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Input files for the ForClim model (version 4.0.1) used in the associated paper. They can be used to to reproduce results of the simulation study. The ForClim model, including the source code, executable and documentation, is freely available under an Open Access license from the website of the original developers at https://ites-fe.ethz.ch/openaccess/. The original climatic dataset used to generate the ForClim input climate files at each site in South Tyrol is freely available at https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.924502 while the CHELSA climate data for future scenarios are available at https://www.chelsa-climate.org. If interested in using this dataset for a research study or a project, please contact Marco Mina ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Hillebrand L, Marzini S, Crespi A, Hiltner U & Mina M (2023) Contrasting impacts of climate change on protection forests of the Italian Alps. Frontiers in Forests and Global Change, 6, 2023 https://doi.org/10.3389/ffgc.2023.1240235 ABSTRACT. Protection forests play a key role in protecting settlements, people, and infrastructures from gravitational hazards such as rockfalls and avalanches in mountain areas. Rapid climate change is challenging the role of protection forests by altering their dynamics, structure, and composition. Information on local- and regional-scale impacts of climate change on protection forests is critical for planning adaptations in forest management. We used a model of forest dynamics (ForClim) to assess the succession of mountain forests in the Eastern Alps and their protective effects under future climate change scenarios. We investigated eleven representative forest sites along an elevational gradient across multiple locations within an administrative region, covering wide differences in tree species structure, composition, altitude, and exposition. We evaluated protective performance against rockfall and avalanches using numerical indices (i.e., linker functions) quantifying the degree of protection from metrics of simulated forest structure and composition. Our findings reveal that climate warming has a contrasting impact on protective effects in mountain forests of the Eastern Alps. Climate change is likely to not affect negatively all protection forest stands but its impact depends on site and stand conditions. Impacts were highly contingent to the magnitude of climate warming, with increasing criticality under the most severe climate projections. Forests in lower-montane elevations and those located in dry continental valleys showed drastic changes in forest structure and composition due to drought-induced mortality while subalpine forests mostly profited from rising temperatures and a longer vegetation period. Overall, avalanche protection will likely be negatively affected by climate change, while the ability of forests to maintain rockfall protection depends on the severity of expected climate change and their vulnerability due to elevation and topography, with most subalpine forests less prone to loosing protective effects. Proactive measures in management should be taken in the near future to avoid losses of protective effects in the case of severe climate change in the Alps. Given the heterogeneous impact of climate warming, such adaptations can be aided by model-based projections and high local resolution studies to identify forest stand types that might require management priority for maintaining protective effects in the future.

Comprehensive and reliable information on anthropogenic sources of greenhouse gas emissions is required to track progress towards keeping warming well below 2°C as agreed upon in the Paris Agreement. Here we provide a dataset on anthropogenic GHG emissions 1970-2019 with a broad country and sector coverage. We build the dataset from recent releases from the “Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research” (EDGAR) for CO2 emissions from fossil fuel combustion and industry (FFI), CH4 emissions, N2O emissions, and fluorinated gases and use a well-established fast-track method to extend this dataset from 2018 to 2019. We complement this with information on net CO2 emissions from land use, land-use change and forestry (LULUCF) from three available bookkeeping models.

Methane emissions from aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems play a crucial role in global warming, which is particularly affecting high-latitude ecosystems. As major contributors to methane emissions in natural environments, the microbial communities involved in methane production and oxidation deserve a special attention. Microbial diversity and activity are expected to be strongly affected by the already observed (and further predicted) temperature increase in high-latitude ecosystems, eventually resulting in disrupted feedback methane emissions. The METHANOBASE project has been designed to investigate the intricate relations between microbial diversity and methane emissions in Arctic, Subarctic and Subantarctic ecosystems, under natural (baseline) conditions and in response to simulated temperature increments. We report here a small subunit ribosomal RNA (16S rRNA) analysis of lake, peatland and mineral soil ecosystems.

Project: Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) datasets - These data have been generated as part of the internationally-coordinated Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6; see also GMD Special Issue: http://www.geosci-model-dev.net/special_issue590.html). The simulation data provides a basis for climate research designed to answer fundamental science questions and serves as resource for authors of the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC-AR6). CMIP6 is a project coordinated by the Working Group on Coupled Modelling (WGCM) as part of the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP). Phase 6 builds on previous phases executed under the leadership of the Program for Climate Model Diagnosis and Intercomparison (PCMDI) and relies on the Earth System Grid Federation (ESGF) and the Centre for Environmental Data Analysis (CEDA) along with numerous related activities for implementation. The original data is hosted and partially replicated on a federated collection of data nodes, and most of the data relied on by the IPCC is being archived for long-term preservation at the IPCC Data Distribution Centre (IPCC DDC) hosted by the German Climate Computing Center (DKRZ). The project includes simulations from about 120 global climate models and around 45 institutions and organizations worldwide. Summary: These data include the subset used by IPCC AR6 WGI authors of the datasets originally published in ESGF for 'CMIP6.CMIP.CMCC.CMCC-CM2-SR5.historical' with the full Data Reference Syntax following the template 'mip_era.activity_id.institution_id.source_id.experiment_id.member_id.table_id.variable_id.grid_label.version'. The CMCC-CM2-SR5 climate model, released in 2016, includes the following components: aerosol: MAM3, atmos: CAM5.3 (1deg; 288 x 192 longitude/latitude; 30 levels; top at ~2 hPa), land: CLM4.5 (BGC mode), ocean: NEMO3.6 (ORCA1 tripolar primarly 1 deg lat/lon with meridional refinement down to 1/3 degree in the tropics; 362 x 292 longitude/latitude; 50 vertical levels; top grid cell 0-1 m), seaIce: CICE4.0. The model was run by the Fondazione Centro Euro-Mediterraneo sui Cambiamenti Climatici, Lecce 73100, Italy (CMCC) in native nominal resolutions: aerosol: 100 km, atmos: 100 km, land: 100 km, ocean: 100 km, seaIce: 100 km.

Hydrochar, carbon-rich material produced during the thermochemical processing of biomass, is receiving increased attention due to its potential value as soil amendment. It can increase agroforestry systems’ productivity through direct and indirect effects on growth and soil quality. Hydrochar may also directly help mitigate climate change by sequestering stable carbon compounds in the soil and perhaps indirectly through increased C uptake by trees. In this research, we aim to evaluate how the application of hydrochar produced by two feedstock types, Cynara cardunculus L. (Hc) residuals and sewage sludge (Hs), and in two different doses (3 and 6 kg m−2) could improve the growth and water use efficiency of Populus alba L., a fast-growing tree species largely used in agroforestry as bioenergy crops and in C sequestration. We considered five plants per treatment, and we measured apical growth, secondary growth, leaf area and intrinsic water use efficiency in each plant for the whole growing season from February to October 2022. Our results highlighted that hydrochar applications stimulate the growth and water use efficiency of plants and that the double dose (6 kg m−2) of both hydrochars, and particularly Hc, had positive effects on plant performance, especially during extremely hot periods. Indeed, the year 2022 was characterized by a heat wave during the summer period, and this condition allowed us to evaluate how plants, growing in soils amended with hydrochar, could perform under climate extremes. Our findings showed that the control plants experienced severe damage in terms of dried stems and dried leaves during summer 2022, while hydrochar applications reduced these effects.

Project: Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) datasets - These data have been generated as part of the internationally-coordinated Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6; see also GMD Special Issue: http://www.geosci-model-dev.net/special_issue590.html). The simulation data provides a basis for climate research designed to answer fundamental science questions and serves as resource for authors of the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC-AR6). CMIP6 is a project coordinated by the Working Group on Coupled Modelling (WGCM) as part of the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP). Phase 6 builds on previous phases executed under the leadership of the Program for Climate Model Diagnosis and Intercomparison (PCMDI) and relies on the Earth System Grid Federation (ESGF) and the Centre for Environmental Data Analysis (CEDA) along with numerous related activities for implementation. The original data is hosted and partially replicated on a federated collection of data nodes, and most of the data relied on by the IPCC is being archived for long-term preservation at the IPCC Data Distribution Centre (IPCC DDC) hosted by the German Climate Computing Center (DKRZ). The project includes simulations from about 120 global climate models and around 45 institutions and organizations worldwide. Summary: These data include the subset used by IPCC AR6 WGI authors of the datasets originally published in ESGF for 'CMIP6.ScenarioMIP.CMCC.CMCC-CM2-SR5.ssp245' with the full Data Reference Syntax following the template 'mip_era.activity_id.institution_id.source_id.experiment_id.member_id.table_id.variable_id.grid_label.version'. The CMCC-CM2-SR5 climate model, released in 2016, includes the following components: aerosol: MAM3, atmos: CAM5.3 (1deg; 288 x 192 longitude/latitude; 30 levels; top at ~2 hPa), land: CLM4.5 (BGC mode), ocean: NEMO3.6 (ORCA1 tripolar primarly 1 deg lat/lon with meridional refinement down to 1/3 degree in the tropics; 362 x 292 longitude/latitude; 50 vertical levels; top grid cell 0-1 m), seaIce: CICE4.0. The model was run by the Fondazione Centro Euro-Mediterraneo sui Cambiamenti Climatici, Lecce 73100, Italy (CMCC) in native nominal resolutions: aerosol: 100 km, atmos: 100 km, land: 100 km, ocean: 100 km, seaIce: 100 km.

Project: Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) datasets - These data have been generated as part of the internationally-coordinated Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6; see also GMD Special Issue: http://www.geosci-model-dev.net/special_issue590.html). The simulation data provides a basis for climate research designed to answer fundamental science questions and serves as resource for authors of the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC-AR6). CMIP6 is a project coordinated by the Working Group on Coupled Modelling (WGCM) as part of the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP). Phase 6 builds on previous phases executed under the leadership of the Program for Climate Model Diagnosis and Intercomparison (PCMDI) and relies on the Earth System Grid Federation (ESGF) and the Centre for Environmental Data Analysis (CEDA) along with numerous related activities for implementation. The original data is hosted and partially replicated on a federated collection of data nodes, and most of the data relied on by the IPCC is being archived for long-term preservation at the IPCC Data Distribution Centre (IPCC DDC) hosted by the German Climate Computing Center (DKRZ). The project includes simulations from about 120 global climate models and around 45 institutions and organizations worldwide. Summary: These data include the subset used by IPCC AR6 WGI authors of the datasets originally published in ESGF for 'CMIP6.ScenarioMIP.CMCC.CMCC-ESM2' with the full Data Reference Syntax following the template 'mip_era.activity_id.institution_id.source_id.experiment_id.member_id.table_id.variable_id.grid_label.version'. The CMCC-ESM2 climate model, released in 2017, includes the following components: aerosol: MAM3, atmos: CAM5.3 (1deg; 288 x 192 longitude/latitude; 30 levels; top at ~2 hPa), land: CLM4.5 (BGC mode), ocean: NEMO3.6 (ORCA1 tripolar primarly 1 deg lat/lon with meridional refinement down to 1/3 degree in the tropics; 362 x 292 longitude/latitude; 50 vertical levels; top grid cell 0-1 m), ocnBgchem: BFM5.2, seaIce: CICE4.0. The model was run by the Fondazione Centro Euro-Mediterraneo sui Cambiamenti Climatici, Lecce 73100, Italy (CMCC) in native nominal resolutions: aerosol: 100 km, atmos: 100 km, land: 100 km, ocean: 100 km, ocnBgchem: 100 km, seaIce: 100 km.

With an approach combining crop modelling and biotechnology to assess the performance of three durum wheat cultivars (Creso, Duilio, Simeto) in a climate change context, weather and agronomic datasets over the period 1973–2004 from two sites, Benatzu and Ussana (Southern Sardinia, Itay), were used and the model responses were interpreted considering the role of DREB genes in the genotype performance with a focus on drought conditions. The CERES-Wheat crop model was calibrated and validated for grain yield, earliness and kernel weight. Forty-eight synthetic scenarios were used: 6 scenarios with increasing maximum air temperature; 6 scenarios with decreasing rainfall; 36 scenarios combining increasing temperature and decreasing rainfall. The simulated effects on yields, anthesis and kernel weights resulted in yield reduction, increasing kernel weight, and shortened growth duration in both sites. Creso (late cultivar) was the most sensitive to simulated climate conditions. Simeto and Duilio (early cultivars) showed lower simulated yield reductions and a larger anticipation of anthesis date. Observed data showed the same responses for the three cultivars in both sites. The CERES-Wheat model proved to be effective in representing reality and can be used in crop breeding programs with a molecular approach aiming at developing molecular markers for the resistance to drought stress.

The land transformation process in the last decades produced the urbanization growth in flat and coastal areas all over the world. The combination of natural phenomena and human pressure is likely one of the main factors that enhance coastal dynamics. These factors lead to an increase in coastal risk (considered as the product of hazard, exposure, and vulnerability) also in view of future climate change scenarios. Although each of these factors has been intensively studied separately, a comprehensive analysis of the mutual relationship of these elements is an open task. Therefore, this work aims to assess the possible mutual interaction of land transformation and coastal management zones, studying the possible impact on local coastal communities. The idea is to merge the techniques coming from urban planning with data and methodology coming from the coastal engineering within the frame of a holistic approach. The main idea is to relate urban and land changes to coastal management. Then, the study aims to identify if stakeholders’ pressure motivated the deployment of rigid structures instead of shoreline variations related to energetic and sedimentary balances. The influence of coastal protection (described by an indicator taking into account the linear density of the rigid protection extension alongshore) measures have been considered. Finally, the economical performances in the period just after the land transformation have been studied by means of a dimensionless index based on the concept of the local unit. The method has been applied to the case study of the Abruzzo Region. Results reveal a large urbanization growth and a generalized over-protection of the coast with a resulting spatial alternation of shoreline retreat and advance. On the other hand, the analysis of the local economy reveals that the presence of tourism activities does not necessarily lead to an increase in the local economy. Indeed, the most important improvement in local economies in the region can be associated with coastal stretches characterized by a high environmental value.