Dr. 
Art Fredeen
Associate Professor, Ecosystem Science and Management
University of Northern British Columbia, Prince George, BC
University of Northern British Columbia, Prince George, BC
Researching how pine beetles increase CO2 levels and warming
Dr. Art Fredeen is a forest ecophysiologist who is primarily interested in the way that forest management and natural disturbances (such as the mountain pine beetle infestation) influence the storage of carbon in sub-boreal landscapes. He also studies specific characteristics of lodgepole pine and, more generally, the impacts of forest management on biodiversity.
It is widely acknowledged that climate change has played a significant role in the mountain pine beetle epidemic in BC. New research involving professor Fredeen is now investigating whether the impacts of beetle activity is creating additional warming. Researchers from UNBC, UBC, the Ministry of Forests, and the Canadian Forest Service are trying to determine how the beetles themselves may be contributing to climate change by raising the levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Thirty-three meter-tall towers have been installed in two sites north of Prince George, employing a variety of scientific instruments to measure emissions of carbon dioxide from standing forests where the trees have been killed by the pine beetle and also areas that have been logged.
According to Dr. Fredeen, “Carbon dioxide is one of the most important greenhouse gases and forests are known to contain large amounts of carbon. Clear-cutting can release enormous amounts of carbon to the atmosphere, for 10 years or more after harvesting. The pine beetle infestation has led to very high levels of logging activity in northern BC and we’re interested in finding out what this activity will mean to the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. By taking measurements at the same site over a number of years, we’re able to track how a forest that becomes infected by the pine beetle evolves from being a sink for carbon to a source.” Because the mountain pine beetle infestation has grown so large, salvage logging could have a significant impact on the link between forests, harvesting, and climate change.
“Over the past 150 years,” Dr. Fredeen states, “the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere have risen considerably. The burning of fossil fuels is considered to be the major culprit, but about 25% of the increase is due to deforestation. Old forests store tremendous amounts of carbon that they acquire during photosynthesis. If trees are cut down or are killed by the pine beetle, they don’t absorb carbon anymore. Climate change may be a final result.”
