Chad Oliver. Photo credit: Julia Luckett
Chad Oliver Honored with Barrington Moore Memorial Award
From his groundbreaking research on the impact of disturbance on forest dynamics to the development of the Landscape Management System that allows users to simulate forest growth to his seminal work on forest stand dynamics, Chadwick D. Oliver, Pinchot Professor Emeritus at the Yale School of the Environment, has transformed the field of forestry.
Contributions made over his more than 50-year-career have earned him the Barrington Moore Memorial Award in Biological Science from the Society of American Forestry (SAF), which recognizes outstanding achievement in biological research that led to the advance of forestry. Oliver will receive the award Sept. 19 at SAF’s national convention in Loveland, Colorado
“Receiving the Barrington Award confirms the effectiveness of an open, cooperative approach to science that many of my colleagues and I have used with each other and with our students. That is, we make individual discoveries, but we best serve if we build on the scientific works of our predecessors, work cooperatively with our colleagues, leave increased knowledge, and open pathways for others to build on what we have learned, he said.
Oliver, who taught at YSE for more than 20 years before retiring in 2022, authored more than 150 books, chapters, and research papers that have garnered over 12,000 citations. His conceptual model — and subsequent paper — that contended that disturbances in forests were not exceptions, but the norm and that all forests arise from and are affected by natural and human disturbances countered the prevailing view in ecology at the time and revolutionized the field of silviculture. His 1990 book published with Bruce Larson ’78 MFS, “Forest Stand Dynamics,” which focused on how the species and arrangement of trees favored different size, shapes, and qualities, set a new framework on forest development.
In addition to his research, Oliver worked with hundreds of mid-career professionals in dozens of countries on land management practices and testified at Congressional hearings on reducing fire risks and managing spotted owls.
“I do not believe you could get a more deserving person for this award given Chad’s contribution to stand dynamics, his engagement with the early framework for computer generated programs for landscape management, and his broader engagement with promoting better forest policy, and management decisions particularly in the U.S. West,” said Mark Ashton, Morris K. Jesup Professor of Silviculture and Forest Ecology and director of Yale Forests who nominated Oliver.
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Heavy Rainfall Linked to Drought in Northeastern U.S.
A recent study led by YSE doctoral student Samuel Jurado uncovered a surprising connection between increased heavy precipitation events and dry soil conditions in the Northeastern United States, revealing that feedback loops, not previously observed in the Northeast, contribute to regional dryness during the summer months.
The study, published in Water Resources Research and co-authored by Jackie Matthes, a researcher at Harvard University, explores how more frequent heavy rainfall and increased soil dryness can exist simultaneously and intensify summer drought through a process known as land-atmosphere coupling.
“Imagine you have a flowerpot and one cup of water,” explained Jurado. “Each day for a week, you add a bit of water to keep the soil moist and the flower healthy. Now, imagine you have two cups of water, poured all at once at the beginning of the week, and the pot is left alone. Most of the water overflows or drains out. At the end of the week, the flower that received only one cup of water remains healthy, while the other, despite receiving two cups, may be stressed and dried out. As the climate changes, the Northeast is increasingly resembling the latter flower.”
The study has implications for land management practices, suggesting a need for strategies that enhance soil water retention.
“As water management becomes increasingly challenging for Northeastern U.S. communities, it is crucial to explore how landscapes influence atmospheric conditions, especially as precipitation patterns change and more frequent summer dry periods grow beyond historical experience,” Jurado said.
Study Explores Climate-Friendly Actions to Reduce Wildfire Risks
To prevent destructive wildfires, the U.S. Forest Service thins forests and places the cuttings, called residue, into piles for burning. However, a recent study led by Jake Barker ’24 MF and a team of researchers projected that a significant amount of carbon dioxide is released during these events, which works against climate-change mitigation goals. The burns are also financially costly.
The residue burns by the Forest Service are being used to prevent catastrophic fires that have been fueled by logging, drought, climate-change, and previous government-mandated fire suppression that have led to the accumulation of debris and dense stands of small trees, which provide fuel for enormous blazes.
The study, published in Frontiers for Global Change, simulated residue burning across western U.S. forests, and estimated that the burns contributed over 1.7 million metric tons of carbon emissions annually. The researchers found that that costs for labor and equipment were also notably higher than had been reported.
The authors suggest that alternatives to burning residues, such as using them for biofuels or burying them to sequester carbon, could help reduce fire risk and carbon emissions. Steep forest terrain makes removing residues for other uses difficult and costly. They recommend the Forest Service seek subsidies to aid in funding infrastructure for climate-friendly alternatives.
“Forests play a big part in natural climate solutions,” Barker said. “We’re demonstrating the opportunity for novel and creative pathways to transform residues into a natural climate solution.”
Forest worker observing a controlled burn. Photo: iStock/AscentXmedia