“Careless fires” and “smoaky weather”: The documentation of prescribed burning in the Peace–Athabasca trading post journals 1818–1899

2011 ◽  
Vol 87 (03) ◽  
pp. 414-419 ◽  
Author(s):  
Theresa Ferguson
Keyword(s):  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Contextual Analysis ◽  
Prescribed Fires ◽  
Ethnographic Research ◽  
Northern Alberta ◽  
Journal Entries ◽  
Aboriginal Burning

An examination of a series of trade post journals from northern Alberta shows how the recording of prescribed fires was shaped by the foci of these brief journal entries. Contextual analysis of these records informed by previous ethnographic research on local Aboriginal burning suggests 1) that prescribed fires that were both routine and carried out at some distance from the post were not likely to be recorded, and 2) that the Aboriginal “careless fires” that threatened or appeared to threaten post property were in fact prescribed fires.

scholarly journals Effects of Seasonal Prescribed Fires on Residual Overstory Trees in Oak-Dominated Shelterwood Stands

1999 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 88-93 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Brose ◽  
David Van Lear
Keyword(s):  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Prescribed Fires ◽  
Red Maple ◽  
Crown Condition ◽  
Treatment Area ◽  
Yellow Poplar ◽  
Growing Seasons ◽  
Resource Managers ◽  
Overstory Trees

Abstract A study was initiated in 1994 to evaluate the degree of bole damage and crown decline residual overstory trees would experience because of prescribed burning of shelterwood stands. Three oak-dominated shelterwood stands, partially harvested 2 to 4 yr earlier, were divided into four treatments (unburned control, spring burn, summer burn, and winter burn). Fifteen permanent sampling points were systematically located in each 5 to 12 ac treatment area, and overstory trees were selected from these points with a 10 BAF prism. Before burning, each tree was evaluated for lower bole and crown condition and reevaluated two growing seasons after the fires. Hickory, oak, and yellow-poplar were largely unaffected by the winter and summer prescribed fires but displayed bole damage and crown decline following spring burning. American beech and red maple declined after all fire treatments. Fire damage to oak, hickory, and yellow-poplar was strongly associated to presence of logging slash near a tree's base. Directional felling or moving slash should minimize injury to these trees. This research will aid resource managers wishing to use prescribed fire in shelterwood stands to favor oak regeneration while minimizing damage to residual overstory oaks. South. J. Appl. For. 23(2):88-93.

scholarly journals Prescribed Fire Effects on Advanced Regeneration in Mixed Hardwood Stands

1998 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 138-142 ◽  
Author(s):  
T.A. Barnes ◽  
D.H. Van Lear
Keyword(s):  
South Carolina ◽  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Subsequent Development ◽  
Fire Effects ◽  
Hardwood Forests ◽  
Prescribed Fires ◽  
Oak Regeneration ◽  
Advanced Regeneration ◽  
Composition And Structure

Abstract Fire treatments were initiated in 1990 to evaluate effects of low-intensity prescribed fires on composition and structure of the advanced regeneration pool under mature mixed-hardwood stands on upland sites in the Piedmont of South Carolina. One spring burn was as effective as three winter burns in reducing midstory density, considered a prerequisite for subsequent development of oak (Quercus spp.) advanced regeneration. Burning increased the number of oak rootstocks, reduced the relative position of competing species, and increased root-to-shoot ratios of oak stems in the regeneration layer. These favorable effects of fire on oak regeneration outweigh the removal of small, poorly formed oak stems from the midstory/understory strata during burning. Prescribed burning in hardwood forests may solve some of the current oak regeneration problems, especially on better upland sites in the South. South. J. Appl. For. 22(3):138-142.

scholarly journals Combustion efficiency and emission factors for wildfire-season fires in mixed conifer forests of the northern Rocky Mountains, US

2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (14) ◽  
pp. 7241-7262 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. P. Urbanski
Keyword(s):  
Rocky Mountains ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Temperate Forests ◽  
Wildland Fire ◽  
Combustion Efficiency ◽  
Prescribed Fires ◽  
Northern Rocky Mountains ◽  
Western Us ◽  
Mixed Conifer Forests ◽  
Wildfire Season

Abstract. In the US, wildfires and prescribed burning present significant challenges to air regulatory agencies attempting to achieve and maintain compliance with air quality regulations. Fire emission factors (EF) are essential input for the emission models used to develop wildland fire emission inventories. Most previous studies quantifying wildland fire EF of temperate ecosystems have focused on emissions from prescribed burning conducted outside of the wildfire season. Little information is available on EF for wildfires in temperate forests of the conterminous US. The goal of this work is to provide information on emissions from wildfire-season forest fires in the northern Rocky Mountains, US. In August 2011, we deployed airborne chemistry instruments and sampled emissions over eight days from three wildfires and a prescribed fire that occurred in mixed conifer forests of the northern Rocky Mountains. We measured the combustion efficiency, quantified as the modified combustion efficiency (MCE), and EF for CO2, CO, and CH4. Our study average values for MCE, EFCO2, EFCO, and EFCH4 were 0.883, 1596 g kg−1, 135 g kg−1, 7.30 g kg−1, respectively. Compared with previous field studies of prescribed fires in temperate forests, the fires sampled in our study had significantly lower MCE and EFCO2 and significantly higher EFCO and EFCH4. The fires sampled in this study burned in areas reported to have moderate to heavy components of standing dead trees and down dead wood due to insect activity and previous fire, but fuel consumption data was not available. However, an analysis of MCE and fuel consumption data from 18 prescribed fires reported in the literature indicates that the availability of coarse fuels and conditions favorable for the combustion of these fuels favors low MCE fires. This analysis suggests that fuel composition was an important factor contributing to the low MCE of the fires measured in this study. This study only measured EF for CO2, CO, and CH4; however, we used our study average MCE to provide rough estimates of wildfire-season EF for PM2.5 and four non-methane organic compounds (NMOC) using MCE and EF data reported in the literature. This analysis suggests the EFPM2.5 for wildfires that occur in forests of the northern Rocky Mountains may be significantly larger than those reported for temperate forests in the literature and that used in a recent national emission inventory. If the MCE of the fires sampled in this work are representative of the combustion characteristics of wildfire-season fires in similar forest types across the western US then the use of EF based on prescribed fires may result in an underestimate of wildfire PM2.5 and NMOC emissions. Given the magnitude of biomass consumed by western US wildfires, this may have important implications for the forecasting and management of regional air quality.

scholarly journals Combustion efficiency and emission factors for US wildfires

2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. P. Urbanski
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Fuel Consumption ◽  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Combustion Efficiency ◽  
Regulatory Agencies ◽  
Prescribed Fires ◽  
Western Us ◽  
Consumption Data ◽  
Regional Haze

Abstract. In the US wildfires and prescribed burning present significant challenges to air regulatory agencies attempting to achieve and maintain compliance with National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) and Regional Haze Regulations. Wildland fire emission inventories (EI) provide critical inputs for atmospheric chemical transport models used by air regulatory agencies to understand and to predict the impact of fires on air quality. Fire emission factors (EF), which quantify the amount of pollutants released per mass of biomass burned, are essential input for the emission models used to develop EI. Over the past decade substantial progress has been realized in characterizing the composition of fresh biomass burning (BB) smoke and in quantifying BB EF. However, most BB studies of temperate ecosystems have focused on emissions from prescribed burning. Little information is available on EF for wildfires in the temperate forests of the conterminous US. Current emission estimates for US wildfires rely largely on EF measurements from prescribed burns and it is unknown if these fires are a reasonable proxy for wildfires. Over 8 days in August of 2011 we deployed airborne chemistry instruments and sampled emissions from 3 wildfires and a prescribed fire that occurred in mixed conifer forests of the northern Rocky Mountains. We measured the combustion efficiency, quantified as the modified combustion efficiency (MCE), and EF for CO2, CO, and CH4. Our study average values for MCE, EFCO2, EFCO, and EFCH4 were 0.883, 1596 g kg−1, 135 g kg−1, 7.30 g kg−1, respectively. Compared with previous field studies of prescribed fires in similar forest types, the fires sampled in our study had significantly lower MCE and EFCO2 and significantly higher EFCO and EFCH4. An examination of our study and 47 temperate forest prescribed fires from previously published studies shows a clear trend in MCE across US region/fire type: southeast (MCE = 0.933) > southwest (MCE = 0.922) > northwest (MCE = 0.900) > northwest wildfires (MCE = 0.883). The fires sampled in this work burned in areas reported to have moderate to heavy components of standing dead trees and dead down wood due to insect activity and previous fire, but fuel consumption data was not available for any of the fires. However, fuel consumption data was available for 18 prescribed fires reported in the literature. For these 18 fires we found a significant negative correlation (r =-0.83, p-value = 1.7e-5) between MCE and the ratio of heavy fuel (large diameter dead wood and duff) consumption to total fuel consumption. This observation suggests the relatively low MCE measured for the fires in our study resulted from the availability of heavy fuels and conditions that facilitated combustion of these fuels. More generally, our measurements and the comparison with previous studies indicate that fuel composition is an important driver of variability in MCE and EF. This study only measured EF for CO2, CO, and CH4; however, we used our study average MCE to estimate wildfire EF for PM2.5 and 13 other species using EF–MCE linear relationships reported in the literature. The EF we derived for several non-methane organic compounds (NMOC) were substantially larger (by a factor of 1.5 to 4) than the published prescribed fire EF. Wildfire EFPM2.5 estimated in our analysis is approximately twice that reported for temperate forests in a two widely used reviews of BB emission studies. Likewise, western US wildfire PM2.5 emissions reported in a recent national emission inventory are based on an effective EFPM2.5 that is only 40% of that estimated in our study. If the MCE of the fires sampled in this work are representative of the combustion characteristics of wildfires across western US forests then the use of EF based on prescribed fires may result in a significant underestimate of wildfire PM2.5 and NMOC emissions. Given the magnitude of biomass consumed by western US wildfires, the failure to use wildfire appropriate EFPM2.5 has significant implications for the forecasting and management of regional air quality. The contribution of wildfires to NAAQS PM2.5 and Regional Haze may be underestimated by air regulatory agencies.

scholarly journals Soil Quality of Abandoned Agricultural Terraces Managed with Prescribed Fires and Livestock in the Municipality of Capafonts, Catalonia, Spain (2000–2017)

Agronomy ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 340 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xavier Úbeda ◽  
Meritxell Alcañiz ◽  
Gonzalo Borges ◽  
Luis Outeiro ◽  
Marcos Francos
Keyword(s):  
Soil Quality ◽  
Forest Fires ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Fire Hazard ◽  
Soil Conditions ◽  
Prescribed Fires ◽  
Agricultural Terraces ◽  
Prescribed Burns ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Village

The abandonment of the economic activities of agriculture, livestock, and forestry since the second half of the 20th century, in conjunction with the exodus of inhabitants from rural areas, has resulted in an increase in the forest mass as well as an expansion of forest areas. This, in turn, has led to a greater risk of forest fires and an increase in the intensity and severity of these fires. Moreover, these forest masses represent a fire hazard to adjacent urban areas, which is a problem illustrated here by the village of Capafonts, whose former agricultural terraces have been invaded by shrubs, and which in the event of fire runs the risk of aiding the propagation of the flames from the forest to the village’s homes. One of the tools available to reduce the amount of fuel in zones adjoining inhabited areas is prescribed burns. The local authorities have also promoted measures to convert these terraces into pasture; in this way, the grazing of livestock (in this particular instance, goats) aims to keep fuel levels low and thus reduce the risk of fire. The use of prescribed fires is controversial, as they are believed to be highly aggressive for the soil, and little is known about their long-term effects. The alternation of the two strategies is more acceptable—that is, the use of prescribed burning followed by the grazing of livestock. Yet, similarly little is known about the effects of this management sequence on the soil. As such, this study seeks to examine the impact of the management of the abandoned terraces of Capafonts by means of two prescribed fires (2000 and 2002), which were designed specifically to prevent forest fires from reaching the village. Following these two prescribed burns, a herd of goats began to graze these terraces in 2005. Here, we report the results of soil analyses conducted during this period of years up to and including 2017. A plot comprising 30 sampling points was established on one of the terraces and used to monitor its main soil quality properties. The data were subject to statistical tests to determine whether the recorded changes were significant. The results show modifications to the concentration of soil elements, and since the first prescribed burn, these changes have all been statistically significant. We compare our results with those reported in other studies that evaluate optimum soil concentrations for the adequate growth of grazing to feed goats, and conclude that the soil conditions on the terrace after 17 years are optimum for livestock use.

Multimodality and the Multiliteracies Pedagogy

2017 ◽  
Vol 65 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Harrop-Allin
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Music Education ◽  
Primary Schools ◽  
Analytical Approach ◽  
Contextual Analysis ◽  
Ethnographic Research ◽  
Formal Learning ◽  
Multiple Modes ◽  
Urban South ◽  
Theoretical Frame

Drawing on a study of children’s musical games in urban South Africa, this article employs two theoretical frames: that of multimodality and the multiliteracies pedagogy. These are applied to a contextual analysis of the forms of musicality that musical games embody and to ways of incorporating children’s play into pedagogy. Based on ethnographic research in primary schools in Soweto, I first examine representative examples of musical games in order to demonstrate children’s musicianship in relation to the concept of multimodality. Analysis reveals the games’ sophistication in terms of children’s deployment of multiple modes and the inventiveness their methods imply. Furthermore, a multimodal theoretical frame and analytical approach enables an understanding of musicality as the capacity to “design.” Second, children’s multimodal musicality prompts questions about how such musicality may become a resource in formal learning. I propose that applying the multiliteracies pedagogy to music education offers a methodological solution for “recruiting” musical games so that the capacities children demonstrate in their games may be developed.

scholarly journals Prescribed Burning and Clear-Cutting Effects on Understory Vegetation in aPinus canariensisStand (Gran Canaria)

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
José Ramón Arévalo ◽  
Silvia Fernández-Lugo ◽  
Celia García-Domínguez ◽  
Agustín Naranjo-Cigala ◽  
Federico Grillo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Management Practice ◽  
Woody Species ◽  
Understory Vegetation ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Fire Intensity ◽  
Prescribed Fires ◽  
Fire Hazards ◽  
Clear Cutting

Prescribed fires are a powerful tool for reducing fire hazards by decreasing amounts of fuel. The main objective is to analyze the effects of prescribed burning on the understory vegetation composition as well as on the soil characteristics of a reforested stand ofPinus canariensis. The study attempts to identify the effects of the preburning treatment of cutting understory vegetation on the floristic parameters of the vegetation community. This study was carried out for two years following a prescribed fire in a Canarian pine stand. Cutting and burning treatment affected species composition and increased diversity. Burnt and cut plots were characterized by a diverse array of herbaceous species and by a lower abundance ofTeline microphylla(endemic legume), although burning apparently induced its germination. Cut treatment was more consistently differentiated from the control plots than burnt treatment. Soil K decreased after both treatments, pH slightly decreased after cutting, while P and Ca increased after fire. From an ecological point of view, prescribed burning is a better management practice than cutting the woody species of the understory. However, long-term studies would be necessary to evaluate the effects of fire intensity, season and frequency in which the prescribed burning is applied.

Comparing the height and area of wild and prescribed fire particle plumes in south-east Australia using weather radar

2018 ◽  
Vol 27 (8) ◽  
pp. 525 ◽  
Author(s):  
Owen F. Price ◽  
Phil J. Purdam ◽  
Grant J. Williamson ◽  
David M. J. S. Bowman
Keyword(s):  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Prescribed Fires ◽  
Maximum Height ◽  
Major Health ◽  
Weather Radars ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
Large Particles ◽  
Smoke Pollution ◽  
Large Fires ◽  
Fire Area

Smoke pollution from landscape fires is a major health issue. Prescribed burning aims to reduce the area and impact of wildfire, but itself produces smoke pollution. This raises the question as to whether the smoke production and transport from prescribed fires is substantially different compared to wildfires. We examined the maximum height, width and areal footprint of large-particle plumes from 97 wild and 126 prescribed fires in south-eastern Australia using the existing network of weather radars. Radar detects large particles in smoke (probably those >100 μm) and hence is an imperfect proxy for microfine (<2 μm) particles that are known to affect human health. Of the 223 landscape fires, ~45% of plumes were detected, with the probability being >0.8 for large fires (>100 000 ha) regardless of type, closer than 50 km from the radar. Plume height was strongly influenced by fire area, the height of the planetary boundary layer and fire type. Plume heights differed between wildfire (range 1016–12 206 m, median 3260 m) and prescribed fires (range 706–6397 m, median 1669 m), and prescribed fires were predicted to be 800–1200 m lower than wildfires, controlling for other factors. For both wildfires and prescribed fires, the maximum plume footprint was always near the ground.

scholarly journals Where There's Fire, There's Smoke: Air Quality and Prescribed Burning in Florida

EDIS ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 2009 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Martha C. Monroe ◽  
Adam C. Watts ◽  
Leda N. Kobziar
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Human Health ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Health And Safety ◽  
Forest Resources ◽  
Background Information ◽  
Prescribed Fires ◽  
Fact Sheet

Revised! FOR-62, a 5-page illustrated fact sheet by Martha C. Monroe, Adam C. Watts, and Leda N. Kobziar, provides some background information on air quality, the effects of smoke on human health and safety, and regulations concerning the use of prescribed fires and the smoke produced by them, as well as strategies for protecting air quality. Includes links to websites with further information. Published by the UF School of Forest Resources and Conservation, February 2009. FOR 62/FR058: Where There's Fire, There's Smoke: Air Quality and Prescribed Burning in Florida (ufl.edu)

Cause and effects of a megafire in sedge-heathland in the Tasmanian temperate wilderness

2016 ◽  
Vol 64 (6) ◽  
pp. 513 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ben J. French ◽  
Lynda D. Prior ◽  
Grant J. Williamson ◽  
David M. J. S. Bowman
Keyword(s):  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Fire Severity ◽  
Stand Age ◽  
Temperate Region ◽  
Early 19Th Century ◽  
European Settlement ◽  
Eucalypt Forest ◽  
Regeneration Response ◽  
Whole Plants ◽  
Aboriginal Burning

The World Heritage wilderness of south-western Tasmania contains a complex vegetation mosaic of eucalypt forest, myrtaceous scrub and fire-sensitive rainforest embedded in highly flammable sedge–heathland. Aboriginal burning shaped this temperate region for millennia, and large, severe wildfires have prevailed since European settlement in the early 19th century. In 2013, the Giblin River fire burnt 45 000 ha of wilderness, most of which was sedge-heathland. We surveyed the fire footprint, and an adjacent management burn, to investigate the drivers of fire severity in sedge-heathland and to assess the regeneration response of woody vegetation and how these were influenced by antecedent fire histories. Analyses based on multi-model inference identified time since fire as the most important driver of sedge-heathland fire severity, as measured by diameter of burnt twigs. Mortality was high for both main stems (98%) and whole plants (91%), with only 16% of dead stems resprouting. Resprouting and seedling establishment were little affected by fire severity. The value of prescribed burning in reducing both the extent and severity of wildfires in the south-western Tasmanian landscape, and in maintaining stand-age heterogeneity, is illustrated by the wildfire having self-extinguished on the boundary of the management burn.

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