Land Use Change and Forest Management Effects on Soil Carbon

This collection of resources synthesizes and describes the effects of land use change and forest management on soil carbon in multiple regions across the U.S. The publications outline potential forest soil carbon risks and restoration possibilities and can be used to inform on-the-ground decision making.

Publications: 

• Effects of land use and forest management on soil carbon in the ecoregions of Maryland and adjacent eastern United States (Nave et al. 2019): This assessment focuses on six ecoregions of the eastern U.S., which comprise some of the most biologically diverse forests, wide-ranging soils, and complex physiography in the country. It tests whether common land use and management practices quantitatively impact soil organic carbon; identifies key sources of variation in these effects; and assesses how sources of variation translate to decisions about land use and management at ecoregional to landscape scales. 
• Land use and management effects on soil carbon in U.S. Lake States, with emphasis on forestry, fire, and reforestation (Nave et al. 2021): This assessment focuses on theU.S. Lake States (Great Lakes), which comprise 7% of the forested land area but 9% of the forest soil organic carbon in the country. It explores how land use and management impact soil organic carbon stocks, primarily with regards to forest land uses.
• Disturbance and management effects on forest soil organic carbon stocks in the Pacific Northwest (Nave et al 2022a): This assessment focuses on the Pacific Northwest, which comprises ~12% of the U.S. forest sector carbon sink. It reports on results that quantify disturbance and management impacts on soil organic carbon stocks in the region and contrasts the effects of wildfire, prescribed fire, and harvesting on soil carbon. 
• Soil carbon in the South Atlantic United States: Land use change, forest management, and physiographic context (Nave et al. 2022b): This assessment focuses on the South Atlantic States, which are disproportionately important to the national-scale forest carbon sink and forest products industry in the U.S. It quantifies influences of land use change and forest management, and provides ecological context for distinct management regimes and their soil organic carbon impacts. 
• Land use change and forest management effects on soil carbon stocks in the Northeast U.S (Nave et al. 2024): This assessment focuses on the Northeast U.S., which is ~75% forested and contains some of the most carbon-dense forests in the country. It examines the overall effects of land use change, and establishes that typical harvesting practices have no effect on soil carbon.
• Land use change and forest management affect soil carbon stocks in the central hardwoods, U.S. (Nave et al. 2025): This assessment focuses on the Central Hardwoods ecoregion of the U.S, with about 75% of the ecoregion being forested. It examines baseline controls on soil carbon stocks and their responses to land use and forest management.
• Effects of Forest Management and Land Use Change on Soil Carbon in the US Gulf Coastal Plain (Nave et al. 2026): This assessment focuses on the Gulf Coastal Plan region in the U.S., which produces more of the nation’s wood products than any other region. It quantifies how land use change and forest management affect carbon stocks at landscape to regional scales, demonstrates how forest management can support forest carbon management, and offers quantitative insights into specific management activities to aid researchers, policymakers, and practitioners.

Factsheets:

• Soil Carbon and Forest Management: Focus on the Great Lakes Region: This fact sheet draws from Nave et al. (2021). It gives an overview of soil organic matter and details vulnerabilities, opportunities, and management guidelines pertaining to soil carbon in the Great Lakes region. 
• Soil Carbon and Forest Management in the Northeastern U.S.: This factsheet draws from Nave et al. (2024) and describes how land use change, harvesting, and regional management guidelines affect soil carbon in the northeastern U.S.
• Soil Carbon and Forest Management in the Southeast United States: The National Council for Air and Stream Improvement (NCASI) has published a new factsheet that summarizes the findings of two published journal articles for the South Atlantic and Gulf Coast ecoregions (Nave et al. 2022b, Nave et al. 2026). It provides an overview of soil organic matter in forest ecosystems and highlights how forest management can affect soil carbon stocks in the context of patterns of land use and land use change across the southeast U.S.

Other Related Resources:

Decision support tools for soil carbon management in the Lake States

Resources for Understanding Forest Carbon 

Northern Forests Climate Hub: Understanding forest soil carbon and useful resources

American Forests: Forest Soil Carbon Initiative

New England SAF summary of Nave et al. 2024

Nave et al. (2021) as a 2021 USDA-Forest Service Northern Research Station Director’s Choice Research Highlight

Partners:

These resources were developed through a collaboration between scientists from Michigan Technological University, American Forests, the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement, Inc. (NCASI), the USDA Forest Service, Weyerhaeuser, the University of Florida, the Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science (NIACS). NIACS is a collaborative, multi-institutional partnership led by the USDA Forest Service and comprised of federal, forest sector, conservation, higher education, and tribal organizations.
 

Citations:

• National Council for Air and Stream Improvement. 2026. Soil Carbon and Forest Management in the Southeast United States. FS-26-01. https://ncasi.org/resources/soil-carbon-and-forest-management-in-the-southeast-united-states/ 
• Nave, L.E.; DeLyser, K.; Butler-Leopold, P.R.; Sprague, E.; Daley, J.; Swanston, C.W. 2019. Effects of land use and forest management on soil carbon in the ecoregions of Maryland and adjacent eastern United States. Forest Ecology and Management. 448: 34–47. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2019.05.072
• Nave, L.E.; DeLyser, K.; Domke, G.M.; Holub, S.M.; Janowiak, M.K.; Keller, A.B.; Peters, M.P.; Solarik, K.A.; Walters, B.F.; Swanston, C.W. 2024. Land use change and forest management effects on soil carbon stocks in the Northeast U.S. Carbon Balance and Management. 19(1): 5. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13021-024-00251-7
• Nave, L.E.; DeLyser, K.; Domke, G.M.; Holub, S.M.; Janowiak, M.K.; Kittler, B.; Ontl, T.A.; Sprague, E.; Sucre, E.B.; Walters, B.F.; Swanston, C.W. 2022a. Disturbance and management effects on forest soil organic carbon stocks in the Pacific Northwest. Ecological Applications. 32(6): e2611. https://doi.org/10.1002/eap.2611
• Nave, L.E.; DeLyser, K.; Domke, G.M.; Holub, S.M.; Janowiak, M.K.; Ontl, T.A.; Sprague, E.; Viau, N.R.; Walters, B.F.; Swanston, C.W. 2022b. Soil carbon in the South Atlantic United States: Land use change, forest management, and physiographic context. Forest Ecology and Management. 520: 120410. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2022.120410
• Nave, L.E.; DeLyser, K.; Domke, G.M.; Holub, S.M.; Kabrick, J.M.; Keller, A.B.; Leopold, P.; Peters, M.P.; Solarik, K.A.; Swanston, C.W. 2025. Land use change and forest management affect soil carbon stocks in the central hardwoods, U.S. Geoderma Regional. 40: e00930. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geodrs.2025.e00930
• Nave, L.E.; DeLyser, K.; Domke, G.M.; Holub, S.M.; Keller, A.B.; Miller, D.; Solarik, K.A.; Schilling, E.; Vogel, J.; Swanston, C.W. 2026. Effects of Forest Management and Land Use Change on Soil Carbon in the US Gulf Coastal Plain. Journal of Forestry. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44392-026-00085-w
• Nave, L.E.; DeLyser, K.; Domke, G.M.; Janowiak, M.K.; Todd A. Ontl; Peters, M.P.; Sprague, E.; Walters, B.F.; Swanston, C.W. 2021a. Decision support tools for soil carbon management in the Lake States. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2021-0017
• Nave, L.E.; DeLyser, K.; Domke, G.M.; Janowiak, M.K.; Todd A. Ontl; Peters, M.P.; Sprague, E.; Walters, B.F.; Swanston, C.W. 2021b. Land use and management effects on soil carbon in the Lake States, with emphasis on forestry, fire, and reforestation. Ecological Applications 31(6): e02356. https://doi.org/10.1002/eap.2356
• Nave L.E.; Solarik K.; Handler S.D.; Keller A.B.; Leopold P.L.; Marcinkowski K.F.; Munro H.L.; Prisley S. 2022. Soil Carbon and Forest Management: Focus on the Great Lakes Region. NCASI Fact Sheet FS-22-09. Retrieved from https://ncasi.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/FS-22-09_Soil_Carbon_Forest_Management_Great_Lakes_Dec22.pdf  (accessed May 18, 2026)
• Nave L.E.; Solarik K.; Miller D.A.; Schilling E.B. 2024. Soil Carbon and Forest Management in the Northeastern U.S. NCASI Fact Sheet FS-24-02. Retrieved from https://ncasi.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/NCASI-NE-Soil-Carbon-Fact-Sheet_Final_.pdf (accessed May 18, 2026)