National Forest Management Options in 

Response to Climate Change

Strategies to Help National 

Forest Managers Effectively 

Manage Climate Change Effects

 Reduce current environmental 

stresses

 Create resistance against climateexacerbated disturbances such 

as wildfire or insect outbreaks 

by thinning and fuel abatement 

treatments at landscape scales and 

strategically placed area treatments

 Apply early detection and rapid 

response systems to identify plant, 

animal, and ecosystem responses to 

climate change

 Plan for higher-elevation insect 

outbreaks, species mortality events, 

and altered fire regimes

 Facilitate natural selection by 

enhancing disturbances that initiate 

increased seedling development and 

genetic mixing

 Reduce homogeneity of stand 

structure and synchrony of 

disturbance patterns across broad 

landscapes by promoting diverse age 

classes, species mixes, and genetic 

diversity 

 Cultivate an increased 

understanding of climate change 

among FS employees

 Expand partnerships to capitalize 

on potential new ecosystem services 

opportunities under climate change

 Increase collaboration among 

federal agencies

Short Subjects from SAP 4.4 National Forests ♦ No. 1 ♦ July 2009

Photo courtesy of Tahoe National Forest.

The U.S. Forest Service’s mission is to sustain ecosystem health, diversity, and 

productivity to meet the needs of present and future generations. Climate 

change will amplify the already difficult task of managing National Forests 

for multiple goals. The U.S. Climate Change Science Program prepares synthesis and 

assessment products (SAPs) to support policy and decisionmaking related to climate 

change. One of these reports, SAP 4.4, reviews management options for adapting to 

climate variability and change in selected federally protected and managed areas. We 

provide an overview of the National Forest chapter here.

Adaptation Strategies

The effect of climate change on ecosystem structure, function, and services will 

depend on the ecosystem’s degree of sensitivity to climate change, the natural ability 

of plants and animals to adapt, and the availability of effective management options. 

Sensitivity to climate change is a function of ecosystem health and environmental stresses 

such as air pollution and invasive species. In nature, adaptation occurs as plants and animals 

react to environmental changes, including climate. Natural adaptation comes about 

through genetic changes, changes in phenology, and changes in behavior. 

The term “adaptation” 

is defined here as adjusting 

management of ecological, social, 

or economic systems in response 

to observed or anticipated climate 

change. The goal of adaptation 

is to reduce the risk of negative 

impacts to ecosystem services and 

to take advantage of any potential 

opportunities or benefits from 

climate change.

Broadly, adaptation may 

involve strategies of short-term 

management options that forestall 

the impacts of climate change 

and long-term options for anticipating and managing ecosystem change. Forestalling 

ecosystem change focuses on managing plants and animals so they are able to resist climate 

change effects. This option may allow time for further considerations while seeking to 

maintain existing ecosystem services. For animal species, enhanced coordination among 

multiple agencies that manage adjacent lands might sustain habitat continuity in the 

short-term. Under a continually changing climate, it might not be possible to manage all 

climate change effects. One goal of managing ecosystem change is to enable forests and 

rangelands to naturally adapt to climate change effects. These options seek to work with 

natural processes, such as species migration, stand mortality, and colonization events. 

The intentions are to avoid crossing thresholds and to avoid extreme loss that might 

occur if natural change is resisted or progresses unmodified through disturbance events 

altered by climate change.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and 

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marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, 

political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual’s income is derived from any 

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disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, 

large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice 

and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination, write to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 

1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) 

or (202) 720-6382 (TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

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Planning for Climate Change

Integrating climate change into policy development and planning could identify potential 

opportunities and barriers to adaptation across all levels of the agency. Quantitative assessments at 

the national/regional scales might provide strategic guidance for management options at finer scales. 

Further, broader social and economic factors and their influences across regions in terms of supplying 

ecosystem services could be evaluated quantitatively at the national level. Within a National Forest, 

planning offers the opportunity to identify vulnerabilities to climate change, such as the magnitude and 

timing (now or later) of potential impacts, the likelihood of impacts and confidence of those estimates, 

the potential for adaptation, and the vulnerabilities of associated human communities and economies.

Managing for Climate Change

A toolbox of multiple management options provides the most flexibility to address the spatial and 

temporal scales of management and decisionmaking. For example, management adjustments may 

best be made in some cases during or after a climatic event (such as drought) or disturbances (such 

as a wildfire). Large-scale disturbances would be viewed as windows of opportunity, during which a 

previously prepared adaptation plan would be implemented. Alternatively, management responses 

that anticipate future climate change would use information about the changing ecosystems and 

disturbance regimes to identify a proactive suite of management options. 

Adaptation is increasingly viewed as a necessary and complementary strategy to mitigation. 

Mitigation means reducing anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions from energy use and land use 

changes and increasing carbon sequestration potential in order to minimize the pace and extent of 

climate change.

Additional Information

We provide only a brief overview of the National Forest chapter. Additional information and the 

scientific background for this overview can be found in SAP 4.4: Preliminary Review of Adaptation 

Options for Climate-Sensitive Ecosystems and Resources: A Report by the U.S. Climate Change Science 

Program and the Subcommittee on Global Change Research at http://www.climatescience.gov/Library/

sap/sap4-4/final-report/. For a summary of frequently asked questions about climate change, see 

Climate Change and Ecosystems: Summary of Recent Findings http://www.climatescience.gov/Library/

sap/sap4-4/final-report/sap4-4-brochure-FAQ.pdf. For more information about climate change and 

natural resource management, see the U.S. Forest Service Climate Change Resource Center Web site: 

http://www.fs.fed.us/ccrc.