Trees Without Borders: the next challenge in climate change adaptation

As the climate continues to change, forestry jurisdictions that have implemented assisted migration are looking to ever-warmer locations to find tree seed sources that are climatically adapted to their reforestation sites. This may result in having to procure seed from neighbouring jurisdictions, with whom seed and seed transfer systems are not typically shared. Using recent literature on institutional response to climate change and taking British Columbia’s need for seed from the US Pacific Northwest (PNW) as a case study, we survey stakeholders to examine barriers to interjurisdictional seed movement, and address more broadly the ability of institutions to respond to climate change. We detected no significant institutional or informational barriers to increased seed procurement from the PNW. Nonetheless, risk and change aversion associated with new tools, actors, and practices may constrain implementation efforts. Reduced jurisdictional isolation could create significant opportunities and efficiencies in the seed supply chain and could help locate the best adapted species or seed source for each plantation. Our findings suggest climate change adaptation across multiple actors and geographies is possible. Placing more emphasis on the human elements of the system - the actors, their interests, and incentives - may help improve our capacity to deliver effective climate change adaptation actions.