Sigrid Resh

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Sigrid Resh

Research Assistant Professor, School of Forest Resources and Environmental Science

  • PhD, Forest Ecology, Colorado State University
  • MS, Resource Economics, Michigan State University
  • BS, Merchandising Management and Economics, Michigan State University
"If a child is to keep alive his inborn sense of wonder, he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement and mystery of the world we live in." —Rachel Carson (1907-1964)

Ecosystem processes related to carbon cycling

I want to understand how forested ecosystems work, and then I want to apply that understanding to restore them. My training is in processes related to forested ecosystem carbon storage. I've examined changes in carbon storage related to forest age (Wyoming, USA), the influence of nitrogen-fixing tree species (Hawaii and Puerto Rico, USA), and coarse root production and soil differences (Tasmania, Australia).

I've found stable isotopes to be a valuable tool for some of my research questions. Carbon isotopes allowed me to look at losses of old soil carbon and gains of new soil carbon in systems of land use change from C4 to C3 species, and I've used oxygen isotopes to evaluate water sources of riparian bur oak. I'm in the midst of refocusing my belowground carbon storage work into ecosystem restoration with an emphasis on soil. I feel that it is an imperative that I help to restore ecosystems that have been disrupted. I now look at our world through the eyes of my two young children, who have greatly influenced my views on how important it is to help where you can.

Recent Publications

  • Resh, S.C., L. Joyce, M.G. Ryan. 2008. Fuel Treatments by Mulching—A Synthesis of the Ecological Impacts. In review with USDA-Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station GTR.
  • Resh, S.C., M. Battaglia, D. Worledge, and S. Ladiges. 2003. Coarse root biomass for eucalypt plantations in Tasmania, Australia: sources of variation and methods for assessment. Trees: Structure and Function 17:389-399.
  • Rothe, A., Cromack, K. Jr., Resh, S., Makineci, E., and Son, Y. 2002. Soil carbon and nitrogen changes under Douglas-fir with and without red alder. Soil Science Society of America Journal 66:1988-1995.
  • Resh, S.C., D. Binkley, and J.A. Parrotta. 2002. Greater soil carbon sequestration under nitrogen-fixing tree species compared with Eucalyptus species. Ecosystems 5:217-231.
  • Kaye, J., S.C. Resh, M.W. Kaye, and R.A. Chimner. 2000. Nutrient and carbon dynamics in a replacement series of Eucalyptus and Albizia trees. Ecology 81:3267-3273.
  • Smith, F.W. and S.C. Resh. 1999. Age-related changes in production and below-ground carbon allocation in Pinus contorta forests. Forest Science 45:1-9.
  • Binkley, D. and S.C. Resh. 1999. Rapid changes in soils following Eucalyptus afforestation in Hawaii. Soil Science Society of America Journal 63:222-225.

Recent Funding

  • $149,391 from the Office of Science (BER), U.S. Department of Energy for "Interactive Effects of Climate Change and Decomposer Communities on the Stabilization of Wood-Derived Carbon Pools: Catalyst for a New Study"