Trees, forests and water: cool insights for a hot world

This research paper reviews the benefits of forests as highlighted in the literature on forest, water and energy cycle interactions. Forest, water and energy cycle interactions provide the foundation for achieving forest-based adaptation and mitigation goals. 

The effects of forests on water and climate at local, regional and continental scales provide a powerful adaptation tool that, if wielded successfully, also has globally-relevant climate change mitigation potential. A new and radically improved mitigation and adaptation agenda designed for the new millennium could learn to marshal land-atmosphere carbon, water and energy cycles in ways that optimize their potential. 

In addition to up- and downstream relationships, policy frameworks need to consider the transboundary nature of up- and downwind forest, water and energy cycle interactions. Alongside the local level, regional and continental policy-making frameworks are necessary for adequate consideration of transboundary forest, water and energy cycle interactions.

Global Environmental Change, Volume 43, March 2017. Shared under a Creative Commons license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0).