Forest Resources and
Environmental Science
2011 Annual Review
Message from the dean
To our alumni, friends, corporate and agency partners, and
state and federal legislators:
This is our first annual report and a summary of our
accomplishments. It describes some of our education and
research highlights and how we are benefiting the people
of Michigan, the Great Lakes region, the nation, and the
world. As a university, our major focus is on our educational
programs, but what enhances these programs are the
research projects motivating students to pursue advanced
degrees and careers in applied ecology and environmental
sciences, forest molecular genetics and biotechnology,
forestry, wildlife ecology and management, and wood
science.
In his 1929 essay “The Aims of Education,” Alfred North
Whitehead said
The proper function of a university is the imaginative acquisition of knowledge . . . Do you
want your teachers to be imaginative? Then encourage them to do research. Do you want
your researchers to be imaginative? Then bring them into intellectual sympathy with the
young at the most eager, imaginative period of life, when intellects are just entering upon
their mature discipline. . . . (M)ake your young students crown their period of intellectual
acquisition by some contact with minds gifted with experience of intellectual adventure.
Our core effort is and always will be our educational programs. Our research enhances our
students’ intellectual adventures.
If you want to know more about what we’re doing, or if you are interested in someone’s research,
please visit our website, http://forest.mtu.edu. Your investment in our programs is making a
difference for future generations!
Peg Gale, Dean
School of Forest Resources and Environmental Science
Mission Statement
We foster excellence in forestry and ecological science.
Vision Statement
We will be a premier community of scholars who investigate ecological
processes from molecular to global scales and their relationship to society.
We strive to be internationally recognized educators of creative scientists and
those who develop both technologies and strategies for sustainable natural
resource management.
We educate students in the maintenance of healthy ecosystems through
intensive, field-based training and cutting-edge interdisciplinary research
programs.
Core Values
The principles that guide us and influence our decisions are based on the
following core values:
We serve Michigan’s economic development through our quality forestry,
ecology, quantitative, and biotechnology educational and research programs,
with emphasis on sustainable land-use decisions to maintain a quality of life.
We strongly influence society, now and into the future, through the principles
students learn in our classes, the mentoring we provide, and the respect for
others’ ideas and cultures.
We inspire thought by how we teach and are committed to providing an
exceptional educational experience at both the undergraduate and graduate
levels.
We have a passion for science. Scholarly efforts are viewed by all as a creative
extension of continuous learning and are rooted in everything we do.
Serving Michigan and
the Great Lakes
36.9%
Percentage of alumni
in Michigan
Saving Michigan’s ash trees
Since the emerald ash borer entered the United States in 2002, this exotic invader has killed
millions of ash trees throughout the Midwest, including Michigan. Andrew Storer leads the
Slow Ash Mortality, or SLAM, effort, to better understand the insect pest and test methods
to save America’s white ash trees. Tools include reducing the insect’s food source, injecting
trees to protect them from the borer, and introducing the ash borer’s natural enemies.
Benefits: This work will help slow the spread of the emerald ash borer and prevent ash
trees from disappearing from America’s forests. Partners in the project include Michigan
Tech, Michigan State University, the USDA Forest Service, USDA Animal Plant Health
Inspection Service, Michigan Department of Natural Resources, and Michigan Department
of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Secrets of the sugar maple forest
Researchers led by Molly Cavaleri are building a network of towers and zip-lines high in
treetops in order to study the shapes and patterns of leaves throughout the canopy of a
sugar maple forest in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
Benefits: This will help us better understand the inner workings of the forest, especially
how forests cycle water and carbon dioxide, and lead to insights into the role forests may
play in global climate change. This is partially funded by a USDA McIntire-Stennis Formula
Grant.
Deer, sugar maple, and the decline of the hemlock
Hemlocks are in trouble, down 99 percent throughout their historic range. Christopher
Webster is investigating whether the increasing numbers of sugar maples are contributing
to the hemlock’s decline, and, if so, why this is happening. Preliminary observations suggest
that expanding populations of white-tailed deer are playing a role in the process.
Benefits: This research will add to our understanding of wildlife-habitat interactions and
improve hemlock forest and white-tailed deer management strategies in Michigan and
surrounding states and provinces. This work is funded by a USDA McIntire-Stennis
Formula Grant.
Studying ash trees to combat the
emerald ash borer
E
D
A T I O N
U C
A
L
Our innovative Forest
and Environmental Resource
Management program (The FERM),
led by Jim Rivard, lets students apply
the techniques they learn in
the classroom to a real-world
experience in forestland
management.
H
T
I G
H L I G H
A study of the tree canopy
adds to our understanding of
water and carbon cycling in a
sugar maple forest.
Monitoring bats over Lake Michigan’s
windy corridor
Wind power holds promise as a clean, renewable energy source for Michigan, especially in
Lake Michigan’s offshore areas. However, wind turbines may also pose a threat to native
bat populations that may be traversing these areas—bats that are voracious consumers of
insect pests. Led by Joseph Bump, this project will monitor offshore bat activity in these
offshore wind resource areas.
Researching the effects of wind
turbines on little brown bats
Benefits: Ultimately, the results from this study will be a resource in planning offshore
wind energy development and provide a template for monitoring offshore bat activity
throughout the Great Lakes region. This work is supported by the Michigan Coastal
Management Program.
Creating a wetland for plants, animals, and people
Michigan Tech’s Great Lakes Research Center, located along the Keweenaw Waterway, is a
perfect place to introduce visitors to a coastal wetland. Rodney Chimner and collaborators
will restore and create a wetland along the shoreline and build a boardwalk to provide
access to everyone.
5,426
Acres of research and
educational forest managed
by the School
E
D
A T I O N
U C
A
L
Our three undergraduate
programs—in forestry, applied
ecology and environmental
sciences, and wildlife ecology and
management—give our students
the communication skills they
need to succeed as professionals,
as well as exceptional
field abilities.
H
56.6
%
Percentage of alumni
in the Great Lakes
Region
T
I G
H L I G H
Benefits: In addition to improving habitat for the plants, birds, and animals that thrive in the
Great Lakes wetland environment, this project will provide a great educational experience
for the local community, who can view the wetland from both the boardwalk and the area
bike trail. This work is supported by the Michigan Coastal Management Program.
A better composite siding from northern forests
Led by Peter Laks, a team of our researchers has been working for sixteen years to
develop and commercialize a wood-composite siding made from aspen, adhesive, and the
wood preservative zinc borate. This SmartSide siding is manufactured by Louisiana-Pacific
in three Upper Midwest plants, including one in Newberry, Michigan. With ongoing funding
from Louisiana-Pacific, the team is now evaluating the long-term performance of SmartSide
throughout the United States.
Benefits: SmartSide provides a revenue stream to a major forest-products company,
allowing it to create jobs in the manufacturing sector. The siding also supports independent
loggers and benefits landowners through timber sales.
Hydrological investigation of restoring drained
wetlands in Michigan
Tom Pypker and his team are researching which ecosystem processes control the
successful restoration of drained wetlands in Michigan. In partnership with the US Fish and
Wildlife Service, they are also determining the impact of drainage ditches on the water and
vegetation of a major wetland in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Benefits: This project will help government agencies as well as private landowners better
assess the pros and cons of plugging and restoring major drainage ditches. This project will
also suggest future management techniques for restoration of key wildlife habitat.
Serving the Nation
E
30
States where the
School conducts
research
D
Junipers have been spreading into the sage grouse’s historic range, drastically degrading
its habitat. Millions of acres have been affected, yet no one knows exactly where junipers
have encroached on the sage-brush steppe habitat needed by this endangered bird. Mike
Falkowski is using cutting-edge remote-sensing technology to help land managers by
mapping where junipers are invading.
T
I G
H L I G H
14
Weeks of fall camp,
the longest, most
comprehensive camp
in the US
Benefits: These remote-sensing techniques will be used to help restore other threatened
and endangered species. The study is funded by the Nature Conservancy and the Natural
Resource Conservation Service.
What does climate change mean for forest
management?
Forests play a large role in climate, and climate change also affects forests. How might that
affect the wise management of America’s forests? Through the Adaptive Silviculture for
Climate Change Project, Linda Nagel and her team are developing a series of workshops
and experimental studies that will provide guidance for forest managers.
Benefits: This study, funded by the USDA Forest Service, will give forest managers
information on 1) which of their strategies might best mitigate the effects of climate change,
and 2) how they can anticipate the forest changes brought about by climate change and
adapt accordingly.
Investigating the
encroachment of junipers on
the habitat of sage grouse
Predicting the forest’s future
Land ownership patterns have changed in the last fifty years, and they continue to change.
With support from a USDA McIntire-Stennis Formula Grant, Audrey Mayer is combining
data from sources ranging from plat books to interviews to remote sensing to find what
land goals are important to different owners (e.g., absentee versus resident, young versus
seniors, investment-oriented versus recreation-oriented, etc.).
Benefits: With an understanding of what owners want, we can better predict what
changes we might expect in our forests as industrial forests are sold off in smaller parcels
to private owners.
L
Our seven graduate degree
programs provide scientists and
professionals with the advanced
technical knowledge in natural
resources and the leadership qualities
needed to build a sustainable,
healthy, and prosperous future.
H
Saving the sage grouse
A T I O N
U C
A
Developing viewing technologies
for forestlands
Survival of the fragmented?
When humans break up a landscape with cities, roads, and industry, it’s not usually good
news for the original residents. But in Hawaii, this process happens naturally, when lava
flows create islands of forest that isolate bird populations. David Flaspohler and his team
are studying how native Hawaiian honeycreepers survive in these tiny islands and whether
nonnative rats are taking their toll on the bird populations.
Benefits: What he and his team learn from this study will provide insights into what
happens when ecosystems are fragmented and how native species cope with highly
adaptable nonnatives, like rats. This work is supported by the National Science Foundation
and the USDA Forest Service.
1st
What slash-and-burn means to the ground below—
and the trees above
Largest Peace Corps
Master’s International
Program in the US
Many forest stands in the western US are overgrown with brush and other unmarketable
materials, due to 100 years of fire suppression and a lack of timber harvesting. Loggers and
forest managers use slash burning to dispose of this material, but burning massive piles
of woody debris scorches the soil below. Marty Jurgensen and his team are studying the
biological changes in the soil caused by pile burning with an eye toward how those changes
may affect its productivity.
50
Benefits: This project will give land managers new insights into how pile burning affects a
forest’s growth, particularly its timber productivity. His work is funded by the USDA Forest
Service.
States where our
alumni live
A T I O N
U C
A
D
L
E
Our Master of Forestry
program, led by Jim Pickens,
graduates professionals with the
field, leadership, quantitative, and
communication skills that are key to
successfully managing America’s
lands on behalf of industry and
the public.
H
T
I G
H L I G H
Bringing back sagebrush after the miners have left
David Flaspohler investigating the
habitat of the native Hawaiian
honeycreeper
Wyoming is a leading source of the mineral bentonite, a type of clay used in products as
varied as kitty litter and cosmetics. Once bentonite is extracted, companies replace the
topsoil, but replacing an ecosystem is not always that simple. Catherine Tarasoff is
investigating various soil improvements and the process called “livecasting”: remediating a
site with fresh, “alive” topsoil taken from a new mine rather than using old, stockpiled topsoil.
Benefits: The ultimate goal is to restore ecosystem function for a variety of species,
including sage grouse, and to limit the establishment and spread of invasive species. This
work is funded by the Wyoming Wildlife Trust Fund, the Big Horn Basin Local Sage Grouse
Working Group, M-I Swaco, and American Colloid.
A river runs through it
The land along each river’s edge is unique, with its own network of vegetation and soils that
exist in harmony with the water. One would think it would be relatively easy to tell where
this riparian area, or ecotone, begins and ends. However, it can be highly variable, from just
a few yards to over a mile during big floods, so mapping these areas can be challenging.
Using precise information on the elevation changes of the surrounding landscape, plus
historical data on fifty-year floods, Ann Maclean is redefining the true extent of a river’s
ecotone using geographic information systems technology.
Benefits: This work will give resource managers a precise new tool for understanding
a system that can transform dramatically, sometimes in a matter of hours. Her work is
supported by the National Science Foundation and a USDA McIntire-Stennis Formula Grant.
Serving the World
E
The roots of climate change
Tree roots are a vast storehouse of carbon affecting tree growth and forest productivity.
That means that they could play a critical role in climate change: either by determining
if trees will store more carbon and mitigate the effects of climate change, or by causing
trees to release more carbon into the atmosphere and accelerate the warming of the Earth.
With funding from the US Department of Energy, Andrew Burton and his colleagues
are studying how tree roots in a mature sugar maple forest respond to warmer soil
temperatures. In particular, they want to determine if root systems take up more carbon,
leaving less for tree growth, or if they adapt to their “new normal” soil conditions by
channeling carbon to new growth, which would allow trees to remain productive.
7
Graduate students
conducting research
abroad
D
A T I O N
U C
A
L
Our Peace Corps Master’s
International program, led by
Blair Orr, gives students technical
skills that make them sought-after
partners in their host communities,
where they work to create a healthy
environment and sustainable
infrastructure. H
T
I G
H L I G H
Benefits: This research will help predict how productive forests will respond as the
climate warms. In addition, it will provide insights into how forests worldwide will affect the
dynamics of climate change.
Arctic snow, ozone, and climate
In the Arctic, there’s a complex relationship among the snowpack, sunshine, and the class
of chemicals known as nitrogen oxides. Sometimes they interact to produce the greenhouse
gas ozone, and sometimes they destroy it. With scientists from the University of Colorado at
Boulder and the University of Wageningen in The Netherlands, Paul Doskey is working to
fully understand this process.
$
expenditure
per faculty member
Benefits: This work will enable us to better understand and predict climate change in the
Arctic, the region that has been most affected by global warming. Their work is funded by
the National Science Foundation.
Managing water in an age of scarcity
Water is a scarce commodity in Northern Mexico, and it will become even more rare as the
region warms. Kathy Halvorsen is working with water managers, academics, users, and
nongovernmental aid agencies in the region to help citizens make informed decisions on
more efficient water use.
Benefit: By providing state-of-the-art forecasting tools, this project will help managers
make the most of this scarce, vital resource. Funding is provided by the National Science
Foundation.
283,534
Total research
Andrew Burton, right, and a
graduate student investigating
how tree roots will respond to a
warmer climate
Better trees for bioenergy
Of all the tissue types in trees, cellulose is the most abundant. Plus, it holds great promise
as a feedstock for biofuel. With funding from a USDA McIntire-Stennis Formula Grant and
World Class University of South Korea, Shekhar Joshi is working to better understand the
genetic mechanisms that create cellulose.
23
Benefits: Transforming cellulose into ethanol is not a simple chemical process. If we could
tailor trees to produce cellulose that was easy to turn into biofuel, we could reduce the cost
of ethanol and reduce our demand for fossil fuels.
Countries where our
alumni live
The wolves and moose of Isle Royale
Measuring the jawbone of a moose,
part of long-term research on the
wolves and moose of Isle Royale
30
Benefits: The many discoveries that have sprung from this long-term project are used to
inform wildlife management practices throughout North America and Europe.
Countries where the
School conducts research
E
D
A T I O N
U C
A
Solving a genetic puzzle
Hairong Wei has developed a quick and easy way to identify the genes that work together
to control an organism’s traits. He used this bioinformatics method first to identify the
genes that keep human stem cells in their “ready and waiting” state. Then he applied it to
Arabidopsis plants, poplar trees, and the Axolotle salamander. His method identified gene
clusters with a degree of accuracy ranging from 50 to 95 percent.
Benefits: He will use this tool to help identify key genes that enhance crop productivity,
potentially benefiting the global economy and fighting world hunger. His work is funded by
Michigan Technological University.
L
Students in our
Transatlantic Master’s
program, led by Shekhar
Joshi and partners from North
Carolina State University, the Swedish
University of Agricultural Sciences,
and the University of Helsinki,
benefit from an in-depth, global
perspective on the science and
management of natural
resources.
H
T
I G
H L I G H
Research on the wolves and moose of Lake Superior’s Isle Royale National Park has
been ongoing for nearly fifty-four years, making it the longest predator-prey study in the
world. The island’s isolation and wilderness character add to the project’s distinctiveness.
With funding from the National Park Service and the National Science Foundation, John
Vucetich and Rolf Peterson are studying the behavior of the island’s wolves and moose
and what environmental factors are affecting their populations.
A biotech library for tree scientists
In the last ten years, research on the genetic makeup of trees has yielded huge amounts of
information that is critically important for scientists concerned with the health of America’s
forests. Oliver Gailing is working to develop genomic resources that will make this
information readily available. It will focus on ecologically and economically important North
American hardwoods: yellow poplar, red bay, sweet gum, black willow, honey locust, black
cherry, oak, black walnut, sugar maple, basswood, black gum, and green ash.
Students collaborating in
Oliver Gailing’s biotechnology
laboratory
Benefits: This project, funded by the National Science Foundation’s Plant Genome
Research Program, will provide powerful tools to help address major forest health issues
that affect the forest products industry, which contributes over $400 billion to the US
economy each year.
2011 by the Numbers
The School of Forest Resources and
Environmental Sciences
Students
Total enrollment
Undergraduate enrollment
Graduate enrollment
Student jobs provided by the School
Scholarship recipients
Total scholarship support
School awards
University awards
Percentage who are female
Undergraduate degrees awarded
Master’s and PhD degrees awarded
Research
271
180
91
94
101
$451,795
$55,946
$395,849
39%
44
24
Faculty
Total
Tenured/tenure-track faculty members
Research assistant professors
Recipients of Michigan Tech’s Distinguished Teaching Award
Recipients of Michigan Tech’s Research Award
31
25
6
7
6
Michigan Technological University is an equal opportunity educational institution/equal opportunity employer.
Active research projects
Research expenditures per faculty member
Total funds awarded in 2011
Total funds available
Expenditures
Proposals submitted
Proposals funded
Refereed books, chapters, or journal articles published
Presentations made
281
$283,534
$8,129,972
$27,196,055
$8,789,546
156
139
64
124
Alumni
Total
Years of leadership in forestry, wood products, and natural
resources management
Total degrees and certificates awarded (to date)
Bachelor’s
Master’s
Doctorates
Certificates
3,073
75
3,445
2,806
469
113
57
Michigan Technological University
1400 Townsend Drive
Houghton, MI 49931-1295