Mountain Environments in Changing Climates

by Beniston,Martin

• ISBN13: 9780415102247
• ISBN10: 0415102243
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1994-12-21
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

Mountain environments, once thought hostile, now attract major economic investments for tourism, hydro-power and communication routes. As change and technology works its way around the world, the fight between ecology and dollars will doubtless escalate. Mountain Environments in Changing Climatescollects the best international work being done on mountainous regions. The book examines the impact of global warming, the socio-economic environment of mountains, and the observation and prediction of mountain processes and phenomena. The scope of the work and the contributors cover a diverse range of international scientists.Mountain Environmentstakes an interdisciplinary approach to a fascinating subject, and will be a resource for those in the field for years to come. after for tourism,

Table of Contents

Preface	p. xx
Introduction	p. xxiv
Climate Change in Mountain Regions	p. 1
Past and Potential Future Changes in Mountain Environments	p. 3
The Alps under Local, Regional and Global Pressure	p. 34
Using Multiple High-Resolution Proxy Climate Records to Reconstruct Natural Climate Variability	p. 42
References	p. 57
Climate in Europe during the Late Maunder Minimum Period (1675-1715)	p. 60
Accelerated Glacier and Permafrost Changes in the Alps	p. 91
References	p. 105
Monitoring Snow Cover Variations in the Alps Using the Alpine Snow Cover Analysis System (Ascas)	p. 108
References	p. 120
Effects of Mesoscale Vegetation Distributions in Mountainous Terrain on Local Climate	p. 121
References	p. 133
Climate Scenarios for Mountain Regions	p. 136
Impacts of Climate Change on Vegetation	p. 153
Impact of Atmospheric Changes on High Mountain Vegetation	p. 155
Long-Term Vegetation Change in Mountain Environments	p. 167
Latitudinal Variation in the Potential Response of Mountain Ecosystems to Climatic Change	p. 180
Comparing the Behaviour of Mountainous Forest Succession Models in a Changing Climate	p. 204
References	p. 217
Ecological Aspects of Climatically-Caused Timberline Fluctuations	p. 220
Recent Changes in the Growth and Establishment of Subalpine Conifers in Western North America	p. 234
Dynamics and Functioning of Rhododendron Ferrugineum Subalpine Heathlands (Northern Alps, France)	p. 244
A Dendrochemical Perspective on the Effects of Climate Change in the Ozark Highlands	p. 259
References	p. 268
Phenology as a Tool in Topoclimatology	p. 270
Design of an Intensive Monitoring System for Swiss Forests	p. 281
Socio-Economic Aspects of Climate Change in Mountain Regions	p. 299
Climate Risk Concern in an Alpine Community	p. 301
Environmental Perception, Climate Change, and Tourism	p. 318
Note	p. 325
Climate Change and Winter Tourism	p. 328
Localizing the Threats of Climate Change in Mountain Environments	p. 341
References	p. 363
Sensitivity of Mountain Runoff and Hydro-Electricity to Changing Climate	p. 366
References	p. 381
Mountain Environments and Climate Change in the Hindu Kush-Himalayas	p. 382
Evaluating the Effects of Climatic Change on Marginal Agriculture in Upland Areas	p. 405
Toward a Global Network of Mountain Protected Areas	p. 422
Conclusion	p. 429
Should Mountain Communities Be Concerned about Climate Change?	p. 431
References	p. 446
Index	p. 452
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