Climate change causing early tree death in West

A new study has found that rising temperatures are resulting in prolonged drought for many areas of the western U.S. The result of these prolonged droughts has been that trees are dying at twice the rate they did just two decades ago. The droughts have also lessened trees' ability to absorb carbon dioxide, leaving them more susceptible to pests and fire.

"The scientists, who analyzed tree census data collected in 1955 and in later years, found that the mortality of trees increased in 87 percent of the 76 forest plots studied," reports Mireya Navarro of The New York Times. "In some plots, the die-off rate doubled in as little as 17 years; in others, it doubled after 29 years, the study found." (Read more)