Observations and assessment of forest carbon recovery following disturbance in North America
Disturbance processes of various types substantially modify ecosystem carbon dynamics both temporally and spatially. The recovery of forests from disturbance typically results in carbon sequestration, but the point at which ecosystems move from being net sources to sinks of carbon is quite variable depending on a number of factors. Here we review some of the essential measurements needed to track the dynamics of carbon associated with forest disturbance, the longer-term recovery of carbon pools following disturbance, and consider the measurements used to document recovery, as well as how they vary with the type of disturbance. First we provide a brief overview of the relevance of disturbance to carbon dynamics. Specifically, we address 3 topics: (1) the different measurements needed to characterize recovery from different types of disturbance (e.g. fire, insects, harvest); (2) the essential measurements required to quantify the dynamics of carbon components associated with forest recovery; (3) the utility of multiple types of observations (lines of evidence) in documenting recovery from disturbance. Related to these topics we then explore a series of specific types of disturbance (fire, insects, harvest), and the relative importance of various factors (and associated measurements) that influence carbon pools and fluxes in different systems (boreal and temperate). These topics and associated research questions are focused on North America, but aspects are undoubtedly relevant to other forested ecosystems.