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Forest Hydrology and Biogeochemistry pp 711–725Cite as

Forests and Global Change

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Part of the book series: Ecological Studies ((ECOLSTUD,volume 216))

Abstract

Forest ecosystems influence climate through physical, chemical, and biological processes that affect planetary energetics, the hydrologic cycle, and atmospheric composition (Bonan 2008). Physical processes at the intersection of the biosphere and geosphere, commonly referred to as biogeophysics, include momentum transfer and land–atmosphere energy fluxes (absorption and reflection of solar radiation, absorption and emission of longwave radiation, partitioning of net radiation into sensible and latent heat fluxes, and storage of heat in the soil). Hydrologic processes include interception of precipitation, throughfall, stemflow, infiltration, runoff, evapotranspiration, soil water dynamics, and snow melt. Forests additionally influence climate and atmospheric composition through biogeochemical processes including the exchanges of CO2, CH4, N2O, biogenic volatile organic compounds, and aerosols with the atmosphere. Forest ecosystems are now recognized as providing important climate forcing and feedback.

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Acknowledgments

The National Center for Atmospheric Research is sponsored by the National Science Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO, USA

    Gordon B. Bonan

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  1. Gordon B. Bonan
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Correspondence to Gordon B. Bonan .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. of Geography, Center for Climate Research, University of Delaware, Newark, 19716-2541, Delaware, USA

    Delphis F. Levia

  2. , Department of Geography, Thompson Rivers University, Kamloops, V2C 5N3, British Columbia, Canada

    Darryl Carlyle-Moses

  3. , Department of International Affairs, University of Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8577, Japan

    Tadashi Tanaka

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Bonan, G.B. (2011). Forests and Global Change. In: Levia, D., Carlyle-Moses, D., Tanaka, T. (eds) Forest Hydrology and Biogeochemistry. Ecological Studies, vol 216. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-1363-5_35

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