ABSTRACT
The rugged beauty of the glacial landscapes, the assemblage of plants and animals that currently inhabits the CCE, and the resulting array of ecosystem services are the result of the intricate interplay of past geological, climatic, and ecological processes across a complex landscape. To assess the sustainability of these resources, we must first understand the effects of past, present, and future climate variability and change on the ecosystem. For instance, forests have long lags in responding to climatic shifts, which means that what we see as “normal” is a combination of past and present conditions. If land managers are to sustain current resources, they need paleoperspectives that give them a realistic view of what those resource conditions should be. Paleoenvironmental research seeks to document and understand past responses to environmental change and serves as a benchmark for evaluating the current state of the region. In this chapter, we examine conditions that have shaped the region in the 20,000 years since the last glacial maximum during which the modern climate, landscape, and vegetation patterns have developed. These patterns are also susceptible to projected future climate changes.
