Climate Change in the boreal forests - Research Proposal Example

Climate Change in the Boreal Forests Objective The threats to the northern boreal forests due to climate change are numerous. One of them is the forest migration. The purpose of this paper is to study the effects of climate change on forest migration rates and likely residual effects from the forest migration.BackgroundUsually, the word migration is associated with birds and other animals; hardly, anyone think about the migration of trees. Trees and plants too, in order to survive, migrate from their locations.

Lindsey (2002) establishes that Northern pines and spruce were established in the south started to move northward about 18,000 years ago due to ice age getting milder. It has been established now that since last ice age, the geographic range of plant species and tree in North America has changed and many boreal species are shifting northward. Methods Migration rate of trees and plants will be explored through review of the available scientific literature and by studying applicable data as well as geographical maps pertaining to the subject.

Scientists have been able to record the travels of boreal forest species in the past by linking the appearance and disappearance of tree with the Earths carbon dioxide level and temperature. These data will be further investigated and analyzed so that migration rates could be accurately established. The paper will also try to explore available models that have been employed to study the migration rate and consistency among the results derived from them. This will help correlate the results derived from the other statistical methods.

That is how the true picture of migration rate can be found.Conclusion and SignificanceDue to migration, boreal forests are likely to reduce at a much faster rate compared to what they can expand. The net effect will be drastic reduction in boreal forest cover releasing considerable amounts of carbon into the atmosphere. That will further speed up the rate of climate change setting a vicious cycle. The rate of migration, thus, will help predict the likely consequences in coming years and help us take remedial measures for the survival of all.

ReferenceLindsey, Rebecca, 2002. The Migrating Boreal Forest, Earth Observatory-NASA, http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/BorealMigration/boreal_migration.php, accessed February 17, 2012