Adam Ward (Indiana University) was awarded an NSF CAREER Grant to implement an integrated program of research and education on river corridors. The multi-scale project will take advantage of the long-term data available from the Andrews Forest site and build upon a body of work from the Andrews Forest on streams, hyporheic zones, and valley bottoms. Results of the research will improve our ability to predict the transport and fate of contaminants in river corridors, enabling more effective management of water resources.

A recent study on how historical timber harvests affect the structure of neighboring old-growth forests finds that forests within 75 meters of harvest edges had less live tree basal area than forests tucked in the interior away from edges. The length of time since harvest had little or no effect. This study is important in examining the subtle impact of human activity on forest landscapes in western Oregon and showing how widespread and long-lasting the edge influence of past clearcutting has been on neighboring old-growth forest.

Analysis of 60‐year records of daily streamflow in the Andrews Forest revealed that the conversion of old‐growth forest to Douglas‐fir plantations had a major effect on summer streamflow.

A new study indicates average breakdown rates of leaf litter in streams and rivers may increase 5-21% with a 1 to 4 degree Celsius rise in water temperature — half as much as the 10-45% increase predicted by metabolic theory. Mean annual water temperature for some streams and rivers is currently rising at an annual rate of about 0.01 to 0.1 degrees Celsius due to changes in climate and land use.

New research from the Andrews Forest suggests that old-growth forests may provide a buffer against rising air temperature. Press release: http://bit.ly/1U7sBkd

full paper: http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/2/4/e1501392