Scholars@Duke
Alex Finkral

Alex Finkral

Instructor in the Environmental Sciences and Policy Division
Environmental Sciences and Policy
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Selected Publications

Mixed success for carbon payments and subsidies in support of forest restoration in the neotropics.

Journal Article Nature communications · December 2023 Restoration of forests in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) has the potential to contribute to international carbon mitigation targets. However, high upfront costs and variable cashflows are obstacles for many landholders. Carbon payments have been ... Full text Cite

Liana cutting in selectively logged forests increases both carbon sequestration and timber yields

Journal Article Forest Ecology and Management · July 1, 2023 Infestations of trees by woody climbing plants (i.e., lianas) are common and increasing in an estimated 250 Mha of the 1 billion hectares of mixed-species tropical and temperate forest subjected to selective logging. Cutting lianas that impede the growth o ... Full text Cite

Towards effective reforestation: growth and commercial value of four commonly planted tropical timber species on infertile soils in Panama

Journal Article New Forests · January 1, 2023 Finding suitable tree species that not only grow well on nutrient poor soils but are also safe financial investments is one of the major obstacles to successful reforestation efforts in the tropics. Our study compared the financial viability and growth of ... Full text Cite

Logging impacts on liana regeneration and diversity in Belize

Journal Article Journal of Tropical Forest Science · January 1, 2017 Lianas play important ecological roles and are represented by large numbers of species in tropical forests, but to timber managers, they are a nuisance as they inhibit commercial tree recruitment and growth, increase the risk of injuries to forest workers ... Full text Cite

A meta-analysis of management effects on forest carbon storage

Journal Article Journal of Sustainable Forestry · July 3, 2016 Forest management can have substantial impacts on ecosystem carbon storage, but those effects can vary significantly with management type and species composition. We used systematic review methodology to identify and synthesize effects of thinning and/or b ... Full text Cite

Effects of reduced-impact selective logging on palm regeneration in Belize

Journal Article Forest Ecology and Management · June 1, 2016 To assess the impacts of a low-intensity selective timber harvest on a palm community in Belize, we mapped logging infrastructure (i.e., roads, log landings, skid trails, and stumps) and measured palm regeneration 1 year after a timber harvest carried out ... Full text Cite

Toward full economic valuation of forest fuels-reduction treatments.

Journal Article Journal of environmental management · November 2013 Our goal was to move toward full economic valuation of fuels-reduction treatments applied to ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) forests. For each of five fuels-reduction projects in northern Arizona, we calculated the economic value of carbon storage and car ... Full text Cite

Carbon credit possibilities and economic implications of fuel reduction treatments

Journal Article Western Journal of Applied Forestry · April 1, 2013 We determined the difference in carbon (C) stocks and C emissions between treated and untreated ponderosa pine stands over 100 years on the Apache and Sitgreaves National Forests, Arizona, USA, under assumed treatment scenarios, wildfire frequency, and ann ... Full text Cite

Assessing future risks to agricultural productivity, water resources and food security: How can remote sensing help?

Journal Article Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing · November 2, 2012 Cite

Recovery of ponderosa pine ecosystem carbon and water fluxes from thinning and stand-replacing fire

Journal Article Global Change Biology · October 1, 2012 Carbon uptake by forests is a major sink in the global carbon cycle, helping buffer the rising concentration of CO 2 in the atmosphere, yet the potential for future carbon uptake by forests is uncertain. Climate warming and drought can reduce forest carbon ... Full text Cite

Estimating consumption and remaining carbon in burned slash piles

Journal Article Canadian Journal of Forest Research · September 1, 2012 Fuel reduction treatments to reduce fire risk have become commonplace in the fire adapted forests of western North America. These treatments generate significant woody debris, or slash, and burning this material in piles is a common and inexpensive approac ... Full text Cite

Managing carbon sequestration and storage in temperate and boreal forests

Chapter · January 1, 2012 If carbon stocks and fluxes in temperate and boreal forests are to be included among efforts to mitigate global climate change, forest managers and policy makers must understand how management affects the carbon budgets in these systems. This chapter exami ... Full text Cite

Short- and long-term effects of thinning and prescribed fire on carbon stocks in ponderosa pine stands in northern Arizona

Journal Article Forest Ecology and Management · February 1, 2011 Euro-American logging practices, intensive grazing, and fire suppression have increased the amount of carbon that is stored in ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa Dougl. Ex Laws) forests in the southwestern United States. Current stand conditions leave these f ... Full text Cite

A new look at spread rates of exotic diseases in North American Forests

Journal Article Forest Science · October 1, 2010 Exotic pathogens threaten ecosystems in novel ways, particularly where they are facilitated by stresses such as climate change and forest fragmentation. Although chestnut blight (CB), Dutch elm disease (DED), beech bark disease (BBD), and white pine bliste ... Cite

Carbon and water fluxes from ponderosa pine forests disturbed by wildfire and thinning.

Journal Article Ecological applications : a publication of the Ecological Society of America · April 2010 Disturbances alter ecosystem carbon dynamics, often by reducing carbon uptake and stocks. We compared the impact of two types of disturbances that represent the most likely future conditions of currently dense ponderosa pine forests of the southwestern Uni ... Full text Cite

From renewable energy to fire risk reduction: A synthesis of biomass harvesting and utilization case studies in US forests

Journal Article GCB Bioenergy · January 1, 2009 The volatile costs of fossil fuels, concerns about the associated greenhouse gas emissions from these fuels, and the threat of catastrophic wildfires in western North America have resulted in increased interest and activity in the removal and use of woody ... Full text Cite

The effects of a thinning treatment on carbon stocks in a northern Arizona ponderosa pine forest

Journal Article Forest Ecology and Management · April 20, 2008 Vast areas of ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa Dougl. ex Laws.) forest in the western United States have become unnaturally dense because of relatively recent land management practices that include fire suppression and livestock grazing. In many areas, thin ... Full text Cite

Topographic and temporal patterns in tree seedling establishment, growth, and survival among masting species of southern New England mixed-deciduous forests

Journal Article Forest Ecology and Management · June 30, 2007 In many forests, advance regeneration represents an important 'seedling bank' for replacing overstory trees after canopy disturbance. However, long-term spatial and temporal dynamics of understory tree seedlings are poorly understood, particularly in topog ... Full text Cite

Case study and evaluation of the dominant certification protocols

Chapter · January 1, 1999 In this chapter, eight protocols will be reviewed that have been developed by some of the most active certifiers. The choice of protocols for this exercise was made on the basis of availability and of their applicability to temperate forests. The informati ... Cite