Life Sciences Commons^™

Effects Of Drought On Forests And Rangelands In The United States: A Comprehensive Science Synthesis, James M. Vose, James S. Clark, Charles H. Luce, Toral Patel-Weynand

USDA Forest Service / UNL Faculty Publications

This assessment provides input to the reauthorized National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) and the National Climate Assessment (NCA), and it establishes the scientific foundation needed to manage for drought resilience and adaptation. Focal areas include drought characterization; drought impacts on forest processes and disturbances such as insect outbreaks and wildfire; and consequences on forest and rangeland values. Drought can be a severe natural disaster with substantial social and economic consequences. Drought becomes most obvious when large-scale changes are observed; however, even moderate drought can have long-lasting impacts on the structure and function of forests and rangelands without these obvious …