Climate Ecosystems Nexus

A special issue of Climate (ISSN 2225-1154).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2021) | Viewed by 22934

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Future Ecosystems Lab, Institute of Environment and Ecology, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School, Tsinghua University, Shenzhen 518055, China
Interests: biocomplexity; collective dynamics; ecology and evolution of biological and socio-technological systems; systemic risk analysis; decision science; complex networks; network science; information theory; stochastic processes; fractals; uncertainty; ecohydrology; hydrodynamics; sustainability; ecosystem health; ecodesign; ecosystem modeling; data science; biomimicry; bio-inspired design; macroecology; physiophysics; ecosystem pathology; forecasting; interdisciplinary applications of statistical physics; design by analogy; food systems; physio-linguistics; microbiome; epigenetics; environment; aquatic and marine ecosystems
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Climate has always been the major driver for the ecology and evolution of ecosystems’ populations. In this Special Issue, we wish to invite studies that quantify the nexus between climate and socio-ecological dynamics as well as biological dynamics at multiple scales. An emphasis on extremes, tipping points, and climate-based forecasting models is welcome. We also invite papers that try to address the design and management solutions of ecosystem structures, functions, and services that are dependent on projected climate change and anthropocentric trajectories, as well as retrospective studies that look into the relationships between climate, eco-hydro-geomorphology, and populations. Ecosystem services that are considered are, for instance, health, crop productivity, economic stability, biodiversity, and population abundance. Aquatic ecosystems, such as riverine, wetland, coastal, and marine ecosystems, are of particular interest considering the centrality of water for socio-ecological systems ecology and evolution. Statistical physics, machine learning, information theoretic, complex network, risk, and decision science models are welcome, especially those that are spatially explicit, have a worldwide view, a quest toward universal patterns, and make use of data to substantiate their evidence and projections.

Dr. Matteo Convertino
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • climate
  • socio-ecological systems
  • ecosystem services
  • modeling
  • data
  • systemic risk
  • sustainability

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

11 pages, 1777 KiB  
Communication
Ecology and Climate of the Earth—The Same Biogeophysical System
by Roger A. Pielke, Sr., Debra P.C. Peters and Dev Niyogi
Climate 2022, 10(2), 25; https://doi.org/10.3390/cli10020025 - 14 Feb 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 6090
Abstract
Ecology and the climate provide two perspectives of the same biogeophysical system at all spatiotemporal scales More effectively embracing this congruence is an opportunity to improve scientific understanding and predictions as well as for a more effective policy that integrates both the bottom-up [...] Read more.
Ecology and the climate provide two perspectives of the same biogeophysical system at all spatiotemporal scales More effectively embracing this congruence is an opportunity to improve scientific understanding and predictions as well as for a more effective policy that integrates both the bottom-up community, business-driven framework, and the popular, top-down impact assessment framework. The objective of this paper is, therefore, to more closely integrate the diverse spectrum of scientists, engineers and policymakers into finding optimal solutions to reduce the risk to environmental and social threats by considering the ecology and climate as an integrated system. Assessments such as performed towards the 2030 Plan for Sustainable Development, with its 17 Sustainable Development Goals and its Goal 13 in particular, can achieve more progress by accounting for the intimate connection of all aspects of the Earth’s biogeophysical system. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Climate Ecosystems Nexus)
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17 pages, 5409 KiB  
Article
The Incredible and Sad Story of Boca de Cachón: How a Rural Community in the Hispaniola Is in a Prolonged, Heartless, and Predictable Climate Crisis
by Victor Gomez-Valenzuela, Katerin Ramirez and Solhanlle Bonilla-Duarte
Climate 2021, 9(12), 182; https://doi.org/10.3390/cli9120182 - 15 Dec 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3641
Abstract
This article aims to briefly review the socio-economic impact caused by the flooding of Lake Enriquillo on the inhabitants of Boca Cachón due to the complex local phenomenon related to climate variability. Between 2003 and 2014, Boca de Cachón and the communities surrounding [...] Read more.
This article aims to briefly review the socio-economic impact caused by the flooding of Lake Enriquillo on the inhabitants of Boca Cachón due to the complex local phenomenon related to climate variability. Between 2003 and 2014, Boca de Cachón and the communities surrounding Lake Enriquillo were deeply affected by flooding of the Lake’s rising waters. Lake Enriquillo is the largest wetland in the Caribbean and the first designated RAMSAR site. In turn, Boca de Cachón could be considered the first human settlement formally displaced because of climate variability in the Dominican Republic and probably one of the first in the Americas in the twenty-first century. Boca de Cachón is a rural Municipal District located to the northwest of the municipality of Jimaní, with a population of around 3000 inhabitants on the southwest border with the Republic of Haiti and located in the Biosphere Reserve Jaragua-Bahoruco-Enriquillo. Given the future climatic scenarios for the Dominican Republic and the possible climate change that could exacerbate by excess or, by default, the socio-environmental problems in the Lake’s belt, it is necessary to support the communities in their capacity-building processes. The lessons learned from Boca de Cachón can serve as a learning space for adaptation processes in rural environments in the Caribbean region. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Climate Ecosystems Nexus)
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18 pages, 3361 KiB  
Article
Ecosystem Services Provided by Urban Forests in the Southern Caucasus Region: A Modeling Study in Tbilisi, Georgia
by Levan Alpaidze and Rocco Pace
Climate 2021, 9(11), 157; https://doi.org/10.3390/cli9110157 - 28 Oct 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 4137
Abstract
All cities globally are growing considerably as they are experiencing an intensive urbanization process that leads to high soil consumption and pollution of environmental components. For this reason, cities are required to adopt measures to reduce these impacts and tree planting has been [...] Read more.
All cities globally are growing considerably as they are experiencing an intensive urbanization process that leads to high soil consumption and pollution of environmental components. For this reason, cities are required to adopt measures to reduce these impacts and tree planting has been suggested as a cost-effective strategy. In our study, we implemented for the first time in a Southern Caucasus city the i-Tree Eco model to quantify the main ecosystem services provided by urban forests. Trees in two parks in Tbilisi, EXPO Park (694 trees) and RED Park (1030 trees), have been measured, and a model simulation was performed for the year 2018. These green infrastructures store large amounts of carbon in their woody tissues (198.4 t for EXPO Park and 126.5 t for RED Park) and each year they sequester 4.6 and 4.7 t of CO2 for EXPO Park and RED Park. They also remove 119.6 and 90.3 kg of pollutants (CO, NO2, O3, PM2.5, SO2), and reduce water runoff of 269.5 and 200.5 m3, respectively. This analysis highlights the key role of urban forests in improving the environmental sustainability of the city of Tbilisi and provides important decision support for tree species selection in this geographic area. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Climate Ecosystems Nexus)
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16 pages, 10363 KiB  
Article
Assessing Annual Actual Evapotranspiration Based on Climate, Topography and Soil in Natural and Agricultural Ecosystems
by Kleoniki Demertzi, Vassilios Pisinaras, Emanuel Lekakis, Evangelos Tziritis, Konstantinos Babakos and Vassilis Aschonitis
Climate 2021, 9(2), 20; https://doi.org/10.3390/cli9020020 - 21 Jan 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3273
Abstract
Simple formulas for estimating annual actual evapotranspiration (AET) based on annual climate data are widely used in large scale applications. Such formulas do not have distinct compartments related to topography, soil and irrigation, and for this reason may be limited in basins with [...] Read more.
Simple formulas for estimating annual actual evapotranspiration (AET) based on annual climate data are widely used in large scale applications. Such formulas do not have distinct compartments related to topography, soil and irrigation, and for this reason may be limited in basins with high slopes, where runoff is the dominant water balance component, and in basins where irrigated agriculture is dominant. Thus, a simplistic method for assessing AET in both natural ecosystems and agricultural systems considering the aforementioned elements is proposed in this study. The method solves AET through water balance based on a set of formulas that estimate runoff and percolation. These formulas are calibrated by the results of the deterministic hydrological model GLEAMS (Groundwater Loading Effects of Agricultural Management Systems) for a reference surface. The proposed methodology is applied to the country of Greece and compared with the widely used climate-based methods of Oldekop, Coutagne and Turk. The results show that the proposed methodology agrees very well with the method of Turk for the lowland regions but presents significant differences in places where runoff is expected to be very high (sloppy areas and areas of high rainfall, especially during December–February), suggesting that the proposed method performs better due to its runoff compartment. The method can also be applied in a single application considering irrigation only for the irrigated lands to more accurately estimate AET in basins with a high percentage of irrigated agriculture. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Climate Ecosystems Nexus)
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16 pages, 4779 KiB  
Article
Potential Transient Response of Terrestrial Vegetation and Carbon in Northern North America from Climate Change
by Steven A. Flanagan, George C. Hurtt, Justin P. Fisk, Ritvik Sahajpal, Maosheng Zhao, Ralph Dubayah, Matthew C. Hansen, Joe H. Sullivan and G. James Collatz
Climate 2019, 7(9), 113; https://doi.org/10.3390/cli7090113 - 18 Sep 2019
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 4178
Abstract
Terrestrial ecosystems and their vegetation are linked to climate. With the potential of accelerated climate change from anthropogenic forcing, there is a need to further evaluate the transient response of ecosystems, their vegetation, and their influence on the carbon balance, to this change. [...] Read more.
Terrestrial ecosystems and their vegetation are linked to climate. With the potential of accelerated climate change from anthropogenic forcing, there is a need to further evaluate the transient response of ecosystems, their vegetation, and their influence on the carbon balance, to this change. The equilibrium response of ecosystems to climate change has been estimated in previous studies in global domains. However, research on the transient response of terrestrial vegetation to climate change is often limited to domains at the sub-continent scale. Estimation of the transient response of vegetation requires the use of mechanistic models to predict the consequences of competition, dispersal, landscape heterogeneity, disturbance, and other factors, where it becomes computationally prohibitive at scales larger than sub-continental. Here, we used a pseudo-spatial ecosystem model with a vegetation migration sub-model that reduced computational intensity and predicted the transient response of vegetation and carbon to climate change in northern North America. The ecosystem model was first run with a current climatology at half-degree resolution for 1000 years to establish current vegetation and carbon distribution. From that distribution, climate was changed to a future climatology and the ecosystem model run for an additional 2000 simulation years. A model experimental design with different combinations of vegetation dispersal rates, dispersal modes, and disturbance rates produced 18 potential change scenarios. Results indicated that potential redistribution of terrestrial vegetation from climate change was strongly impacted by dispersal rates, moderately affected by disturbance rates, and marginally impacted by dispersal mode. For carbon, the sensitivities were opposite. A potential transient net carbon sink greater than that predicted by the equilibrium response was estimated on time scales of decades–centuries, but diminished over longer time scales. Continued research should further explore the interactions between competition, dispersal, and disturbance, particularly in regards to vegetation redistribution. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Climate Ecosystems Nexus)
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