News and Announcements
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The global carbon cycle is a key biogeochemical cycle that controls Earth's climate and life. Since the beginning of direct high-precision atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) measurements on Mauna Loa and the South Pole more than 50 years ago, scientific interest into the study of the global carbon cycle and its perturbations by man and climate has increased dramatically. The recognition by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change of carbon dioxide as a major driver behind the current and future warming of the world climate and the subsequent establishment of international initiatives to curb carbon dioxide emissions, such as the Kyoto protocol and the Copenhagen Accord, has further greatly intensified global carbon cycle research into understanding the changing carbon cycle in the past, present and future, as well as carbon management strategies for sustainable development. Since 1981 the worldwide scientific community meets every four years at an international conference for an exchange of the latest knowledge and to gain a better understanding on the multitude of interdisciplinary aspects of the global carbon cycle. The 9th International Carbon Dioxide Conference will take place in Beijing, China, June 3-7, 2013. |
Local Research News |
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Nate Pierce received a Science Foundation Arizona Graduate Research Fellow award for the 2011-12 academic year. As part of his award, Nate will collaborate with educational professionals in the development of activities aimed at incorporating science and technology (specifically natural resources ecology and management) into K-12 classes. | |
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Dr. Archer and colleagues recently completed an analysis of the impact of shrub proliferation in arid and semi-arid regions on the North American Carbon Cycle. Their work (Barger et al. 2011) is part of the North American Carbon Program and will appear in a special issue of the Journal of Geophysical Research – Biogeosciences slated for release in Autumn 2011.
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Spencer Sussman, MS student in the Archer lab, serves on a committee that oversees the University of Arizona's "Green Fund." Charged with developing and promoting a sustainable campus, the Green Fund Committee sets priorities for funding allocation strategies, develops and implements communications strategies, and calls for, selects and manages proposals for campus sustainability projects. |
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Desert Grasslands in Transition:
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Steve Woods awarded grant to study "Influences of Society, Politics and Local Knowledge on Ranch Management." Steve is a PhD candidate in Arid Lands.
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National/Global Research News |
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NSF Project takes a new look at decomposition in drylands Steve Archer and Dave Breshears are teaming up with Paul Barnes (Loyola University-New Orleans), Rebecca McCulley (University of Keytucky) and Heather Throop (New Mexico State University) to look at how photodegradation and erosion interact to influence decomposition in arid ecosystems
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Conservation Effects Assessment Project (CEAP): Grazing Lands Dr. Archer collaborated with Kirk Davies (Agricultural Research Service - Burns, OR), Tim Fulbright (Texas A&M-Kingsville), Kirk McDaniel (New Mexico State), Brad Wilcox (Texas A&M) and Katie Predick (U of A) on a synthesis project aimed at critically assessing the 'Brush Management" conservation practice on grazing lands. The synthesis was conducted in collaboration with NRCS Management Specialists George Chavez, Homer Sanchez, Pat Shaver and Chuck Stanley. The project focuses on the ecological consequences of woody plant encroachment in grassland and savanna ecosystems and the extent to which brush management can be used as a tool to promote and sustain biological diversity, plant productivity, watershed health and nutrient cycling on managed rangelands of arid and semi-arid regions. Brush management is one of several conservation practices being formally evaluated in the Grazing Lands CEAP project. The synthesis volume was released in November 2011. |
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USA National Phenology Network |
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NEON | |
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Livestock in a Changing Landscape(.pdf) The rapid increase of intensive (confined) livestock production and the land and livelihood needs of extensive production (rangeland grazing) are crucial challenges. The livestock sector emerges as a very significant contributor to environmental problems at every scale from local to global, including land degradation, climate change and air pollution, water shortage and pollution and loss of biodiversity. Formulating responses to the wide range of consequences remains a complex task, but there are many promising solutions. |
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Miscellaneous News |
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U of A faculty, staff and students can obtain statistical advice at no charge through the Statistical Consulting course (STAT 688). This course is taught by Dean Billheimer PhD, during the Fall 2012 semester. In addition to providing statistical assistance to the campus community, the goal of the course is to introduce scientifically relevant problems to the statistics and biostatistics graduate students outside the classroom setting. You can find out more at theStatistics Consulting Laboratory. |
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Wild Rangelands: Conserving Wildlife While Maintaining Livestock in Semi-Arid Ecosystems Rangeland ecosystems support half of the world’s livestock while also providing habitats for some of the most charismatic of wildlife species. This book examines the pressures on rangeland ecosystems worldwide from human land use, over-hunting, and subsistence and commercial farming of livestock and crops. Leading experts have pooled their experiences from all continents to cover the ecological, sociological, political, veterinary, and economic aspects of rangeland management today. * The first book to examine rangelands from a conservation perspective * Emphasizes the balance between the needs of people and livestock, and wildlife * Written by an international team of experts covering all geographical regions * Examines ecological, sociological, political, veterinary, and economic aspects of rangeland management and wildland conservation, providing a diversity of perspectives not seen before in a single volume Dr. Archer authored Chapter 4 "Rangeland conservation and shrub encroachment: new perspectives on an old problem.
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Understanding Soil Carbon Sequestration Dr. Archer collaborated with Tom Boutton (Texas A&M), Julia Liao (Rice), and Tim Filley (Purdue) on a chapter in this new book entitled "Belowground Carbon Storage and Dynamics Accompanying Woody Plant Encroachment in a Subtropical Savanna."
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The Effects of Climate Change on Agriculture, Land Resources, Water Resources, and Biodiversity in the United States Dr. Archer worked with Cliff Dahm (U New Mexico), Travis Huxman (U Arizona), Greg Okin (UCLA), & Bill Schlesinger (Carey Institute of Ecosystem Studies) to develop the Arid Lands section of the Land Resources chapter.
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Western
North American Juniperus Communities Dr. Archer co-authored Chapter 12: "The combined influence of grazing, fire, and herbaceous productivity on tree–grass interactions" with Sam Fuhlendorf (Oklahoma State), Dave Engle (Iowa State) and Fred Smeins & Charles Taylor (Texas A&M) |