James contributes to the work of the Climate Change Science Group which spans research and knowledge exchange on climate change impacts on trees, woodlands and forests, adaptation measures and forestry’s mitigation contributions. In developing our understanding of forest carbon and GHG balance, he works with the results from FR’s long-term measurement site at Alice Holt, and Harwood Forest. He also advises on climate change impacts on, and adaptation measures for, forestry. He contributed to the UK Climate Change Risk Assessments in 2012 and 2017, and co-chaired the LWEC Report Card on the Climate Change Impacts on UK Agriculture and Forestry (2017). He was a Review Editor for Chapter 5 on ‘Food, Fibre and other Ecosystem Products’ in the recent IPCC WGII 6th Assessment Report (2022).
James joined Forest Research in 2008. He has worked for over 35 years on the impact of climate change on plant growth and water use, and on the carbon, water and greenhouse gas balances of vegetation. He previously worked at the universities of Essex (1995-2007) and Reading (1985-1994) and in CSIRO, Australia (1981-1984).
Affiliations
- Member of the Royal Meteorological Society
- Member of the Society for Experimental Biology
- Member of the British Ecological Society
James Morison
BSc, PhD
Related Research
Related Publications
Other Research
Programme on ‘Sustainable Forest Management in the light of Environmental Change’: Research examining how forest management could change to adapt woodlands to the changing environment and how forestry can contribute to sustainability through innovations such as ‘Climate Smart Forestry’.
‘Net Zero Plus’ and tree planting: Assessing and demonstrating the role of new woodland creation and its planning in contributing to UK Net Zero targets. Forest Research is contributing measurements, data and modelling expertise to this major project which is led by University of Exeter.
Introducing stewardship science to improve woodland resilience with ‘Forest Lab’: Exploring new mechanisms to improve knowledge exchange between forestry scientists and managers of private woodlands to understand change in their woodlands and help build woodland resilience, through developing ‘stewardship scientists’, a collaborative project with Sylva Foundation.
Peer reviewed journal articles
Crawford, A.J., Belcher, C.M., Morison, J.I.L., Doerr, S.H., Kettridge, N. & Clay, G.D.(2025). Fuel moisture and flammability of leaf litter in British forest plantations and their implications for wildfire risk, Forestry: An International Journal, https://doi.org/10.1093/forestry/cpaf029
Little, K., Vitali, R., Belcher, C.M., Kettridge, N., Pellegrini, A.F.A., Ford, A.E.S., Smith, A.M.S., Elliott, A., Voulgarakis, A., Stoof, C.R., Kolden, C.A., Schwilk, D.W., Kennedy, E.B., Newman Thacker, F.E., Millin-Chalabi, G.R., Clay, G.D., Morison, J.I., McCarty, J.L.., Ivison, K., Tansey, K., Simpson, K.J., Jones, M.W., Mack, M.C., Fule, P.Z., Gazzard, R., Harrison, S.P., New, S. Page, S.E., Hall, T.E., Brown, T., Jolly, W.M., Doerr, S. (2025) Priority research directions for wildfire science: views from a historically fire-prone and an emerging fire-prone country. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 380(1924), 20240001. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2024.0001
Bateman, I.J., Binner, A.R., [34 others including J.I.L. Morison] and Day, B. (2024) How to make land use policy decisions: Integrating science and economics to deliver connected climate, biodiversity, and food objectives. PNAS 121 (49) e2407961121. https://www.pnas.org/doi/epub/10.1073/pnas.2407961121
McCalmont, J., Heinemeyer, A. Morison, J., Wilkinson, M. & Hastings, A. (2024) Timeseries partitioning of ecosystem respiration components in seasonal, non-tropical forests; comparing literature derived coefficients with evaluation at two contrasting UK forest sites. Frontiers in Forests and Global Change, 7, 1352527
Barker, C.R., Poole, M.L., Wilkinson M., Morison, J., Wilson A., Little, G., Stuckey, E.J. , Welbourn, R.J.L., A.D. Ward and King, M.D. (2023) Ultraviolet refractive index values of organic aerosol extracted from deciduous forestry, urban and marine environments. Environmental Science: Atmospheres. 3, 1008 – 1024.
Purser, G., Heal, M. R., Carnell, E. J., Bathgate, S., Drewer, J., Morison, J. I. L., and Vieno, M. (2023). Simulating impacts on UK air quality from net-zero forest planting scenarios, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 13713–13733, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-13713-2023.
Argles, A.P.K., Robertson, E., Harper, A.B., Morison, J.I.L., Xenakis, G., Hastings, A. McCalmont, J., Moore, J.R., Bateman, I.J., Gannon, K., Betts, R.A., Bathgate, S., Thomas, J., Heard, M. & Cox, P.M. (2023). Modelling the impact of forest management and CO2-fertilisation on growth and demography in a Sitka spruce plantation. Sci Rep 13, 13487. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-39810-2.
Bateman, I.J. [and 34 other authors, including J.I.L. Morison] (2022). A review of planting principles to identify the right place for the right tree for ‘net zero plus’ woodlands: Applying a place-based natural capital framework for Sustainable, Efficient and Equitable (SEE) decisions. People and Nature, May 2023, https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.10331
Shannon, V.L., Vanguelova, E.I., Morison, J.I.L., Shaw, L.J., & Clark, J.M. (2022). The contribution of deadwood to soil carbon dynamics in contrasting temperate forest ecosystems. European Journal of Forest Research (2022) 141:241–252. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10342-021-01435-3.
Purser, G., Drewer, J., Morison, J.I.L. & Heal, M.R., (2021). A first assessment of the sources of isoprene and monoterpene emissions from short-rotation coppice Eucalyptus gunnii bioenergy plantation in the United Kingdom. Atmospheric Environment 262: 118617 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atmosenv.2021.118617
Yamulki, S., Forster, J., Xenakis, G., Ash, A., Brunt, J., Perks, M. & Morison, J.I.L. (2021). Effects of clearfell harvesting on soil CO2, CH4 and N2O fluxes in an upland Sitka spruce stand in England. Biogeosciences 18: 4227-4241 https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4227-2021
Xenakis, G., Ash, A., Siebicke, L., Perks, M. & Morison, J.I.L. (2021). Comparison of the carbon, water and energy balances of mature stand and clear-fell stages in a British Sitka spruce forests and the impact of the 2018 drought. Agricultural & Forest Meteorology 306: 108437.
Purser, G., Drewer, J., Heal, M.R., Sircus, R.A.S., Dunn, L.K. & Morison, J.I.L. (2021). Isoprene and monoterpene emissions from alder, aspen and spruce short-rotation forest plantations in the United Kingdom. Biogeosciences, 18: 2487–2510. https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-2487-2021
Ilie, I., Dittrich, P., Carvalhais, N., Jung, M., Heinemeyer, A., Migliavacca, M., Morison, J.I.L., Sippel, S., Subke, J-A., Wilkinson, M. & Mahecha, M.D. (2017). Reverse engineering model structures for soil and ecosystem respiration: the potential of gene expression programming. Geoscientific Model Development 10: 3519-3545, DOI: 10.5194/gmd-10-3519-2017.
Pinnington, E.M., Casella, E., Dance, S.L., Lawless, A.S., Morison, J.I.L., Nichols, N.K., Wilkinson, M., & Quaife T.L. (2017). Understanding the effect of disturbance from selective felling on the carbon dynamics of a managed woodland by combining observations with model predictions JGR- Biogeosciences, 10.1002/2017JG003760.
Vanguelova, E.I., Pitman, R., Benham, S. Perks, M., and Morison, J.I.L. (2017). Impact of tree stump harvesting on soil carbon and nutrients and second rotation tree growth in mid-Wales, UK. Open Journal of Forestry7: 58-78. DOI: 10.4236/ojf.2017.71005.
Yamulki, S.and Morison, J.I.L. (2017). Annual greenhouse gas fluxes from a temperate deciduous oak forest floor. Forestry 90: 541-552. DOI: 10.1093/forestry/cpx008
Wilkinson, M., Eaton, E.L. and Morison, J.I.L. (2017). Variation in the date of budburst in Quercus robur and Q. petraea across a range of provenances grown in Southern England. European Journal of Forest Research 136: 1-12. DOI:10.1007/s10342-016-0998-z
Pinnington, E.M., Casella, E., Dance, S.L., Lawless, A. S., Morison, J.I.L., Nichols, N.K., Wilkinson, M. and Quaife, T.L. (2016). Investigating the role of prior and observation error correlations in improving a model forecast for forest carbon balance using Four-dimensional Variational data assimilation. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology 228: 299-314. DOI: 10.1016/j.agrformet.2016.07.006.
Wingate, L., Ogée, J., Cremonese, E., Filippa, G., Mizunuma, T., Migliavacca, M., Moisy, C., Wilkinson, M., Moureaux, C., Wohlfahrt, G., Hammerle, A., Hörtnagl, L., Gimeno, C., Porcar-Castell, A., Galvagno, M., Nakaji, T., Morison, J. Kolle, O., Knohl, A., Kutsch, W., Kolari, P., Nikinmaa, E., Ibrom, A., Gielen, B., Eugster, W., Balzarolo, M., Papale, D., Klumpp, K., Köstner, B., Grünwald, T., Joffre, R., Ourcival, J.-M., Hellstrom, M., Lindroth, A., George, C., Longdoz, B., Genty, B., Levula, J., Heinesch, B., Sprintsin, A., Yakir, D., Manise, T., Guyon, D., Ahrends, H., Plaza-Aguilar, A., Guan, J. H. and J. Grace (2015). Interpreting canopy development and physiology using a European phenology camera network at flux sites. Biogeosciences 12: 5995-6015.
Wilkinson, M., Crow, P., Eaton, E.L. and Morison, J.I.L. (2015). Effects of management thinning on CO2 exchange by a plantation oak woodland in south-eastern England. Biogeosciences Discussions 12: 16197-16232. DOI: 10.5194/bgd-12-16197-2015.
D’Odorico, P., Gonsamo, A., Gough, C.M., Bohrer, G., Morison, J., Wilkinson, M., Hanson, P.J., Gianelle, D., Fuentes, J.D. and Buchmann, N. (2015). The match and mismatch between photosynthesis and land surface phenology of deciduous forests. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology 214-15: 25-38.
Ward, H.C., Kotthaus, S., Grimmond, C.S.B., Bjorkegren, A., Wilkinson, M., Morrison, W.T.J., Evans, J.G., Morison, J.I.L. and Iamarino, M. (2015). Effects of urban density on carbon dioxide exchanges: observations of dense urban, suburban and woodland areas of southern England. Environmental Pollution 198: 186-200.
Barsoum, N., Eaton, E.L., Levanič, T., Pargade, J., Bonnart, X. and Morison J.I.L. (2015). Climatic drivers of oak growth over the past one hundred years in mixed and monoculture stands in southern England and northern France. European Journal of Forest Research 134: 33-51. DOI: 10.1007/s10342-014-0831-5.
Forestry Commission and Forest Research publications
(including official statistics)
Wilkinson, M., Xenakis, G. & Morison, J. (2023). The carbon balances of two contrasting forest stands growing in the UK. Forest Research Research Note FRRN043. 12pp. https://cdn.forestresearch.gov.uk/2023/09/Research-note_The-carbon-balances-of-two-forest-stands.pdf
Morison, J. & Matthews, R. (2023). Climate Change and Forest Carbon: how much carbon is there in our woodlands? Forest Research “Climate Change Fact Sheet” (no. 17 in a series); 2pp.
Matthews, R.W., Henshall, P.A., Beauchamp, K., Gruffudd, H., Hogan, G.P., Mackie, E.D., Sayce, M. & Morison, J. (2022) Quantifying the sustainable forestry carbon cycle. Summary Report, Forest Research, Farnham, 60pp. https://www.forestresearch.gov.uk/publications/quantifying-the-sustainable-forestry-carbon-cycle-report-download-page/
Atkinson, G., Nicoll, B. & Morison, J.I.L. (2022) Climate change and risks: what are key risks to our forests and woodlands? Forest Research “Climate Change Fact Sheet” (no. 4 in a series); 2pp.
Atkinson, G., Morison, J.I.L. & Nicoll, B. (2022), editors. Adapting forest and woodland management for the changing climate. UK Forestry Standard Practice Guide, UKFSPG026, 48 pp. ISBN: 978-1-83915-016-6. https://cdn.forestresearch.gov.uk/2022/05/UKFSPG026.pdf
Atkinson, G., Morison, J.I.L. & Nicoll, B. (2022) Climate Change Adaptation. Forest Research “Climate Change Fact Sheet” (no. 3 in a series); 2pp.
Vaz Monteiro, M., Handley, P. Morison, J.I.L., Doick, K.J. (2019). The role of urban trees and greenspaces in reducing urban air temperatures. Forest Research Research Note, FCRN037, 12pp.
Morison, J., Matthews, R., Miller, G., Perks, M., Randle, T., Vanguelova, E., White, M. and Yamulki, S. (2012). Understanding the carbon and greenhouse gas balance of forests in Britain (PDF-7422K). Forestry Commission Research Report 18. Forestry Commission, Edinburgh. i–vi + 1–149 pp.
Vanguelova, E., Broadmeadow, S., Anderson, R., Yamulki, S., Randle, T., Nisbet, T. & Morison, J. (2012) A Strategic Assessment of the Afforested Peat Resource in Wales. Report for Forestry Commission Wales, Project No. 480.CY.00075, October 2012., 141 pp.
Morison, J.I.L., Vanguelova, E., Broadmeadow, S., Perks, M., Yamulki, S.and Randle, T. (2010). Understanding the GHG implications of forestry on peat soils in Scotland (PDF-2140K). Report for Forestry Commission Scotland, October 2010, Forest Research, 56pp.
Forestry Commission (2011). Forests and Climate Change. UK Forestry Standard Guidelines. Forestry Commission, Edinburgh. i–iv + 1–68 pp. ISBN 978-0-85538-832-4. (member of drafting panel).
Ray, D. Morison, J.and Broadmeadow, M. (2010). Climate change: impacts and adaptation in England’s woodlands (PDF-1920 KB). Forestry Commission (England), Research Note FCRN 201, 16pp. Forestry Commission, Edinburgh.