Informing and supporting climate change adaptation in British Columbia’s forests through monitoring

Given the large uncertainties associated with climate change, regular and systematic measurement of various aspects of the natural environment is the primary means for understanding what changes are actually taking place. This research is focused on the development of a strategy for monitoring the biophysical attributes of British Columbia’s forest and rangelands in order to supply the information needed to bring climate change adaptation considerations into decision-making in the Province. A framework of indicators for monitoring the impacts of climate change was developed through iterative, bottom-up processes involving both expert and end-user participation. The former involved interviews with key experts and an indicator development workshop attended by 58 delegates from across the Province. The latter involved a web-based survey designed to better identify the indicator framework’s target audience as well as their key information needs and management questions with regard to climate change adaptation. The resultant framework identifies seventeen indicators of varying importance for monitoring in light of climate change. I developed approaches to measuring some of the indicators and analyzed the capacity of current monitoring and inventory programs to support their evaluation. Where possible, the data available to support the indicators was tested in south eastern British Columbia. This was designed to assess the capacity of the existing data sources to meet decision makers’ climate change adaptation needs. The results of these tests showed that, while there are some relatively good data sources that can be used to support climate change adaptation in forests and rangelands, there are some indicators for which there is a paucity of data. Through this research I have been successful in developing a solid foundation for increasing the information available to incorporate climate change adaptation considerations into British Columbia’s forest and range management. My research also offers an example to other sectors, countries and regions who are seeking to use their data to track climate change and better understand its impacts.Forestry, Faculty ofGraduat