Decision support tools to improve the effectiveness of hazardous fuel reduction treatments in the New Jersey Pine Barrens

2009 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 268 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth L. Clark ◽  
Nicholas Skowronski ◽  
John Hom ◽  
Matthew Duveneck ◽  
Yude Pan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New Jersey ◽  
Forest Fire ◽  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Wildland Fire ◽  
Fire Service ◽  
Fuel Load ◽  
Pine Barrens ◽  
Fuel Reduction ◽  
Fuel Loads ◽  
Fuel Accumulation

Our goal is to assist the New Jersey Forest Fire Service and federal wildland fire managers in the New Jersey Pine Barrens evaluate where and when to conduct hazardous fuel reduction treatments. We used remotely sensed LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging System) data and field sampling to estimate fuel loads and consumption during prescribed fire treatments. This information was integrated with data on prescribed fire treatments conducted by the New Jersey Forest Fire Service over the last 15 years to produce and interpret maps of current fuel loads. Forest productivity measurements and models were then used to estimate rates of fuel accumulation through time. We could then calculate return intervals for desired fuel load conditions. Through formal workshops and frequent discussions with state and federal fire managers, our results enhance the ability of these agencies to make key decisions regarding the effectiveness and longevity of hazardous fuels treatments.

scholarly journals Impacts of increasing fine fuel loads on acorn germination and early growth of oak seedlings

Fire Ecology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel E. Nation ◽  
Heather D. Alexander ◽  
Geoff Denny ◽  
Jennifer K. McDaniel ◽  
Alison K. Paulson
Keyword(s):  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Germination Rate ◽  
Growth Patterns ◽  
Leaf Number ◽  
Fuel Load ◽  
Quercus Alba ◽  
White Oak ◽  
Fuel Treatment ◽  
Basal Diameter ◽  
Fuel Loads

Abstract Background Prescribed fire is increasingly used to restore and maintain upland oak (Quercus L. spp.) ecosystems in the central and eastern US. However, little is known about how prescribed fire affects recently fallen acorns under different fine fuel loads, which can vary with stand composition and basal area, burn season, and fire frequency. We conducted plot-level (1 m2) burns in an upland oak stand in northern Mississippi, USA, during December 2018, using single (i.e., ambient), double, and triple fine fuel loads, representative of those in nearby unburned and recently fire-treated, closed-canopy stands. Pre burn, we placed 30 acorns each of white oak (Quercus alba L.) and Shumard oak (Quercus shumardii Buckley) ~1 cm below the litter surface in five plots of each fuel treatment. Immediately post burn, we planted unburned and burned acorns in a greenhouse. After ~50% of each species’ unburned acorns germinated, we measured percent germination and height, basal diameter, and leaf number of germinating seedlings weekly for 11 weeks. Then, we harvested seedlings to determine above- and belowground biomass. Results The single fuel treatment reduced acorn germination rates of both species to ~40% compared to ~88% in unburned acorns. When burned in double and triple fuel loads, acorns of both species had a <5% germination rate. There was no difference in basal diameter, leaf number, or biomass of seedlings from burned versus unburned acorns for either species. However, seedlings originating from burned acorns of both species were ~11% shorter than those from unburned acorns. Thus, both species responded similarly to fuel load treatments. Conclusions Acorns of both species exhibited greater survival with lower fine fuel loads, and consequently lower percent fuel consumption. Acorns germinating post fire generally produced seedlings with growth patterns similar to seedlings originating from unburned acorns. These findings indicate that regular, repeated prescribed fires or canopy reductions that limit fine fuel accumulation and create heterogeneous fuel beds are likely to increase acorn germination rates relative to unburned sites or those with recently introduced fire.

scholarly journals Modelling and mitigating dose to firefighters from inhalation of radionuclides in wildland fire smoke

2015 ◽  
Vol 24 (5) ◽  
pp. 723 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian J. Viner ◽  
Tim Jannik ◽  
Daniel Stone ◽  
Allan Hepworth ◽  
Luke Naeher ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Wildland Fire ◽  
Radioactive Material ◽  
Fuel Load ◽  
Base Case ◽  
Published Data ◽  
Case Scenario ◽  
Base Case Scenario ◽  
Fuel Loads ◽  
Radiological Dose

Firefighters responding to wildland fires where surface litter and vegetation contain radiological contamination will receive a radiological dose by inhaling resuspended radioactive material in the smoke. This may increase their lifetime risk of contracting certain types of cancer. Using published data, we modelled hypothetical radionuclide emissions, dispersion and dose for 70th and 97th percentile environmental conditions and for average and high fuel loads at the Savannah River Site. We predicted downwind concentration and potential dose to firefighters for radionuclides of interest (137Cs, 238Pu, 90Sr and 210Po). Predicted concentrations exceeded dose guidelines in the base case scenario emissions of 1.0 × 107 Bq ha–1 for 238Pu at 70th percentile environmental conditions and average fuel load levels for both 4- and 14-h shifts. Under 97th percentile environmental conditions and high fuel loads, dose guidelines were exceeded for several reported cases for 90Sr, 238Pu and 210Po. The potential for exceeding dose guidelines was mitigated by including plume rise (>2 m s–1) or moving a small distance from the fire owing to large concentration gradients near the edge of the fire. This approach can quickly estimate potential dose from airborne radionuclides in wildland fire and assist decision-making to reduce firefighter exposure.

scholarly journals Presence of Black Carbon in Soil due to Forest Fire in the New Jersey Pine Barrens

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bente Foereid ◽  
Johannes Lehmann ◽  
Christopher Wurster ◽  
Michael Bird
Keyword(s):  
New Jersey ◽  
Black Carbon ◽  
Forest Fire ◽  
Pine Barrens

Fuel properties and fire behaviour characteristics of prescribed fire in pine-dominated forests at Nam Nao National Park, Thailand

2013 ◽  
Vol 22 (5) ◽  
pp. 615 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Wanthongchai ◽  
V. Tarusadamrongdet ◽  
K. Chinnawong ◽  
K. Sooksawat
Keyword(s):  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
National Park ◽  
Forest Type ◽  
Pine Forest ◽  
Fuel Load ◽  
Fire Behaviour ◽  
Temperature Changes ◽  
Fuel Loads ◽  
Soil Temperatures ◽  
Fuel Components

Anthropogenic burning has become a common phenomenon throughout Thailand’s pine-dominated ecosystems. This study investigated fuel loads and experimental fire behaviour characteristics in a degraded pine forest (PF) and a pine–oak forest (O-PF), at Nam Nao National Park, Thailand in three replicate 50 × 50-m plots of each forest type. Pre-burn fuel loads, fire behaviour descriptors, fire and soil temperature, the residues left after burning and post-burn fuel recovery for 1 year were investigated. The aboveground fuel load in PF (1.29 kg m–2) was significantly higher than in O-PF (0.87 kg m–2). The main fuel components in the PF stand were grass (45%) and litter (44%), whereas leaf litter was the predominant fuel in the O-PF stand (55%). The fire behaviour characteristics in the PF stand were significantly greater than those in the O-PF stand. Burning at the O-PF and the PF was respectively classified as low (48 kW m–1) and medium intensity (627 kW m–1). During the burning experiment, the surface soil temperatures at all sites were higher than 250°C. However, fire did not cause temperature changes in the deeper soil layers. In the pine forest the post-burn fuel loads 1 year after the fire remained lower than the pre-burn level. These results may imply that a pine forest at Nam Nao National Park requires more than 1 year of fire-free period to recover back to the pre-burn conditions.

scholarly journals Multiscale Simulation of a Prescribed Fire Event in the New Jersey Pine Barrens Using ARPS-CANOPY

2014 ◽  
Vol 53 (4) ◽  
pp. 793-812 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael T. Kiefer ◽  
Warren E. Heilman ◽  
Shiyuan Zhong ◽  
Joseph J. Charney ◽  
Xindi Bian ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New Jersey ◽  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Multiscale Simulation ◽  
Pine Barrens ◽  
Prediction System ◽  
Fire Event ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Flux Tower ◽  
Low Intensity ◽  
Regional Prediction

AbstractSmoke prediction products are one of the tools used by land management personnel for decision making regarding prescribed fires. This study documents the application to a prescribed fire of a smoke prediction system that employs ARPS-CANOPY, a modified version of the Advanced Regional Prediction System (ARPS) model containing a canopy submodel, as the meteorological driver. In this paper, the performance of ARPS-CANOPY in simulating meteorological fields in the vicinity of a low-intensity fire is assessed using flux-tower data collected prior to and during a low-intensity prescribed fire in the New Jersey Pine Barrens in March 2011. A three-dimensional high-resolution plant area density dataset is utilized to define the characteristics of the canopy, and the fire is represented in ARPS-CANOPY as a heat flux to the atmosphere. The standard ARPS model is compared with reanalysis and upper-air data to establish that the model can simulate the observed synoptic-mesoscale and planetary boundary layer features that are salient to this study. ARPS-CANOPY profiles of mean turbulent kinetic energy, wind speed/direction, and temperature exhibit patterns that appear in the flux-tower observations during both the preburn phase of the experiment and the period of time the flux tower experienced perturbed atmospheric conditions due to the impinging fire. Last, the character and source of turbulence in and around the fire line are examined. These results are encouraging for smoke prediction efforts since transport of smoke from low-intensity fires is highly sensitive to the near-surface meteorological conditions and, in particular, turbulent flows.

scholarly journals Tree Regeneration in Oak-Pine Stands with and without Prescribed Fire in the New Jersey Pine Barrens: Management Implications

2011 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew G. Olson
Keyword(s):  
New Jersey ◽  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Tree Regeneration ◽  
Pine Barrens ◽  
Half Century ◽  
Controlled Burning ◽  
History Of ◽  
Pinus Spp ◽  
Understory Tree

Abstract This is a case study comparing understory tree regeneration in two mixedwood stands types in the New Jersey Pine Barrens: oak‐pine treated with prescribed fire over the last half century (burned) and oak‐pine without a history of controlled burning (unburned). Understories of burned stands supported mainly desirable oak (Quercus spp.) and pine (Pinus spp.) regeneration (0.3 ft tall, <3 in. dbh), whereas the understories of unburned stands supported a greater abundance of undesirable, nonoak hardwoods (mainly sassafras [Sassafras albidum]) along with good numbers of oak regeneration and, unexpectedly, pine saplings (≥4.5 ft tall, <3 in. dbh). A regime of prescribed fire applied on an ∼6-year interval during the last half century appears to have reduced or excluded nonoak hardwoods, with the exception of hickory (Carya spp.). Maintaining oak‐pine mixtures on sites similar to the unburned stands used in this study may require silvicultural intervention.

Effectiveness of prescribed fire as a fuel treatment in Californian coniferous forests

2009 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 165 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole M. Vaillant ◽  
Jo Ann Fites-Kaufman ◽  
Scott L. Stephens
Keyword(s):  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Forest Structure ◽  
Tree Mortality ◽  
Wildland Fire ◽  
Fire Behavior ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Fire Effects ◽  
The United States ◽  
Behavior Modeling ◽  
Fuel Loads

Effective fire suppression and land use practices over the last century have altered forest structure and increased fuel loads in many forests in the United States, increasing the occurrence of catastrophic wildland fires. The most effective methods to change potential fire behavior are to reduce surface fuels, increase the canopy base height and reduce canopy bulk density. This multi-tiered approach breaks up the continuity of surface, ladder and crown fuels. Effectiveness of fuel treatments is often shown indirectly through fire behavior modeling or directly through monitoring wildland fire effects such as tree mortality. The present study investigates how prescribed fire affected fuel loads, forest structure, potential fire behavior, and modeled tree mortality at 90th and 97.5th percentile fire weather conditions on eight National Forests in California. Prescription burning did not significantly change forest structure at most sites. Total fuel loads (litter, duff, 1, 10, 100, and 1000-h) were reduced by 23 to 78% across the sites. The reduction in fuel loads altered potential fire behavior by reducing fireline intensity and increasing torching index and crowning index at most sites. Predicted tree mortality decreased after treatment as an effect of reduced potential fire behavior and fuel loads. To use limited fuel hazard reduction resources efficiently, more effort could be placed on the evaluation of existing fire hazards because several stands in the present study had little potential for adverse fire effects before prescribed fire was applied.

A correlation between chytrid abundance and ecological integrity in New Jersey pine barrens waters

2010 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 295-301 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karena DiLeo ◽  
Kimberly Donat ◽  
Amelia Min-Venditti ◽  
John Dighton
Keyword(s):  
New Jersey ◽  
Ecological Integrity ◽  
Pine Barrens
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