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Arctic Centre

RESEARCH

I have long-standing interests in short-term environmental change, both natural and human induced. My research interests range widely within biogeography, disturbance and restoration ecology, and conservation biology.  The analysis and description of spatial processes and community-level interactions serve as the critical underlying themes.  Present and future research addresses a few key objectives, including: (1) the comparison and monitoring of similar environmental disturbance regimes in different parts of the Arctic and associated restoration schemes; (2) a biogeographic synthesis of empirical findings from my own  research with that of my colleagues; (3) determination of what, if any,  analogs exist between a variety of anthropogenic and natural disturbance  regimes in tundra ecosystems; and (4) the marriage of social science  methods with life science studies to ascertain aboriginal perceptions of  ecological change associated with human impact.

Interior Alaska
Research here, conducted during 1985-1987, focused on 35 years of vegetation and environmental change along the upper Steese Highway, one of the oldest major roads in northern North America.  The investigated corridor was important in terms of local hydrology, ecology and regional  plant migration, encouraging the spread and persistence of numerous  non-native plants, many introduced from Europe.  In gently sloping areas, the road has resulted in impoundment of surface waters.  Local thermokarsts, resulting from road maintenance procedures, have resulted in a beaded drainage which has increased the heterogeneity of the local  vegetation and environment.  These changes have provided suitable habitat for a variety of animals that otherwise would not occur along the road.   The project was funded by the U.S. National Wildlife Federation.

Northern Fennoscandia
Current research includes an interdisciplinary, multi-institutional project on 'The challenges of modernity for Reindeer Management: integration and sustainable development in Europe´s subarctic and boreal regions' (Reindeer Managment, http://www.urova.fi/home/renman/). Reindeer Managment will develop new tools and models of participatory research/planning in reindeer management that will facilitate integrated and sustainable use of living resources in subarctic/boreal Europe. RENMAN is a direct outgrowth of the partici-pation of key partners in: (1) the project "Human Environmental Interactions" in the EU Concerted Action ARTERI; and (2) the IASC workshop on the "Human Role in Reindeer Systems". The project involves reindeer herders, via local workshops and interviews, in the process of research on topics they have helped to prioritize. Analyses will focus on:(1) human interactions, in particular indigenous vs. scientific perceptions of management and the transfer of expertise from EU to Russian systems; (2) the quality and hygienic status of summer pastures, soils and surface waters and implications for animal and human health. The findings will provide better cultural/scientific bases for EU agricultural regulations and policies implementation in general. Reindeer Managment involves partners from five countries and has been funded for the period 2001-2003 under the European Commission’s 5th Framework Programme ‘Quality of life and management of living resources’.

A second project on ‘Human interactions in the mountain birch forest ecosystem’ (HIBECO), which extends from south Greenland to northwestern Russia, was funded for 2000-2002 by the European Commission’s 5th Framework Programme. HIBECO involves partners from six countries and will focus in the first place on (a) human dimensions and natural conditions supported by studies into (b) biomass productivity of and (c) herbivory impact on mountain birch forests; and (d) the formulation of recommendations for future management schemes for sustainable development of the mountain birch forest ecosystem.

A third project uses standardized before-after control-impact (BACI) manipulations to address the ecological implications of 'wilderness'  recreation in subarctic and alpine regions.  Trampling experiments were initiated in summer 1997 and 2000 within the prevalent communities, e.g. two below treeline (herb-rich birch forest; Vaccinium-dominated birch forest) and two above treeline (Empetrum-dominated heath; Betula-dominated heath).  Annual follow-up measurements are made to determine vegetation composition, cover, height, and nutrition. The project is international in scope with sites in northern Finland and Sweden.  This project has received funding from the EU, the Finnish Academy and the Thule Insitute (University of Oulu).

Northeast Siberia
The project 'Determining Responses of Forest-Tundra Vegetation to Disturbance in Northeast Siberia' began in 2000 in collaboration with the Northeast Science Station (http://www.lter.uaf.edu/~fschapin/station.html) in Cherskii, Sakha Republic and the Department of Geography, University of Otago, New Zealand (http://www.geography.otago.ac.nz/Geography/). The Kolyma River Delta straddles the northern timberline and encompasses a wide range of
natural and anthropgenic disturbance regimes. This project aims to investigate disturbance-related grasslands of various origins and ages and to determine the relationship between CO2 fluxes with different ecosystem variables (e.g., vegetation composition, cover and productivity). This project is supported with funding from The National Geographic Society.
 

Northwest Siberia
Since 1991 I have been involved in joint investigations with colleagues in Russia.  The Yamal Peninsula is of particular interest due to a government plan for a major gas/oil pipeline and associated service corridors. The permafrost landscapes have already sustained a great deal of surface disturbance resulting from two decades of exploration unrestrained by environmental regulation.  The Yamal region is also the homeland of the Nenets, one of the country's largest aboriginal groups, who seasonally graze their reindeer on the tundra. Construction of the pipeline is currently hindered due to unstable political and economic conditions and several researchers, myself included, have commenced  baseline ecological investigations and environmental assessments prior to  sweeping changes in land-use practices within the region.  I am particularly interested in researching those issues that the Nenets  themselves perceive as most pertinent, as determined in interviews with  herding families and elected representatives.  Important issues include understanding the natural disturbance regimes (e.g., periglacial phenomena such as thermokarst erosion), successional processes, plant-animal-soil interactions and northward migrating plant species. Funding has been provided by U.S. National Academy of Sciences, the National Geographic Society, U.S. National Science Foundation, NATO's  Scientific and Environmental Affairs Division, and the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Canadian High Arctic
My dissertation research (1987-1993) was a study of anthropogenic tundra disturbance from patch dynamic and geographic perspectives.  It involved investigation of an array of dated common, low intensity surface disturbances on three different islands in the Canadian High Arctic.  Through the results, I was able to reach conclusions about the short-medium term (1-20+ yr) effects on plants, hydrology and permafrost soils. Even patchy disturbance can result in significant changes in local  hydrology which, in turn, effects forage quality and quantity for  terrestrial herbivores.  Funding was provided by the Arctic Institute of North America, McGill University, Science Institute of the Northwest  Territories and Dr. George Wenzel.
 

Updated 13/12/99
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