Long-term ecological studies are essential for understanding the effects of global climate change on ecosystems: in addition to detecting slow transformations or delays between environmental changes and biological responses, they serve to assess the impact of extreme events (sudden droughts, cold spells or heat waves, forest decline, Saharan dust influxes, mass tourism and livestock farming in sensitive areas, etc.) that act as ‘natural experiments’.
A good example of this type of scientific approach is that provided by the Sierra Nevada Global Change Observatory (OBSNEV) in Granada (Spain), whose activities could be coming to an end if no remedial action is taken.
The importance of ecological monitoring
As noted above, environmental assessments require extensive memory to distinguish real trends from noise or mere temporary fluctuations. Knowing the past is key to understanding the present and anticipating the future. These processes require institutional and scientific continuity, as well as collaboration between researchers, technicians and managers to decide what to monitor, especially in protected areas.
Within this framework of what is known as adaptive management, scientific knowledge—both basic and applied—provides tools for designing, analysing, and interpreting information that must comply with international FAIR standards (findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable). This guarantees its long-term value.
Regino Jesús Zamora Rodríguez, Professor of Ecology, University of Granada
Domingo Alcaraz Segura, Professor of Botany, University of Granada
Javier Martínez-López, Assistant researcher, University of Granada
Manuel Villar-Argaiz, Professor of Ecology, University of Granada
Penélope Serrano Ortiz, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Ecology, University of Granada
https://canal.ugr.es/noticia/sos-por-el-observatorio-de-cambio-global-de-sierra-nevada/