JFSP Completed Projects
You may search JFSP Project Information by the following: Project Number, Title, Principal Investigator, Cooperators or key words contained in a brief description of the project.
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Integrating Social Values in Vegetation Models via GIS: the missing link for the Bitterroot National Forest | |
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Project # 04-2-1-114; Principal Investigator: Alan Watson | |
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We propose an eighteen month research and application project to improve methods for presentation of fuzzy data (social values) in GIS format. Such methods are needed to further increase effectiveness of integration of human values into planning fire and fuels treatments. Information on social effects of alternatives is necessary for NEPA documentation, and while there are several possible techniques to accomplish this objective, none that are GIS-based have been tested sufficiently or peer-reviewed, nor are any theoretically based. Proposed research will be conducted in and for the Bitterroot Ecosystem Management Research Project (BEMRP), a partnership of federal land managers, researchers and the public. BEMRP’s current priority is on-site hazardous fuels treatments for a landscape-scale green fuel reduction/restoration program. Final Report Research Update Paper |
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Litter and Duff Bulk Densities in the Southern United States | |
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Project # 04-2-1-49; Principal Investigator: Roger Ottmar | |
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The organic layer (litter and duff) in forest, shrub, and grasslands can represent the bulk of the fuels consumed during wildland fires in southern ecosystems; it is imperative that organic layer depth measurements can be converted to mass as managers often measure the depth of the litter and organic duff layers. In order to convert depth measurements to mass, a bulk density is required for each layer. Also, the DMM600 Duff Moisture Meter developed through collaboration between Campbell Scientific, Inc. and the USDA, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station and Missoula Technology and Development Center measures volumetric moisture of forest floor materials. These volumetric moisture contents can be converted to gravimetric moisture content if duff bulk density values are known. Some field research has been conducted to quantify organic layer bulk densities in the southeastern part of the United States, although it has generally been limited to less productive sand pine and sand hill sites at Eglin Air Force Base. The objective of this research proposal is to quantify bulk density for litter and duff layers in 6) forest, shrub, and grassland fuelbed types. The data will be compiled and analyzed to provide bulk density values for use in specific vegetation types. Final Report |
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Effects of Fuel Management Treatments in Piñon Juniper Vegetation at a Site on the Colorado Plateau | |
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Project # 03-3-3-58; Principal Investigator: Matt Brooks | |
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This is the first of a two-phase project. Phase 1 will compare the cost effectiveness of two types of mechanical and one type of chemical thinning treatments, alone and when combined with seeding treatments, and evaluate the abilities of these treatments to: (1) reduce densities of post-settlement piñon and juniper trees; (2) increase cover and seedbank density of annual plants and perennial grasses; (3) increase plant species diversity; (4) minimize cover and seedbank density of invasive alien plants; and (5) create a fuelbed that promotes the re-establishment of historic low to moderate intensity ground fires. The second phase, pending additional funding beyond the scope of this proposal, will add fire as a management treatment and compare fire behavior among previous thinning and seeding treatments. Virtually all previous studies of piñon-juniper fuels treatments have been unreplicated and largely descriptive, comparing adjacent treated and untreated areas. This proposed study would be a replicated, randomized experimental study with quantitative response variables for vegetation seedbanks, and fuels, allowing for the rigorous evaluation of treatment effects needed to develop sound management plans. Final Report |
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Stereo Photo Series for Quantifying Natural Fuels in the Prairie Forest and Northwestern Great Plains | |
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Project # 03-3-3-46; Principal Investigator: Mitch Maycox | |
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The objective of this research project is to compile a sequence of single and stereo photographs with accompanying vegetation and fuels characterization data that will provide a quick and easy means for quantifying and describing existing fuel properties for the vegetation types of the northwestern Great Plains, including forest, shrub and grasslands. The photo series is expected to be applicable to an area of at least 58,000 mi2 in central and eastern Montana and will probably extend into North Dakota. The photo series will cover a range of composition and structure from dense ponderosa pine-Douglas-fir-juniper to rhizomatous grassland with and without sagebrush to riparian shrubland. Approximately 30 sites will be selected and photographed during this study and printed in one volume. The photo series project will use methods similarly to those employed in previous photo series, although new data will also be collected (e.g. crown bulk density) using protocols formulated from previous Joint Fire Science Projects. Twin Hasselblad, medium format cameras will be used to photograph the sites and appropriate fuels inventory methods determined from the literature will be used to quantify the fuels. This photo series will fill a gap in scientific knowledge that is significant to fire management implementation in the northwestern Great Plains (AFP-2003-3, task #3). Final Report |
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Effects of season of prescribed fire and grazing on understory plant communities in a ponderosa pine forest | |
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Project # 03-3-3-28; Principal Investigator: Becky Kerns | |
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In Region 6, prescribed fire is being applied to almost 100,000 acres, and 85 % of those acres are in the ponderosa pine type. Much of this forest type is also used for livestock grazing. A critical question facing forest managers is how timing of prescribed fire and grazing impact understory plant communities and exotic species. There is a great need for research examining grazing and fire effects. To address this issue, we established relatively large (0.03 ha), randomly located cattle exclosures on four stands as part of an ongoing season and interval of burn study. Our objective is to examine understory response to spring and fall 5-year interval reburns with and without cattle grazing. The study site consists of stands in a mixed-aged ponderosa pine forest with scattered western juniper in the Malheur National Forest in the southern Blue Mountains of Oregon. Understory vegetation was measured (2002) prior to the 5-year reburns in all stands, including plots inside the cattle exclosures that were built. The 5-year fall reburns were successfully completed in October 2002, and spring reburns are scheduled for 2003. Presently, we lack sufficient funds to measure post-treatment response for the cattle exclosure plots built in 2002. Because of the importance of the question and urgency of taking advantage of the 5-year burn (fall 2002) and existing data, we were able to work with cooperators to plan this study and establish the exclosures. However, we are requesting funds to measure understory response within these exclosures in 2003 and to remeasure all plots (exclosure and non-exclosure plots) in 2004. Our proposed research addresses local scientific knowledge gaps that are significant to fire management program implementation and will provide critical insights into the complex relationships between season of burn, intensity of burn, grazing, and site level variables. Results from our study will improve our ability to predict changes in successional pathways and exotic species introduction and spread. Final Report |
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Effects of wildland fires on buff-breasted flycatchers and other forest birds in southeastern Arizona | |
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Project # 03-3-3-26; Principal Investigator: Courtney Conway | |
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This project will evaluate the effects of recent wild and prescribed fires on populations of buff-breasted flycatchers and other forest bird species by repeating surveys on established bird survey routes (both burned routes and unburned control routes) in 2003 and 2004. We will compare post-burn data of presence and abundance with pre-burn data collected on these survey routes in 2000. Results from this study will provide managers from various federal and state agencies with vital information regarding the effects of fire on populations of buff-breasted flycatchers in the United States. Should fire increase the presence and/or abundance of buff-breasted flycatchers, we will have documented the importance of fire as a management tool to help restore habitat and increase population size for this extremely rare species. In addition to information on buff-breasted flycatchers, we will provide managers with data on the effects of fire for the entire avian community, including several other priority species of local management concern (e.g., elegant trogon [Trogon elegans], northern goshawk [Accipiter gentiles], and band-tailed pigeon [Columba fasciata]). Finally, results from this study will shed light on the effects of long-term fire suppression on the structure and composition of forest bird communities in the Southwest. Final Report |
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Assessment of Top Down and Bottom Up Control on Fire regimes and Vegetation Abundance and Distribution Patterns in the Southwestern Texas Borderlands: A Hierarchical Approach | |
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Project # 03-3-3-13; Principal Investigator: Ann Camp | |
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This project will investigate top down (climate) and bottom up (species composition, topography, environment, and human activity) controls on fire regimes in Big Bend National Park, the Davis Mountains, and the Maderas del Carmens Protected Area. Local-, landscape-, and regional-scale fire and vegetation dynamics will be derived from data on historical climates, fire regimes, forest structure, and species composition. This information will be used to implement fire and vegetation management practices and to predict effects of recent changes in climate and fire on ecosystem structure and function. Final Report |
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Predicting the invasion and survival of exotic species Paulownia tomentosa following burning in pine and oak-pine forests | |
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Project # 01-3-3-33; Principal Investigator: Michael Jenkins | |
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The use of prescribed fire has greatly increased on Forest Service and National Park Service lands. While prescribed fire is a valuable management tool, detrimental effects such as invasion of exotic species sometimes counterbalance its positive ecological effects. In areas of Tennessee and North Carolina (including Great Smoky Mountains National Park and 3 national forests) heavy invasions of the exotic tree species, Paulowina tomentosa have been observed following prescribed burning. Researchers seek to determine what geographic areas are more susceptible to Paulownia invasion and how susceptibility varies with season of burn. Understanding these factors will allow managers to better plan the timing and location of prescribed burns to reduce establishment of Paulownia. Final Report |
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Assessing anthropogenic changes in fire regimes using relict areas in El Malpais National Monument, New Mexico | |
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Project # 01-3-3-29; Principal Investigator: Henri Grissino-Mayer | |
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Ecosystem processes that maintained Southwestern forests during pre-settlement times are currently operating outside the normal range of historical variation. One challenge in restoring these areas to more natural conditions is that few un-impacted sites exist to serve as management references or targets. Relic, minimally impacted, natural areas found in isolated locations in New Mexico may be able to meet this need. Researchers plan to reconstruct the fire history from fire scars collected from pines growing on selected kipukas in El Malpais National Monument in New Mexico. Results of this work can be used by park personnel in development of management guidelines and policies consistent with the restoration of fire as an ecosystem process. |
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Jeffrey pine-mixed conifer fire history and forest structure with and without fire suppression and harvesting | |
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Project # 01-3-3-27; Principal Investigator: Carl Skinner | |
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The absence of fire in the 20th century combined with past harvesting practices have modified the structure and ecosystem processes of California forests resulting in a decrease in forest sustainability. Ecosystem structure existing prior to European settlement is commonly used as a target condition for restoring these ecosystems but there is a scarcity of unmanaged forests in the western U.S. that could serve as references. Researchers will collect and compare information on stand structures in an unmanaged Jeffrey pine-mixed conifer forests in the Sierra San Pedro Martir in northern Mexico with similar managed forests in California and Nevada. Results from this work will be used to describe forest stand structures that could be used both as targets for fire hazard reduction treatments and forest restoration work. Final Report |
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Experimental studies of the role of fire in restoring and maintaining arid grasslands | |
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Project # 01-3-3-20; Principal Investigator: Carl Edminster | |
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Southwestern grasslands and savannas are structured by the interaction of several biotic and abiotic variables, two of which can be manipulated by land managers -- fire and grazing. Because both fire and grazing modify the distribution and volumes of fine fuels, they are inextricably linked, and it is difficult to understand the landscape effects of fire without placing fire studies within the context of livestock grazing. In 1998, scientists began installation of replicated landscape level experiments in southwestern New Mexico to better understand the interaction of fire and herbivory. In the current effort, the effects of fire and grazing by native herbivores and livestock, both singularly and in combination, on the structure, composition and productivity of arid grasslands is being studied. This information will assist managers in reintroducing fire into working rangelands. Final Report |
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Evaluating the effects of prescribed fire and fuels treatment on water quality and aquatic habitat | |
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Project # 01-3-3-18; Principal Investigator: Steve Wondzell | |
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In the interior Columbia Basin, treatments to reduce long-term risks from wildfire are often motivated by potential threats to water and threatened and endangered salmonids. Management plans for the basin assume that direct effects of wildfires and wildfire related erosion are greater threats to water quality and fish habitat than are the effects of fuel treatments. However empirical data to support this assumption is scarce. Researchers will study the effects of mechanical fuel treatments and prescribed fire on surface erosion and stream sedimentation in two watersheds in Oregon. Information from the study will be used to refine erosion and sediment delivery models used in planning and assessing management activities. Final Report |
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Fire and oak regeneration in the Southern Appalachians | |
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Project # 01-3-3-14; Principal Investigator: David Loftis | |
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Throughout the Southern Appalachian region and beyond, the documented failure of oak forests to regenerate themselves has been attributed at least in part to the lack of fire in the last 50 years. Managers are increasingly turning to prescribed fire as the management tool of choice in oak dominated forests, however, there is a lack of convincing data showing that prescribed fire effectively promotes oak regeneration. Researchers will conduct studies to test whether or not fire (frequent or infrequent) can modify stand structure sufficiently to increase the competitive ability of oak seedlings. Results of this study along with oak regeneration prediction models will help clarify the consequences of prescribed burning treatments on oak regeneration. Final Report Prescribed Fire - An Ancient Practice for Today's Forests brochure |
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Identifying reference conditions for prescribed fire management of mixed conifer forests in Yosemite National Park, CA | |
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Project # 01-3-3-12; Principal Investigator: Kara Paintner | |
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National Park policy directs managers to maintain natural environments that evolved with natural processes as opposed to processes associated with human actions. However, there are considerable scientific challenges in identifying reference conditions in highly altered ecosystems and in using reference conditions to establish restoration goals. Scientists will identify pre fire suppression forest structures and fire regimes in two mixed conifer forest landscapes in Yosemite National Park in California. Results will be used to develop and integrate cross-agency objectives for prescribed fire use with the adjacent national forests. Final Report Drought triggered tree mortality in mixed conifer forests in |
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Effects of prescribed grazing and burning treatments on fire regimes in alien grass dominated wildland urban interface areas, Leeward Hawaii | |
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Project # 01-3-2-14; Principal Investigator: Michael Castillo | |
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The northwest leeward part of the island of Hawaii once harbored one of the most unique tropical dry forest ecosystems in the world. Alien grass-fueled wildfire has led to conversion of these dry forest and shrublands to more open savannas and grasslands. The dry forest ecosystems have been reduced to remnant patches. In addition, as a result of fire and other factors 31 dry forest plants, 3 species of birds, and one bat are in danger of extinction. Researchers will assess the feasibility of a variety of fuel treatments (including grazing, burning, herbicides or combinations of the three treatments) in managing these dry forests and restoring more historic fire regimes. Final Report |
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Weed Invasions Following Fire in Southwestern Colorado: Long-Term Effectiveness of Mitigation Treatments and Future Predictions | |
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Project # 01-3-2-12; Principal Investigator: Lisa Floyd-Hanna | |
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This study investigated the patterns and processes of weed invasion following the 1989, 1996, and 2000 fires in Mesa Verde National Park (MNVP), to identify the kinds of plant communities that are most vulnerable to post-fire weed invasion, and to evaluate the effectiveness of a variety of weed mitigation methods including aerial seeding of native grasses, chemical eradication, and mechanical eradication. Final Report |
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Prescribed fire for fuel reduction in northern mixed grass prairie: influence on habitat and population dynamics of indigenous wildlife | |
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Project # 01-3-2-09; Principal Investigator: Robert Murphy | |
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National Wildlife Refuges (NWRs) and other reserves have been established to conserve examples of native grassland ecosystems. In NWRs in the Dakotas and eastern Montana approximately 10,000 hectares of mostly mixed grass prairie is burned annually to reduce accumulating fuels and risk of catastrophic wildfire. The effects of these fires on prairie wildlife, especially migratory birds, are not well understood. Researchers will document the effects of prescribed burning of northern mixed grass prairie in North Dakota on migratory birds, small mammals, and vegetation structure. Study results will provide information that will help land managers evaluate use of prescribed burning in achieving wildlife refuge goals. |
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Two demonstration sites in Northern Arizona for forest thinning, fire use, and fire surrogate treatments in the ponderosa pine type | |
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Project # 01-3-1-06; Principal Investigator: Edward Smith | |
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In Arizona, a number of efforts are underway to look at the effects of different fuel treatments to reintroduce fire and restore ecosystem processes. Researchers plan to develop two of these sites into demonstration sites to promote thinning, prescribed burning, and fire surrogate treatments in the national forests in Arizona. One of the demonstration sites is located in the Flagstaff Wildland-Urban Interface and the other is at the Nature Conservancy’s Hart Prairie Preserve. Through these efforts researchers hope to improve technology transfer among researchers and land managers related to fuels reduction activities, to improve public outreach related to restoring ecosystem processes, and to increase opportunities for ecological fire use training. Final Report Watershed Restoration of a High Elevation Riparian Community |
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Demonstrating the Ecological Effects of Mechanical Thinning and Prescribed Fire on Mixed-Conifer Forests | |
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Project # 01-3-1-05; Principal Investigator: Malcolm North | |
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A critical question in the Sierra Nevada is how to effectively use fuel treatments to restore forest ecosystems. The Teakettle Ecosystem Experiment was designed to compare the effects of fire and thinning on fundamental ecological processes in an old-growth forest by applying fire and thinning manipulations in a full factorial design. Integrated sampling methods and coordinated studies were used to examine vegetation, soil, microclimate, invertebrate and tree response conditions for 2-3 years before and for 3 years after treatments on 18 replicated plots. The Teakettle Experiment |
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Fire Effects on Rare Flora and Fauna in Southern California National Forests | |
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Project # 01B-3-3-28; Principal Investigator: Jan Beyers | |
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The four southern California National Forests (Angeles, Cleveland, Los Padres, and San Bernardino) and adjoining areas are home to at least 60 threatened and endangered plant and animal species. The Forest Service lists another 164 species in this area as sensitive. While fire is a natural habitat component for most of these species, little is known about the types of fire regimes to which they are adapted. At the same time, prescribed fire and other fuel treatments are increasingly being applied in these areas. Scientists are working to compile information about potential fire responses of these species via review of scientific literature, field surveys and experiments. Information gathered will provide additional data for the national Fire Effects Information System database (FEIS) that managers use in planning fuels management projects. Final Report Using a “Fire Cage” to Test the Response of Arabis Johnstonii to Fire |
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Fuels Management and Non-native Plant Species: An Evaluation of Fire and Fire Surrogate Treatments in Chaparral Plant Community | |
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Project # 01B-3-3-27; Principal Investigator: Jennifer Gibson | |
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In California’s Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, as in many natural areas, the exclusion of fire, along with grazing, mining, and timber harvests of the twentieth century has resulted in deterioration of fire adapted plant communities. Park managers are proposing to carry out fire surrogate treatments, such as prescribed burning and thinning, as part of a progressive and ambitious fuels management program. However there are concerns that the combination of fire and ground disturbing activities associated with mechanical treatments will create conditions favoring the invasion of non-native plant species. Researchers are examining the effects of four different fuels reduction treatments on soil, vegetation, and other site factors. Results from this research will enable fire managers to more effectively manage sites for forest productivity while minimizing the spread of invasive plant species. Evaluating Fuels Management Treatments in Whiskeytown’s Mixed Forest Shrublands Final Report |
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Fire Knowledge for Managing Cascadian Whitebark Pine Forests | |
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Project # 01B-3-3-26; Principal Investigator: Michael Murray | |
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Whitebark pine forests are an important feature of the Cascade Mountain Range. These fire-dependent forests are declining from an introduced disease and possibly fire exclusion. Managers in the region are mandated to maintain these forests within National Parks and Wilderness Areas where they are valued by tourists, recreationists, and wildlife. Although current Fire Management Plans are calling for increased prescribed fire, they lack any science-based objectives for fire frequency, severity, and size pertaining to these forests because no formal research has been conducted in the Cascades. Knowledge of fire regimes is critical for burn unit planning. This project will provide a baseline of knowledge by documenting fire regimes and conditions for the different whitebark pine fuel types. These research findings and management guidelines will be articulated in a general technical report aimed at better preparing managers to complete fire planning for Cascadian whitebark pine forests. Final Report |
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Effects of season and interval of prescribed burns in a ponderosa pine ecosystem | |
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Project # 01B-3-3-16; Principal Investigator: Walter Thies | |
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Many ponderosa pine stands are currently past their historic fire return interval and are at high risk for catastrophic wildfire. Prescribed burning is being used as a management tool to reduce fuel loads and restore ecosystem function, however, the consequences of different prescribed burning regimes on levels of tree injury and tree mortality due to insects and disease are not well understood. Moreover, a critical question facing forest managers is how timing of prescribed fire impacts understory plant communities and invasive exotic species. Building upon an ongoing study in the Blue Mountains of Oregon, researchers are looking at the effects of burn intervals and season of burn on tree growth and mortality, understory vegetation, and fuel levels. Researchers will determine the parameters that best predict (1) which fire injured trees will be killed by insects and diseases, and (2) patterns of understory vegetation recovery and exotic species under different burning regimes. Information gleaned from this study will assist managers in decisions about wildland fuel management. Final Report Season of Prescribed Burn in Ponderosa Pine Forests in Eastern Oregon: impact on Pine Mortality |
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Integrating prescribed fire into management of mixed-oak forests of the mid-atlantic region: Developing basic fire behavior and fuels information for the silvah system | |
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Project # 01B-3-3-15; Principal Investigator: Patrick Brose | |
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The near elimination of the natural fire regime of mixed-oak forests of the Mid-Atlantic region has led to several undesirable changes. One of these is the inability of oaks to regenerate on their own. Managers are increasingly interested in using prescribed fire to create conditions that will sustain mixed-oak forests but there is a lack of knowledge about fire behavior and fire effects in these ecosystems. Scientists are evaluating the applicability of existing hardwood fuel models to a wide variety of fuel conditions in mixed-oak forests. A photo-series illustrating fuel conditions not well represented by existing fuel models is also being developed. Prescribed fire planning and implementation in these forests will become more effective and safer with this information. Final Report Sample Photo Series |
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Fire and forest structure across vegetation gradients in San Juan National Forest, Colorado: a multi–scaled historical analysis | |
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Project # 01B-3-3-13; Principal Investigator: Peter Brown | |
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Profound changes in forest structure in many forests of the western United States have resulted from fire exclusion and land use that accompanied Euro-American settlement. To better document the impacts of fire exclusion and land use on different forest types, specific quantitative data are needed to compare and contrast forest conditions at multiple spatial and temporal scales. Researchers intend to reconstruct past fires and resulting forest structure of forests in the San Juan National Forest in southern Colorado using state of the art dendrochronological methods. Results of this work will have direct applicability to on-going and proposed forest restoration and fuels treatments in the San Juan and adjacent national forests. Final Report |
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Fuel Reduction Effects on a Key Sierra Food Web | |
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Project # 01B-3-3-05; Principal Investigator: Malcolm North | |
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In the Sierra Nevada, the California spotted owl depends on a food web that involves linkages between trees, ectomycorrhizal fungi and the truffles they produce, and small mammals that feed on the truffles. These small mammals are in turn prey for the owl. Fire fundamentally changes a forest’s composition and function but little is known about its effect on the food web structure. Researchers are gathering information to help managers design forest management and fuel reduction policies that minimize impacts on the threatened California spotted owl. Final Report Fire and Thinning Effects on Truffles |
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Effects of prescribed fire on the invasion of northern mixed-grass prairie by non-native plant species: implications for restoration of an endangered ecosystem | |
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Project # 01B-3-3-03; Principal Investigator: Fred Giese | |
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Fire management practices have been implemented at the National Wildlife Refuges (NWR) in the northern Great Plains over a number of years, but there are few published data on their effectiveness at reducing non-native plants and enhancing conditions for native species. However, the history of fire management at these NWRs provides an ideal setting for measuring long-term effects in a short time. Scientists’ efforts are directed at determining how prescribed fire implemented under a variety of conditions (i.e. different grazing levels, seasons) affects native and non-native species. Findings will serve as the basis for developing prescribed fire guidelines that are specific to cool-season dominated prairies and serve to enhance native grassland species. Final Report |
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Effects of fire and rehabilitation seeding on sage grouse habitat in the pinyon-juniper zone | |
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Project # 01B-3-3-01; Principal Investigator: Jeannie Chambers | |
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Since settlement of the Great Basin region about 130 years ago, pinyon and juniper trees have been expanding into sagebrush ecosystems resulting in the progressive elimination of sagebrush, grass, and forb species. These changes, in combination with expansion of invasive annual grasses, have led to dramatic increases in fire frequency, severity, and size. Managers are working to mitigate these fire impacts with fuel management treatments and post fire rehabilitation seeding. However, management plans need to consider the effects of these activities on species such as sage grouse, a bird under consideration for listing as a threatened or endangered species. Researchers are studying the effects of fire and rehabilitation seeding on sagebrush habitat and bird species to help inform and guide management decisions in this fire prone area. Final Report |
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Determining the ecological effects of fire suppression, fuels treatment, and wildfire through bird monitoring in the Klamath ecoregion of Southern Oregon and Northern California | |
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Project # 01B-3-2-10; Principal Investigator: John Alexander | |
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Large-scale fire management practices can lead to habitat alterations such as changes in vegetation and the availability and type of food resources. These changes can have significant impacts on bird communities. Researchers working in the Klamath Ecoregion of Southern Oregon and Northern California are studying how bird distribution and abundance has been influenced by fire and various fuel treatments. They are also developing and implementing a multi-year monitoring plan to assess bird distribution and abundance after intensive wildfires. Information from this study can help managers in planning fuel management treatments that minimize the impacts on birds. Final Report Decision support tool for land managers can be found at The Klamath Bird Observatory website. |
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Pre-Fire Fuel Manipulation Impacts on Alien Plant Invasion of Wildlands | |
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Project # 01B-3-2-08; Principal Investigator: Jon Keeley | |
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Natural and prescribed fires play a role in stimulating the invasion of alien plants on many federal lands. However, pre-fire fuel manipulation techniques, such as the construction of fuel breaks, may also worsen invasive weed problems. Of particular concern is the degree to which these fuel breaks act as a source of alien weed seeds following fire. Scientists are conducting vegetative surveys on fuel breaks in southern California, the central coast, and the Sierra Nevada to understand the contributions of these fuel breaks to weed species populations in adjacent wildlands. Information from this research will help managers to develop fuel management strategies that accomplish fuel hazard reduction goals and minimize alien plant threats. Final Report Plot shape effects on plant species diversity measurements PRE-FIRE FUEL MANIPULATION IMPACTS ON ALIEN PLANT INVASION OF WILDLANDS |
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Management of fuel loading in the shrub-steppe | |
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Project # 01B-3-2-07; Principal Investigator: Steven Link | |
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The invasion of the exotic weed, cheatgrass, into the Colombia National Wildlife Refuge in Washington has led to increased fire frequency. More frequent fires give further competitive advantage to cheatgrass at the expense of native species. Scientists are looking at the impacts of herbicides, prescribed fire, and post-fire seeding on reducing cheatgrass populations. Results of the study will assist land managers and planners in designing and implementing fuel management treatments to cost effectively reduce fire frequency and encourage native plant growth. |
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Frequency and Season of Prescription Fires to Reduce Hazardous Fuel Loads on the Lower Piedmont of Georgia: Establishing a demonstration area on a 12 year old study | |
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Project # 01B-3-1-05; Principal Investigator: Ken Outcalt | |
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In 1989, a study was begun on an upland mixed pine/hardwood stand in the Brender Demonstration Forest in central Georgia. The study was designed to examine how effective various fire-return intervals, seasons of burning, and methods of burning were in reducing hazardous fuel accumulations, controlling understory shrubs, and sustaining biodiversity. Today, scientists are working on converting a portion of the study site into a demonstration area to communicate with the public about the benefits of frequent low intensity prescribed fire. Scientists also plan to document changes in the site over the 12-year study period and conduct annual bird surveys. |
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Long-term Dormant-Season Burning Interval Study in the Palmetto/Gallberry Fuel Complex: Establishing an Adjacent Growing-Season Burn Study and Making Both Demonstration Areas | |
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Project # 01B-3-1-04; Principal Investigator: Ken Outcalt | |
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The Osceola National Forest in Florida contains a unique set of long-term prescribed burning plots in an 85-year old natural stand of longleaf pine. Fuel and vegetation data have been collected pre- and post-fire since 1958 when the plots were established. Researchers are developing a comprehensive demonstration area at the site that includes signs, displays, and maps. Growing season burn plots will be established on an adjacent area to demonstrate seasonal effects of burning. The area will be used to show professionals and laypeople the effects of dormant-season and growing-season burn treatments and allow them to compare these to control plots. |
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Dormant-Season Prescription Fires to Reduce Hazardous Fuel Loads on the South Carolina Coastal Plain: Establishing a Demonstration Area on a 40+ year study | |
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Project # 01B-3-1-03; Principal Investigator: Ken Outcalt | |
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In 1958, a 40-acre study site was established on the Francis Marion National Forest in South Carolina to compare the value of different prescribed burn intervals for reducing hazardous fuels buildup on Lower Costal Plain sites. Today, scientists are working to develop signs, displays, maps and other educational materials at the site for communicating results of research studies and describing the role of fire in the ecosystem. The location of the site within easy driving distance of three major urban centers (Charleston, SC, Savannah, GA, and Columbia, SC) makes it an especially good venue for sharing information on fire ecology and management with urban residents. |
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The Flomaton Natural Area: Demonstrating the benefits of fuel management and the risks of fire exclusion in an old-growth longleaf pine ecosystem | |
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Project # 01B-3-1-01; Principal Investigator: John Kush | |
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One of the few remaining virgin, old growth longleaf pine stands remaining in the Southeast is the Flomaton Natural Area in Alabama. The stand of 200+ year-old trees was burned regularly until 1950 when all burning and management activity ended. Since 1995, cooperating partners have conducted four low-intensity prescribed fires at this site. Scientists are developing a fuel management demonstration area on the site that will include interpretive signs and other educational material to show landowners and managers how these treatments have served to reduce unnatural fuel loads. Scientists will also monitor the response of trees, understory shrubs, and soil to the prescribed fires and develop guidelines for fuel management. |
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Fire regimes & forest structure of Utah & eastern Nevada: A multi-scale history from tree rings | |
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Project # 01C-3-3-22; Principal Investigator: Emily Heyerdahl | |
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Utah and eastern Nevada currently lack the site-specific histories of fire and forest structure that are necessary for scientifically based land-management planning in this region. For a region with such extensive fire-adapted ecosystems, surprisingly few fire and forest- structure histories have been reconstructed, and these only at stand scales and only in a few of the region’s forest types. Twentieth century fire exclusion profoundly changed forest and fbel structures in many forests of the western US. However, these changes did not occur uniformly across the landscape due to variations in forest type, topography, and regional gradients in climate. As a result, we cannot confidently extrapolate fire and forest-structure histories across this region based on the few existing fine-scale histories. Our main objective is to reconstruct multi-century histories of fire and forest structure across a range of topography, forest type and regional climate in 10 watersheds in Utah and eastern Nevada, from tree rings. Our spatially explicit sampling design will collect this information in an efficient, systematic manner across agency boundaries and forest types. Our second objective is to scientifically assess the extent to which our fire and forest-structure histories can be extrapolated to unsampled areas by elucidating the drivers of spatial variation in the areas that we sample. Our third objective is to communicate the results of our work to wildland managers in Utah and eastern Nevada. This proposal responds to RFP 2001-3, Task 3. Final Report Website with updated information and results for each season of field sampling Poster Presentation |
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Effectiveness of Postfire Seeding to Reduce Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) Growth and Reproduction in Recently Burned Sagebrush Steppe | |
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Project # 01C-3-3-13; Principal Investigator: Matt Brooks | |
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The positive relationship between cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) and fire frequency is a major concern for land managers in semi-arid shrublands throughout western North America, particularly in Great Basin sagebrush steppe. Management tools are needed to break this cycle, and this project will evaluate the use of postfire seeding to suppress the growth and reproduction of cheatgrass in low elevation sagebrush steppe dominated by Wyoming big sagebrush (artemisia tridentata ssp. Wyomingensis). Evaluations include the seeding of introduced vs. native seed mixes and grasses vs. grasses plus leguminous forbs, and postfire soil conditions such as nutrient level and seedbank composition that may influence the effectiveness of postfire seeding treatments. Effects of seeding on the species composition and abundance of native plants will also be evaluated. The information obtained will be presented as a set of recommendations for land managers to use when designing postfire seeding protocols, and as a set of working hypotheses for research scientists to use when formulating new studies to improve knowledge of fire and invasive species ecology and management in sagebrush steppe. Project Website |
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Fire Regimes and successional dynamics of yellow pine (pinus) stands in the Central Appalachian Mountains | |
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Project # 01C-3-3-09; Principal Investigator: Charles Lafon | |
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This project will investigate the fire history, age structure, and successional dynamics of yellow pine stands in the Central Appalachian Mountains. We will use dendrochonological techniques to date fire scars and assess the frequency, seasonality, spatial extent, and climatic relations of past fires. Final Report The Contemporary Fire Regime of the Central Appalachian Mountains and Its Relation to Climate |
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Managing Fuels in Northeastern Barrens | |
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Project # 01C-3-1-05; Principal Investigator: David W. Crary | |
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Fire-dependent barrens of the Northeast are important habitat for numerous rare, threatened, and endangered species and also represent the most dangerous wildland fuel type in that region. Fire in barrens pose a significant wildland-urban interface risk in this densely populated area. Barrens occur throughout the northeastern and mid-Atlantic states on drought-prone soils, and are dominated by pitch pine, scrub oak, various tree oak species, and several ericaceous shrub species. Fire behavior in barrens vegetation is comparable to southern rough of the Southeast and chaparral of the West. Two demonstration sites have been established where barrens fuels are managed using innovative combinations of overstory thinning, mechanical treatment of shrub fuels, sheep grazing and prescribed fire to reduce fuel loads, wildfire intensity, and wildland-urban interface risk. This project is addressing the effectiveness of combination treatments in reducing fuel loads and fire intensity in barrens, and custom BEHAVE fuel models for both unaltered and managed barrens fuels will be revised, tested, and refined. Results from this project will be applicable to management of barrens fuels on federal, state, and private lands throughout the Northeast. A thesis
paper on "Characterizing Canopy Fuels as They Affect Fire
Behavior in Pitch Pine" by Matthew J. Duveneck |
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Evaluation of three alternative fuel management treatments for eastern white pine | |
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Project # 00-2-35; Principal Investigator: James Cook | |
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The white pine type occupies about 500,000 acres in the Great Lakes Region and is considered fire dependent. Fire needs to be re-introduced into the ecosystem but since the forest type has received little study, information to guide fire prescriptions is lacking. Researchers will compare effects of three fuel treatment prescriptions (a standard mechanical treatment plus herbicide, a backing fire treatment, and a strip-head fire treatment) in the eastern white pine type on Menominee Tribal land in northern Wisconsin. Findings from this study and demonstration areas associated with the study will assist land managers in achieving management objectives through the use of fire and other fuel treatments. |
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Fuels treatment demonstration sites in the Boreal Forests of Interior Alaska | |
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Project # 00-2-34; Principal Investigator: Robert Ott | |
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Changes in settlement patterns and policies in Alaska that began in the 1970s have led to population increases in or adjacent to forested areas and have intensified the wildland urban interface (WUI) fire problem. Today about 80% of the Alaska population lives in communities potentially at risk from wildland fire. As the frequency and cost of fires in the WUI increase, the need for fuel reduction techniques to create defensible space increases. Scientists are developing a fuels treatment demonstration site in the boreal forests of interior Alaska to compare the effectiveness, environmental effects, and cost of four different shaded fuelbreak treatments in high density white spruce stands located on flood plains. The demonstration sites will be available to officials, resource management professionals and interested publics for a minimum of seven years. |
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Control of Invasive Annual Grasses in the Mojave Desert | |
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Project # 00-2-32; Principal Investigator: Matt Brooks | |
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The native vegetation in the Mojave Desert of southwestern North America is relatively fireproof due to the mostly bare interspaces that occur between the shrubs, bunchgrasses, cacti and trees that grow there. Historically, these spaces have acted as a network of small firebreaks that hinder the spread of fire. However, the increasing dominance of invasive annual grasses since the 1970s has created an almost continuous and highly flammable fuel bed that is changing the face of the Mojave Desert. Use of fire and herbicides during the spring to control the invasive annual grasses has been used with mixed success. Researchers will establish a demonstration site where the effects of these two methods in reducing fine fuels and the dominance of invasive annual grasses will be measured. Results of this effort will help managers determine the feasibility and cost effectiveness of controlling fine fuels and invasive annual grasses in the Mojave Desert. USGS Publication Brief:
Plant Diversity and Fire Effects in Blackbrush Shrublands Other documents: |
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Restoring mixed conifer ecosystems to pre-fire suppression era conditions in Crater Lake National Park | |
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Project # 00-2-31; Principal Investigator: Jim Agee | |
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In 1976, after about 80 years of aggressive fire suppression, a prescribed fire program was initiated in Crater Lake National Park to create conditions favoring retention of large ponderosa pine. Unexpected mortality of these large trees occurred during the ten-year program of prescribed fires leading to discontinuation of the burning program in 1987. However, the need to manage understory fuel buildups in ponderosa pine stands remained. Researchers are examining the effects of conducting prescribed fires in the spring (when there are high fuel moistures) on forest floor characteristics, tree survival, mortality and establishment in mixed conifer forests in Crater Lake National Park. This work will provide park managers with new guidance on when to burn and the potential consequences of implementing different treatment alternatives. |
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Fire hazard reduction in Ponderosa Pine plantations | |
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Project # 00-2-30; Principal Investigator: John Swanson | |
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Pine plantation establishment is common throughout the nation as the most effective means of reforestation after fire or harvest. For example, plantations cover nearly 400,000 acres in 9 National Forests in central California. High intensity wildfires are also common throughout California. Protecting the investment in the ponderosa and other pine plantations from destruction by fire adds to the complexities of forest resource management in this region. Mechanical and hand thinning, cut-to-length harvesting, and prescribed fire may all be necessary to reduce hazardous fuel levels in these plantations but the effects of these various fuel treatments are not fully understood. Researchers will examine the efficacy of mechanical and hand methods with and without prescribed burning in reducing fire hazard severity in plantations in the Stanislaus National Forest in central California. Once experimental plots are established they will become a demonstration site for treatment effects. |
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Fire Application to Saltcedar Dominated Riparian Areas | |
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Project # 00-2-29; Principal Investigator: Brent Racher | |
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Saltcedar, an exotic shrub that has invaded riparian areas throughout the western United States, often develops into dense thickets that displace native trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants. Although eradication of saltcedar is often desirable it is neither likely nor feasible. Prescribed fire has been used in riparian areas to manage saltcedar by reducing canopy cover and fuel accumulations, but little information is available on the response of the riparian ecosystem to fire. Scientists’ efforts are directed at developing prescriptions for applying fire to reduce hazardous fuels in saltcedar dominated riparian areas, and evaluate ecosystem response to burning and reburning at different periods throughout the year. Results of this work will provide landowners and managers with prescribed burning management options that will best meet their needs. |
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Maintaining longleaf pine woodlands: is mechanical shearing a surrogate for prescribed burning | |
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Project # 00-2-27; Principal Investigator: Jeff Glitzenstein | |
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Resource managers in the Francis Marion National Forest (FMNF), near Charleston, SC, have been struggling for the past decade with the twin problems of urban/suburban development moving toward the forest and an overabundance of heavy fuels generated by Hurricane Hugo in 1989. The FMNF has recently begun to use mechanical techniques to reduce heavy fuels and plans to follow these treatments with prescribed burns. However a number of questions remain related to the efficacy of these treatments in achieving management goals. Researchers are conducting an experiment in the longleaf pine woodlands of the Francis Marion National Forest to compare the effects of shearing, burning, and shearing plus burning on plant community changes and fire behavior. Results will help managers in efforts to maintain and restore fire dependent habitats in the southeastern U.S. and elsewhere. Final Report Fuels and fire behavior in chipped and unchipped plots: |
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Demonstration plots for comparing fuel complexes and profile development in untreated stands versus stands treated for the management of spruce beetle outbreaks | |
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Project # 00-2-25; Principal Investigator: Elizabeth Hebertson | |
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Spruce beetle activity has increased dramatically on the National Forests in the Intermountain Region and resulted in considerable spruce mortality. To reduce the susceptibility of these stands to beetle attack, management treatments need to be applied to reduce forest density. However, these treatments could result in the production of large quantities of down and dead woody fuels and even greater fire hazards than that caused by the beetles. Researchers plan to establish permanent demonstration plots in Utah to compare responses of spruce-fir stands that have undergone density management treatments with those left untreated. Results of this study will be used to make appraisals and develop and implement fuel modification strategies including prescribed burning and mechanical treatments. |
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Managing Fuels and Forest Structure in the Southern Boreal Forest on Minnesota's National Forests | |
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Project # 00-2-23; Principal Investigator: Daniel W. Gilmore | |
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An unprecedented "Dericho" wind storm on July 4, 1999 changed the character of about 400,000 acres in the Boundary Water Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) and surrounding area. Large areas of blowdown occurred creating huge concentrations of fuels and increasing the risk of large fires. This study established approximately 448 permanent plots and 1,700 sub-plots on 32 selected sites to monitor prescribed burning, salvage logging, piling and burning methods to alter the quantity and structure of the fuel profile. Additional publications and reports: |
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A Demonstration Area on Ecosystem Response to Watershed-Scale Burns in Great Basin Pinyon-Juniper Woodlands | |
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Project # 00-2-15; Principal Investigator: Jeanne Chambers, et al. | |
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This project established a demonstration area on national forests in central Nevada to study the costs and ecological impacts of implementing large scale prescribed burns in areas where pinyon and juniper populations are increasing in native Great Basin ecosystems. Four research burns (2 to 6 hectares each) were conducted in spring 2002, and an additional 900 acres were treated within the watershed in spring 2004. Data on stand densities, fuel loads, understory vegetation, and soil and vegetation responses from the research burns were collected in 2002 through 2004. Research Papers: Linking
spatial patterns of bird and butterfly species richness with Landsat
TM derived NDVI Pinyon-juniper
expansion and prescribed fire effects on soil in Great Basin sagebrush
ecosystems A
Successful Prediction Model of Species Richness Based on Indicator
Species Validation
Tests of Predictive Models of Butterfly Occurrence Based on Environmental
Variables Linking
Models of Species Occurrence and Landscape Reconstruction Distinguishing
Between Signal and Noise in Faunal Responses to Environmental Change |
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Conversion of Upland Loblolly Pine-Hardwood Stands to Longleaf Pine: Does it Influence Fuel Load, Restore Native Forest Cover, and Reduce Fire Danger | |
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Project # 00-2-06; Principal Investigator: James Haywood | |
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Without fire, wildland fuels accumulate quickly in the Southeast United States and understory vegetation soon shifts from a grass-dominated fine fuel cover to a woody plant cover of highly flammable shrubs. Recent efforts to restore native longleaf pine trees on sites now covered with loblolly pine and hardwood species have been problematic because it is difficult to get rid of the midlevel shrubs that change fire intensity and behavior and out-compete longleaf pine seedlings. Research is aimed at evaluating how different combinations of mechanical and controlled burning treatments effect the development of forest fuels and vegetative composition in sites being restored to longleaf pine. The study will continue over a period of 15 years and study sites will serve as demonstration areas for different fuel treatment options. |
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Fire Hazard Reduction in Chaparral Using Diverse Treatments | |
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Project # 00-2-02; Principal Investigator: James Dawson | |
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Chaparral is a fire-adapted vegetation type that is common at mid-elevations throughout the state of California. A very high fire hazard is associated with this vegetation type because of the nature of the chaparral foliage, low summer fuel moisture contents, and often steep terrain which chaparral occurs. Prescribed burning has been one the most commonly used techniques for the reduction of fuel loads in chaparral. However, complexities associated with prescribed burning of chaparral such as burning near housing developments, concerns over smoke production, and uncertainty about ecological impacts of burning in the winter and spring when soil moistures are high, have tempered use of this tool in recent years. Scientists’ efforts are targeted at comparing the efficacy of reducing the fuel levels using prescribed burning with mechanical (mastication and chipping) methods. The study will address the effects of season of treatment on (1) fire hazard reduction, (2) recovery of vegetation, (3) resurgence of fuels, and (4) costs of different treatments. Results of the study will be shared with fire managers and landowners through publications, short courses, and establishment of a demonstration area at the research site that will enable people to see first hand the impacts of these two methods. Final Report |
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