Management options for dealing with changing forest-water relations.
Abstract
This chapter addresses potential forest and water management strategies based on the understanding of the 'new normal', the challenges imposed, in particular, by climate change and human population growth, and the evolving knowledge of forest-water interactions. It further considers forest and water management strategies when water is prioritized over other forest-related goals (such as biomass accumulation or the sequestration of carbon in standing forests). Explicitly prioritizing water in forest management attempts to reset the priorities toward more sustainable strategies for long-term forest health and human welfare. This reordering of priorities does not necessarily compromise other forest-related goals but provides a much-needed emphasis on water as a key contribution to both planetary and human health.