ResearchModeling Siberian Boreal Forest Land-Cover Change

Modeling Siberian Boreal Forest Land-Cover Change (H.H. Shugart)

Develop a remote-sensing based characterization of Siberian boreal forest change including both natural and human factors, and to integrate this into a predictive model of future sustainability. To achieve this goal we will address four objectives: 1) develop regional LANDSAT datasets, 2) use LANDSAT-derived datasets to characterize types and patterns of change relative to human settlements, 3) intergrate LANDSAT-derived data into an ecosystems dynamics model to quantify/map post-disturbance succession and biomass/carbon, 4) combine the remote sensing, human factors with the ecological succession and carbon in a predictive spatial model and evaluate this for sustainability scenarios.