The role of protected areas in land use/land cover change and the carbon cycle in the conterminous United States

Lu, Xiaoliang; Zhou, Yuyu; Liu, Yaling; Le Page, Yannick

doi:10.1111/gcb.13816

The role of protected areas in land use/land cover change and the carbon cycle in the conterminous United States

Journal Article · Tue Aug 08 04:00:00 EDT 2017 · Global Change Biology

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.13816· OSTI ID:1423408

^[1]; ^[2]; Liu, Yaling ^[3]; Le Page, Yannick ^[4]

The Ecosystems Center, Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole MA USA
Departments of Geological and Atmospheric Sciences, Iowa State University, Ames IA USA
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Joint Global Change Research Institute, College Park MD USA
Department Tapada da Ajuda, Centro de Estudos Florestais, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon Portugal

Protected areas (PAs) cover about 22% of the conterminous United States. Understanding their role on historical land use and land cover change (LULCC) and on the carbon cycle is essential to provide guidance for environmental policies. In this study, we compiled historical LULCC and PAs data to explore these interactions within the terrestrial ecosystem model (TEM). We found that intensive LULCC occurred in the conterminous United States from 1700 to 2005. More than 3 million km2 of forest, grassland and shrublands were converted into agricultural lands, which caused 10,607 Tg C release from land ecosystems to atmosphere. PAs had experienced little LULCC as they were generally established in the 20th century after most of the agricultural expansion had occurred. PAs initially acted as a carbon source due to land use legacies, but their accumulated carbon budget switched to a carbon sink in the 1960s, sequestering an estimated 1,642 Tg C over 1700–2005, or 13.4% of carbon losses in non-PAs. We also find that PAs maintain larger carbon stocks and continue sequestering carbon in recent years (2001–2005), but at a lower rate due to increased heterotrophic respiration as well as lower productivity associated to aging ecosystems. It is essential to continue efforts to maintain resilient, biodiverse ecosystems and avoid large-scale disturbances that would release large amounts of carbon in PAs.

Research Organization:: Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (US)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE

DOE Contract Number:: AC05-76RL01830

OSTI ID:: 1423408

Report Number(s):: PNNL-SA-130159

Journal Information:: Global Change Biology, Journal Name: Global Change Biology Journal Issue: 2 Vol. 24; ISSN 1354-1013

Publisher:: Wiley

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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