A University of Colorado at Boulder research project on long-term ecological changes occurring in an alpine region west of Boulder will continue for at least six more years as a result of a $4.2 million renewal grant from the National Science Foundation.
Operated by CU-Boulder's Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research, the project will allow faculty and students to continue studies on natural and human-caused changes at the Niwot Ridge site that occur over decades and centuries. Other investigators on the project include scientists from CU-Denver, the National Center for Atmospheric Research and the University of Denver.
"The National Science Foundation expects more than just individual research," said Tim Seasteadt, a professor in the environmental, population and organismic biology department. "The emphasis is on scientific collaboration and careful documentation of all aspects of the science. The results should produce a better understanding of the long-term ecology of Niwot Ridge and adjoining areas."
Located just east of the Continental Divide 35 miles northwest of Boulder, Niwot Ridge is the only multi-disciplinary, long-term alpine and sub-alpine study site on the continent. "The program is an essential benchmark for local, regional and national networks that measure ecological phenomena and biological change to human-induced changes in climate and atmospheric chemistry," Seastedt said.
The study area encompasses several thousand acres of tundra, talus slopes, glacial lakes and wetlands. Niwot Ridge is one of only 21 sites in the United States and Antarctica designated as Long-Term Ecological Research sites by the NSF.
Niwot Ridge researchers are conducting both long- and short-term experiments to monitor biological and ecosystem responses and feedback to variation in climate and atmospheric chemistry, said Seastedt. INSTAAR has maintained a 45-year climate record from four meteorological stations west of Boulder that show differing climatic trends.
Although there has been increased precipitation over the alpine region of Niwot Ridge in the past 40 years, other stations at lower altitudes do not show such changes. In addition, studies show that an increase in atmospheric nitrogen deposition in the high country -- believed to originate primarily from automobile, agricultural, ranching and industrial activity -- may be adversely affecting alpine and sub-alpine lakes and streams.
A recent public outreach grant to the Niwot Ridge program provided by CU has developed "virtual fieldtrips" to assist K-12 students and the public in understanding the significance of studies conducted there.
CU faculty and students from INSTAAR and EPO biology have done research on the region's water, soil, plant and wildlife resources for the past several decades, he said. Topics of study range from hydrology, geochemistry and nutrient transport to paleoecology, microbiology and ecology.
Niwot Ridge also is the site of one of the world's five long-term climate monitoring stations administered by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in cooperation with INSTAAR. Atmospheric CO2 levels have been monitored there since 1968, providing the second longest record in the world for the steadily increasing greenhouse gas.
Scientists are comparing data collected from all LTER sites across North America in hopes of developing an accurate assessment of changes as human activities continue to modify the environment, Seastedt said.
Researchers also are attempting to document changes in the alpine ecosystem since the last glacial period to understand and predict future changes associated with environmental disturbances. Tree-ring studies and evidence from fossil plants, pollen and insects have allowed them to extrapolate past precipitation, temperature and other environmental conditions in the area.
The LTER site features a high-altitude, state-of-the-art alpine tundra laboratory constructed in 1990. Located at 11,565 feet, the lab allows year-round research in a harsh region where winds approach 160 mph and the wind-chill factor can dip as low as 70 degrees below zero.
The Niwot LTER website can be found at: .