BERMS

 Boreal  Ecosystems  
 Research and  Monitoring  
 Sites project

View from scaffolding at the Old Jack Pine site

The Boreal Ecosystem Research and Monitoring Sites (BERMS) program is an initiative involving three agencies and two universities: the Meteorological Service of Canada (MSC), the Canadian Forest Service, Parks of Heritage Canada, the University of British Columbia, and Queen's University.   This project is being conducted as a follow-on to the Boreal Ecosystem-Atmosphere Study (BOREAS) .  It is designed to examine the long-term exchanges of water, carbon, and energy between the atmosphere and the boreal forest.  

The Queen's research effort is at the old jack pine site in the BOREAS Southern Study Area (SSA) , located in the southern ecotone of the boreal in Saskatchewan.   Associated research is ongoing at two other sites in the region: the old aspen site where a research team, led by A. Black from the University of British Columbia, is working, and at the old black spruce site where the research activity is being led by A. Barr, from AES in Saskatoon.

The old jack pine site was chosen owing to the superior logistics and infrastructure developed during BOREAS.   Also, given the existence of the extensive flux and stomatal conductance data from the young jack pine site in the BOREAS Northern Study Area (NSA) , it is appropriate that work should be initiated at the old jack pine site in the SSA to provide a basis for testing stomatal conductance and evaporation models across an age spectrum for this species.   This site is a potential candidate for logging.   If logging occurs, we will be in a position to examine the transition from a fully forested to a cleared state.   The changes that will result in the heat, water, and carbon dioxide fluxes and in the ecophysiological controls will be examined.

The work in BERMS is intimately connected to the modeling research being conducted by the Queen’s Group in the Canadian Land Surface Scheme (CLASS) project, which is being conducted as part of the Canadian Climate Research Network.

Data collection at the old jack pine site is ongoing with an existing suite of basic climatological data along with continuous water, heat, and carbon flux data.The pictures below show a typical view of the forest with its lichen-covered surface (left) and a soil profile, typified by a deep sandy soil with a lichen and organic material mat (approximately 15cm thick) at the top (right).

Old jack pine site, Northern Saskatchewan

Soil pit showing deep, sandy B horizons with a distinct organic mat at the top of the profile.