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54 North American Natural Resources: Timber and Forest Products
Climate change is also believed to affect the frequency and severity of natural
events. Storms such as hurricanes, tornadoes, blizzards, and ice storms will most likely
be more severe and possibly more frequent in the future if climate change continues.
These events will impact the health of forests. Climate change will also increase the
range and abundance of pests, diseases, and wildfires in certain areas.
Hurricane Danger
In 2005, Hurricane Rita and Hurricane Katrina killed or damaged nearly 5,500
acres of forest in the Gulf of Mexico region of the United States. That same
year, Hurricane Stan hit Mexico, destroying 76 percent of the forest in Chiapas.
The dead and decaying trees released as much carbon dioxide into the air as
all the carbon dioxide taken in by all the forests in the United States in 1 year.
Hurricane Katrina making landfall on the Gulf Coast, as seen from space.