Interannual variability in the water and energy balances of the southern boreal forest

The Boreal Ecosystem Research and Monitoring Sites (BERMS) network of eddy-covariance flux towers is located in central Saskatchewan, Canada, near the southern limit of the boreal forest. The 1999-2006 study period includes three extreme drought years (2001-2003) followed by three extreme wet years (2004-2006). This study will compare the drought impact on the carbon, water and energy balances of contrasting mature and young forest stands, in relation to other sources of interannual variability. It will also report on the relationship between energy-balance and water-balance closure by comparing stand-level water balances with gauged streamflow.