Effects of climate change on nonforest vegetation [Chapter 7]

Nonforest ecosystems, as they are addressed in this chapter, contain woodland, shrubland, herbaceous, wetland, or riparian vegetation types. They are estimated to occupy over 30 million acres and 50 percent of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service (USFS) Intermountain Region (table 7.1). These diverse ecosystems range in elevation from desert floors to mountain peaks above 11,000 feet and occupy a wide variety of sites, from deep and highly productive soils to very shallow nonproductive soils. Other than riparian and wetland ecosystems, nonforest vegetation types tend to occur in more arid environments or are otherwise controlled by edaphic features such as soil depth, drainage, or chemical (saline) characteristics.