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These datasets are associated with the following paper: Metsaranta, J.M., Mamet, S.D., Maillett, J., Barr, A.G. (2021). Comparison of tree-ring and eddy covariance derived annual ecosystem production estimates for jack pine and trembling aspen forests in Saskatchewan, Canada. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology. There are two files: (1) CBMOutput.zip. This contains the hybrid biometric modelled ecosystem C stock and flux estimates. (2) StandReconstructionData.zip. This contains the field measurement data and the tree level biomass and wood volume data for the Stand Reconstruction plots used to develop the hybrid biometric modelled estimates. The data are formatted as .csv files, and an associated Microsoft Excel spreadsheet explains the data columns and provides information on the associated units of measure.

Data from: 30 Years Brings Changes to the Arthropod Community of Kibale National Park, Uganda by Opito, E.A., T. Alanko, U. Kalbitzer, M. Nummelin, P. Omeja, A. Valtonen, and Colin A. Chapman. 2023, Biotropica, Article DOI: 10.1111/btp.13206

Aim Despite an increasing number of studies highlighting the impacts of climate change on boreal species, the main factors that will drive changes in species assemblages remain ambiguous. We study how species community composition would change following anthropogenic and natural disturbances. We determine the main drivers of assemblage dissimilarity for bird and beetle communities. Location Côte-Nord, Québec, Canada. Methods We quantify two climate-induced pathways based on direct and indirect effects on species occurrence under different harvest management scenarios. The direct climate effects illustrate the impact of climate variables while the indirect effects are reflected through habitat-based climate change. We develop empirical models to predict the distribution of more than 100 species over the next century. We analyze the regional and the latitudinal species assemblage dissimilarity by decomposing it into 'balanced variation in species occupancy and occurrence' and 'occupancy and occurrence gradient'. Results Both pathways increased dissimilarity in species assemblage. At the regional scale, both effects have an impact on decreasing the number of winning species. Yet, responses are much larger in magnitude under mixed climate effects (a mixture of direct and indirect effects). Regional assemblage dissimilarity reached 0.77 and 0.69 under mixed effects versus 0.09 and 0.10 under indirect effects for beetles and birds, respectively, between RCP8.5 and baseline climate scenarios when considering harvesting. Latitudinally, assemblage dissimilarity increased following the climate conditions pattern. Main conclusions The two pathways are complementary and alter biodiversity, mainly caused by species turnover. Yet, responses are much larger in magnitude under mixed climate effects. Therefore, the inclusion of climatic variables considers aspects other than just those related to forest landscapes, such as life cycles of animal species. Moreover, we expect differences in occupancy between the two studied taxa. This could indicate the potential range of change in boreal species concerning novel environmental conditions.

A major achievement in research supported by the Kluane Lake Research Station was the recovery, in 2001 – 02, of a suite of cores from the icefields of the central St. Elias Mountains, Yukon, by teams of researchers from Canada, the United States, and Japan. This project led to the development of parallel, long (103 – 104 year) ice-core records of climate and atmospheric change over an altitudinal range of more than 2 km, from the Eclipse Icefield (3017 m) to the ice-covered plateau of Mt. Logan (5340 m). These efforts built on earlier work recovering single ice cores in this region. Comparison of these records has allowed for variations in climate and atmospheric composition to be linked with changes in the vertical structure and dynamics of the North Pacific atmosphere, providing a unique perspective on these changes over the Holocene. Owing to their privileged location, cores from the St. Elias Icefields also contain a remarkably detailed record of aerosols from various sources around or across the North Pacific. In this paper we review major scientific findings from the study of St. Elias Mountain ice cores, focusing on five main themes: (1) The record of stable water isotopes (δ18O, δD), which has unique characteristics that differ from those of Greenland, other Arctic ice cores, and even among sites in the St. Elias; (2) the snow accumulation history; (3) the record of pollen, biomass burning aerosol, and desert dust deposition; (4) the record of long-range air pollutant deposition (sulphate and lead); and (5) the record of paleo-volcanism. Our discussion draws on studies published since 2000, but based on older ice cores from the St. Elias Mountains obtained in 1980 and 1996.

Logging is the main human disturbance impacting biodiversity in forest ecosystems. However, the impact of forest harvesting on biodiversity is modulated by abiotic conditions through complex relationships that remain poorly documented. Therefore, the interplay between forest management and climate change can no longer be ignored. Our aim was to study the expected long-term variations in the assemblage of bird and beetle communities following modifications in forest management under different climate change scenarios. We developed species distribution models to predict the occurrence of 88 species of birds and beetles in eastern Canadian boreal forests over the next century. We simulated three climate scenarios (baseline, RCP4.5 and RCP8.5) under which we varied the level of harvesting. We also analyzed the regional assemblage dissimilarity by decomposing it into balanced variations in species occupancy and occupancy gradient. We predict that forest harvesting will alter the diversity by increasing assemblage dissimilarity under all the studied climate scenarios, mainly due to species turnover. Species turnover intensity was greater for ground-dwelling beetles, probably because they have lower dispersal capacity than flying beetles or birds. A good dispersal capacity allows species to travel more easily between ecosystems across the landscape when they search for suitable habitats after a disturbance. Regionally, an overall increase in the probability of occupancy is projected for bird species, whereas a decrease is predicted for beetles, a variation that could reflect differences in ecological traits between taxa. Our results further predict a decrease in the number of species that increase their occupancy after harvest under the most severe climatic scenario for both taxa. We anticipate that under severe climate change, increasing forest disturbance will be detrimental to beetles associated with old forests but also with young forests after disturbances.

Abstract Recharging infrastructure (RI) deployment plays a vital role in improving the public recharging availability for transport electrification. Decarbonizing transportation using low-emission electricity requires massive RI network. Even though the consumers are reluctant to purchase electric vehicles (EVs) until RIs are sufficiently placed, the investors are not willing to invest in RIs due to recharging demand uncertainties. Therefore, a scientific planning framework is needed to ensure the sustainable deployment of EV-RIs in complex networks. In this study, a lifecycle thinking-based multi-period infrastructure-planning framework is proposed to develop sustainable public EV-RIs in an urban context. This framework consists of a temporal model to find the dynamic EV-RI demands, a stochastic model to obtain travel distances, and a multi-objective optimization model to select the best desirable capacities and locations for potential EV-RIs. A case study of a typical medium-scale municipality in Canada was assessed using the proposed framework and validated using conventional infrastructure planning scenarios. The geo-processing data, regional travel behaviors, and recharging characteristics were used as model inputs. The results of the case study showed that the proposed framework can be used to estimate multi-period public recharging demands, minimize lifecycle costs, maximize service coverage and infrastructure utilization, and ensure reasonable paybacks compared to conventional planning approaches. Moreover, this framework can be used to compare different investment assistances, which are required in the early stages of the RI deployment process to encourage investors. Furthermore, government and private institutions can use this framework to identify recharging demands, permitting, and developing RIs in the long-run.

Abstract The residential sector accounts for most of energy-consumption in developing countries in the form of traditional energy. The use of commercial energy is nominal and confined mostly to urban areas where fuelwood is already monetized. A model, based on an end-use/process analysis approach, is developed on a spreadsheet, which is capable of simulating scenarios to address issues of increasing traditional energy-demand caused by population growth, sustainable supply capacity of the existing energy resources, potential for development of new and renewable energy resources, technology. This paper is divided into two parts: general energy issues and the modelling approach, and the application of this approach to Nepal in the context of fuelwood-supply sustainability.

Additional file 1. Histotical and projected C stocks and fluxes.

Rapid, ongoing permafrost thaw of peatlands in the discontinuous permafrost zone is exposing a globally significant store of soil carbon (C) to microbial processes. Mineralisation and release of this peat C to the atmosphere as greenhouse gases is a potentially important feedback to climate change. Here we investigated the effects of permafrost thaw on peat C at a peatland complex in western Canada. We collected 15 complete peat cores (between 2.7 abd 4.5 m deep) along four chronosequences, from elevated permafrost plateaus to saturated thermokarst bogs that thawed up to 600 years ago. The peat cores were analysed for peat C storage and peat quality, as indicated by decomposition proxies (FTIR and C/N ratios) and potential decomposability using a 200-day aerobic incubation. Our results suggest net C loss following thaw, with average total peat C stocks decreasing by ~19.3 +/- 7.2 kg C m-2 over <600 years (~13% loss). Average post-thaw accumulation of new peat at the surface over the same period was ~13.1 +/- 2.5 kg C m-2. We estimate ~19% (+/- 5.8%) of deep peat (>40 cm below surface) C is lost following thaw (average 26 +/- 7.9 kg C m-2 over <600 years). Our FTIR analysis shows peat below the thaw transition in thermokarst bogs is slightly more decomposed than peat of a similar type and age in permafrost plateaus, but we found no significant changes to the quality or lability of deeper peat across the chronosequences. Our incubation results also showed no increase in C mineralisation of deep peat across the chronosequences. While these limited changes in peat quality in deeper peat following permafrost thaw highlight uncertainty in the exact mechanisms and processes for C loss, our analysis of peat C stocks shows large C losses following permafrost thaw in peatlands in western Canada.