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Quantification of Human-Induced Changes in Global Vegetation and Associated Climatic Parameters

Gibbs, Holly K.
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1406738681

Abstract Details

2000, Master of Science, Ohio State University, Natural Resources.
Improved understanding of global vegetation change is necessary for effective land- use policy and planning and for accurate prediction and validation of global change models. Human-induced land cover changes alter the structure and function of ecosystems and impact climatic patterns. The effects of these changes are global in nature and may not be evident from smaller scale or aggregate evaluations. Many current data sets are plagued with problems, and estimates of global land cover vary greatly with prominent databases agreeing on less than 50% of given land cover patterns. The historical reconstruction completed by Matthews (1983), however, overcame many of these difficulties to provide an accurate portrayal of vegetation cover before the establishment of settled agriculture (1° resolution). The Data and Information System data set (DISCover) recently created by the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (IGBP) provides accurate depiction of current global vegetation cover based on the 1-km data captured by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR). The Matthews (1983) data set was calibrated with DISCover and a reclassification procedure was applied to produce a simulated potential global land cover map. An improved estimate of human-induced global vegetation change was generated by overlaying maps depicting the simulated potential land cover and actual land cover. The results of this study indicate that humans have converted or degraded more than 45% of potential global vegetation. The results further show that these land cover transformations have resulted in decreases in worldwide biospheric carbon storage by 400 Gt, increases in global albedo of 1%, and reductions in the average surface roughness of global land cover of 27cm (40%). The resulting syntheses are presented in global maps illustrating the magnitude and location of human impact.
Mohan K. Wali (Advisor)
Ralph E. J. Boerner (Committee Member)
Carolyn J. Merry (Committee Member)
108 p.
Natural Resource Management

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Gibbs, H. K. (2000). Quantification of Human-Induced Changes in Global Vegetation and Associated Climatic Parameters [Master's thesis, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1406738681

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Gibbs, Holly. Quantification of Human-Induced Changes in Global Vegetation and Associated Climatic Parameters. 2000. Ohio State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1406738681.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Gibbs, Holly. "Quantification of Human-Induced Changes in Global Vegetation and Associated Climatic Parameters." Master's thesis, Ohio State University, 2000. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1406738681

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1406738681
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© 2000, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.