Climate Change Program
Developing climate-sensitive lodgepole pine growth and yield models.
The Climate Change Program focused on the development of lodgepole pine growth and yield models that are climate-sensitive. Established in 2003, the program ended in 2005 when the work was picked up by the Foothills Growth and Yield Association, later to become FGrOW,
Most traditional growth and yield models assume that past growth conditions—soils, climate, disturbance regimes—will not change appreciably in the foreseeable future. In other words, they assume that past growth is a reliable indicator of future productivity. Within the FRI area, average forest productivity increased in timber stands of both fire and harvest origins—and regional climate trends suggested climate warming could be partly responsible. As a result, traditional models might provide unreliable results when forecasting future yields.
In the Climate Change Program, researchers worked towards developing a process-based growth and yield model called “StandLEAP.”
