Be water conscious and live a low-carbon lifestyle.

Global warming is killing off the trees, which could result in an even hotter climate.

RODALE NEWS, EMMAUS, PA—Tree deaths have doubled over the last few decades in the western United States, and scientists believe regional climate change and drought is the culprit, according to a study recently published in the journal Science.

THE DETAILS: “Average temperature in the West rose by more than 1 degree Fahrenheit over the last few decades,” says Phil van Mantgem, USGS researcher and co-author of the study. “While this may not sound like much, it has been enough to reduce winter snowpack, cause earlier snowmelt, and lengthen the summer drought.” The U.S. Geological Survey study found “significant die-offs” in the west, northwest and in some interior states like Colorado and Arizona. Researchers found that trees like pine, fir, and hemlock in study plots were dying off faster than younger trees could replace them. They fear the climate-related phenomenon will disrupt wildlife, and there are even deeper implications. Old-growth forests are known for capturing carbon, keeping it out of the atmosphere where it could warm the climate even more. With more trees dying off, there may be a snowball effect: fewer trees means a warmer climate, which means even fewer trees.

WHAT YOU CAN DO: Drought is a consequence of climate change, and it’s a major stressor for trees, causing them to die off faster. By conserving water and doing your best to live with a lighter carbon footprint, you’ll help reverse this trend, and you’ll lower your water bill and reduce the money you spend on energy.

Slash your water use and cut back on fossil fuel use to protect our trees:

• Take a Navy shower on a regular basis. Instead of running the water the whole time you’re in the shower, keep it off when you’re soaping up and turn it on only to rinse. Besides leaving more water for local trees and plants, you’ll conserve a resource that’s increasingly hard to come by, says Jacob Sewall, assistant professor of geosciences at Virginia Tech University in Blacksburg, VA: “Regardless of climate change, people should be conserving water.”

• Grow a water-sipping garden. Most native plants don’t need tons of watering, like more exotic species do. So when you landscape your yard, select plants and grasses that match your region.

• Let deserts be themselves. If you live in or move to a desert or arid area, don’t plan to live like you’re in Indiana or Pennsylvania. “People may want to think twice about living in a desert,” says Sewall. “They really shouldn’t have green lawns there, they shouldn’t have golf courses. Golf originated in Scotland for a reason. It’s wet and it stays green all the time.”

• Survey your carbon use. Give Nature Conservancy’s carbon calculator a spin to see if where you could trim your carbon diet. Lightening your carbon load will save you money as well as reduce your personal contribution to global warming.