about tundra fire regimes
1) Fire frequency: Is it increasing?
2) Global effects: How does burning affect trace gases?
3) Impacts on permafrost and geomorphology
4) Post-fire responses of biota
What we are up to inour JFSP project
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Ben Jones: locating more old burns &quantifying geomorphic changes
Ben Gaglioti: improving/expanding the lake-charcoal record of tundra fires
Carson Baughman: ecologicalconsequences of burning
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Acknowledgements
University of Alaska Fairbanks
Bureau of Land Management
Joint Fire Sciences Program
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total C fixed in circumboreal tundra biome per year = 100 kg
C released from Anak River Fire in 2007 = 100 kg
accumulation of C in area of Anak River Fire AD 1957-2007 = 100 kg
accumulation of C in area of Anak River fire per year = 100 kg / 50 yr = 2 kg /yr
Annual C accumulation in area of Anak River Fire as % of total C fixed in tundra biome every
year = (2 kg/yr / 100 kg/yr) = 2%
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these samples could be >>> AD 1950
http://www2.ocean.washington.edu/oc540/lec01-27/
Organic C of mixed ages?
Mack et al (2011)
of tree rings
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most tussocks not so deeply buried in organics
Were C stocks overestimated ?
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Tundra burning leaves subtle charcoal records
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lake-sediment records of charcoal
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grand lightning-strike transect of lake-charcoal records
Alaska Fire Service - BLM