DYNAMIC MODELS OF MOISTURE CONTENT OF FOREST FUELS

INTRODUCTIoNMoisturecontentoffOrestfuelsaffects.ignitionprobability,rateofspread,radia-tionefficiencyandenergyrelease.Itisoneofthemajorvariablesfordeterminingfireoccurrence,evaluatingfiredangerandpre-dictingfirebehavior.Obviouslyfuelmois-turecontentisevidenceonwhichisbasedtodetermineprescribedburning.Thechangeoffuelmoisturecontentisaffectedbymanyfactors.Thedynamicmodelsoffuelmoisturecontentcanbeestablishedinaccordancewiththosefactors.lnthispaper,thetheoryofrelativemoisturecontent,develope…     

Modeling fire susceptibility in west central Alberta, Canada

Strategic modification of forest vegetation has become increasingly popular as one of the few preemptive activities that land managers can undertake to reduce the likelihood that an area will be burned by a wildfire. Directed use of prescribed fire or harvest planning can lead to changes in the type and arrangement of forest vegetation across the landscape that, in turn, may reduce fire susceptibility across large areas. While among the few variables that fire managers can influence, fuel conditions are only one of many factors that determine fire susceptibility. Variations in weather and topography, in combination with fuels, determine which areas are more likely to burn under a given fire regime. An understanding of these combined factors is necessary to identify high fire susceptibility areas for prioritizing and evaluating strategic fuel management activities, as well as informing other fire management activities, such as community protection planning and strategic level allocation of fire suppression resources across a management area. We used repeated fire growth simulations, automated in the Burn-P3 landscape-fire simulation model, to assess spatial variations in fire susceptibility across a 2.4 million ha study area in the province of Alberta, Canada. The results were used to develop a Fire Susceptibility Index (FSI). Multivariate statistical analyses were used to identify the key factors that determine variation in FSI across the study area and to describe the spatial scale at which these variables influence fire susceptibility at a given location. A fuel management scenario was used to assess the impact of prescribed fire treatments on FSI. Results indicated that modeled fire susceptibility was strongly influenced by fuel composition, fuel arrangement, and topography. The likelihood of high or extreme FSI values at a given location was strongly associated with the percent of conifer forest within a 2-km radius, and with elevation and ignition patterns within a 5-km radius. Results indicated that prescribed fire treatments can be effective at reducing forest fire susceptibility in community protection zones and that simulation modeling is an effective means of evaluating spatial variation in landscape fire susceptibility.     

Bark beetles,fuels, fires and implications for forest management in the Intermountain West

Bark beetle-caused tree mortality in conifer forests affects the quantity and quality of forest fuels and has long been assumed to increase fire hazard and potential fire behavior. In reality, bark beetles, and their effects on fuel accumulation, and subsequent fire hazard, are poorly understood. We extensively sampled fuels in three bark beetle-affected Intermountain conifer forests and compared these data to existing research on bark beetle/fuels/fire interactions within the context of the disturbance regime. Data were collected in endemic, epidemic and post-epidemic stands of Douglas-fir, lodgepole pine and Engelmann spruce. From these data, we evaluated the influence of bark beetle-caused tree mortality on various fuels characteristics over the course of a bark beetle rotation. The data showed that changes in fuels over time create periods where the potential for high intensity and/or severe fires increases or decreases. The net result of bark beetle epidemics was a substantial change in species composition and a highly altered fuels complex. Early in epidemics there is a net increase in the amount of fine surface fuels when compared to endemic stands. In post-epidemic stands large, dead, woody fuels, and live surface fuels dominate. We then discuss potential fire behavior in bark beetle-affected conifer fuels based on actual and simulated fuels data. Results indicated that for surface fires both rates of fire spread and fireline intensities were higher in the current epidemic stands than in the endemic stands. Rates of spread and fireline intensities were higher in epidemic stands due, however, to decreased vegetative sheltering and its effect on mid-flame wind speed, rather than changes in fuels. Passive crown fires were more likely in post-epidemic stands, but active crown fires were less likely due to decreased aerial fuel continuity. We also discuss the ecological effects of extreme fire behavior. Information is presented on managing forests to reduce the impact of bark beetle outbreaks and the interplay between management, bark beetle populations, fuels and fire hazard and behavior.     

Long-term impacts of prescribed burning on regional extent and incidence of wildfires—Evidence from 50 years of active fire management in SW Australian forests

Prescribed burning is advocated for the sustainable management of fire-prone ecosystems for its capacity to reduce fuel loads and mitigate large high-intensity wildfires. However, there is a lack of comprehensive field evidence on which to base predictions of the benefits of prescribed burning for meeting either wildfire hazard reduction or conservation goals. Australian eucalypt forests are among the very few forest types in the world where prescribed burning has been practised long enough and at a large enough spatial scale to quantify its effect on the incidence and extent of unplanned fires. Nevertheless even for Australian forests evidence of the effectiveness of prescribed burning remains fragmented and largely unpublished in the scientific literature.     

National fuel-treatment budgeting in US federal agencies: Capturing opportunities for transparent decision-making

The Ecosystem Management Decision Support (EMDS) system has been used by the US Department of Agriculture, Forest Service and Bureaus of the Department of the Interior since 2006 to evaluate wildfire potential across all administrative units in the continental US, and to establish priorities for allocating fuel-treatment budgets. This article discusses an EMDS fuels-treatment decision-support application, agency experiences with the application, and the extent to which it addressed concerns in Congress, and those of the General Accountability Office. EMDS aids the budget allocation process by providing a rational, transparent, and reproducible process that can be clearly communicated to Congressional staff and oversight personnel. However, practical application of this decision-support process was not without challenges, which included missing or suboptimal data, clearly articulated fuels management objectives, and improved understanding (via re-assessing decision logic from prior years) of trade-offs in decision-making.     

Natural regeneration of Pinus brutia Ten. in a recreational public forest in Zawita-Kurdistan region,Iraq

Zawita natural forest has recently has been subject to mass recreational activities during spring that have denuded large areas of the forest.It was thus essential to assess regeneration before designing optimizing strategies.To this end,we studied the overstory canopy and microhabitat conditions for recruitment of Pinus brutia Ten in 10 plots(20×25 m)on the southern aspects where the Zawita natural forest is still present.In total,1540 regenerating P.brutia were recorded,854 seedlings,597 saplings,and 89 trees.Seedlings and saplings were more frequent beyond the canopy than under the canopy of the parent trees.Regeneration requirements differed between seedlings and saplings.The probability of the occurrence of seedlings was negatively correlated with increasing litter depth and increasing soil compaction.The density of saplings only showed a positive significant correlation with increasing slope.The nearest neighbor index showed a trend toward a positive spatial association between understory shrubs with their neighboring seedlings at a mean distance of 1.6 m.Overall,the study highlighted the requirements for seedling regeneration as a relatively open canopy cover,a light understory litter layer,and noncompacted soils.These results are a step towards designing effective management and restoration programs.     

Changes in Buprestidae (Coleoptera) community with successional age after fire in a Pinus brutia forest

Fire is a frequent and common disturbance factor in Mediterranean ecosystems. It is a most spectacular ecological force because it destroys ecosystems in a very short time. Pinus brutia Ten. forests, which are one of the most widespread ecosystems in the eastern Mediterranean rim, have developed adaptations against fire. The adaptations evolved by plant species have been studied extensively. However, the response of insects, which are an important part of the ecosystem, has received little attention. In this study, we investigated the effects of fire on the community structure of Buprestidae over the long term and along a successional gradient. The study was carried out at the Marmaris National Park (N 36°50, E 28°17), which is located in southwestern Turkey. Four sites were selected to represent the different stages of succession. Buprestids were sampled using sweep nets with a 32-cm diameter that were swung 200 times while walking along a 100-m transect in three sampling lines. Total abundance, species richness and the Shannon diversity index were used in order to compare the Buprestidae community at different successional stages. Twenty-seven individuals belonging to 11 species were found. Total abundance and species richness decreased with successional age. Both parameters were significantly and negatively correlated with time since fire (respectively r_s=–0.547, P=0.013, n=20; r_s=–0.479, P=0.033, n=20). The results showed that fire affects the Buprestidae community through food supply and changes of habitat. Buprestidae species benefited from conditions that occurred after fire. Weakened trees, spread branches and trunks constituted suitable food resources for the wood-boring beetles in early successional sites. In addition, because of the low abundance of Buprestidae species, no damages were observed on pine seedlings in early successional sites.     

High-severity wildfire effects on carbon stocks and emissions in fuels treated and untreated forest

Forests contain the world's largest terrestrial carbon stocks, but in seasonally dry environments stock stability can be compromised if burned by wildfire, emitting carbon back to the atmosphere. Treatments to reduce wildfire severity can reduce emissions, but with an immediate cost of reducing carbon stocks. In this study we examine the tradeoffs in carbon stock reduction and wildfire emissions in 19 fuels-treated and -untreated forests burned in twelve wildfires. The fuels treatment, a commonly used thinning ‘from below’ and removal of activity fuels, removed an average of 50.3 Mg C ha⁻¹ or 34% of live tree carbon stocks. Wildfire emissions averaged 29.7 and 67.8 Mg C ha⁻¹ in fuels treated and untreated forests, respectively. The total carbon (fuels treatment plus wildfire emission) removed from treated sites was 119% of the carbon emitted from the untreated/burned sites. However, with only 3% tree survival following wildfire, untreated forests averaged only 7.8 Mg C ha⁻¹ in live trees with an average quadratic mean tree diameter of 21 cm. In contrast, treated forest averaged 100.5 Mg C ha⁻¹ with a live tree quadratic mean diameter of 44 cm. In untreated forests 70% of the remaining total ecosystem carbon shifted to decomposing stocks after the wildfire, compared to 19% in the fuels-treated forest. In wildfire burned forest, fuels treatments have a higher immediate carbon ‘cost’, but in the long-term may benefit from lower decomposition emissions and higher carbon storage.     

黑河地区林火分布规律

根据黑河地区1987～2006年林火资料,利用地理信息系统等工具,对黑河地区林火时空动态和分布规律进行了研究。结果表明,黑河近20年林火次数、林火面积随时间发展呈波动性上升趋势,并明显分成1987—1999年的低发阶段和2000—2006年的高发阶段,爱辉区和嫩江县是黑河地区林火次数的主体。黑河地区及各区火烧轮回期均小于黑龙江省的平均值,为黑龙江省火灾高发区。     

Nitrogen cycling in Pinus sylvestris stands exposed to different nitrogen inputs

The objective of this study was to quantify the effects of high nitrogen (N) inputs on N cycling in a 35–45-yr-old Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) forest. Nitrogen was added annually (single doses) as NH₄NO₃ in doses of 0 (N0), 30 (N1) and 90 (N2) kg N ha^?1 yr^?1. The only N input to the N0 plots was atmospheric deposition of 10 kg N ha^?1 yr^?1. The N cycle in these plots was tight, with almost complete retention of the incoming N. In the N1 plots the N retention was 83% after 9 yrs of N addition. The trees were the major sink, but the soil also contributed to the N retention. In the N2 plots the N retention was 63%, being mainly accounted for by accumulation in the soil. The leaching of N from the N2 stands was as high as 35 kg N ha^?1 yr^?1. The N2 system was N saturated.     

Modeling individual-tree growth in stands under forest conversion in East Germany

One major result of forest conversion in Saxony, East Germany, is the increasing importance of two-storied stands composed of a conifer canopy and a deciduous-tree understory. To enhance the applicability of the growth and yield simulator BWINPro under these conditions, three of its major sub-models were adapted to the regional growing conditions and to the relatively high level of diversity in spatial structure, mixture of species, and age variability typical for forests in conversion: (1) A new module for simulating single-tree juvenile growth was developed for European beech and Common oak under canopies of Norway spruce and Scots pine. Predictions in this sub-model are derived from individual height, diameter at breast height (dbh), and the influences of horizontal and vertical competition; (2) An alternative distance-dependent competition index was introduced to estimate individual basal area increment according to tree-specific growing conditions; (3) A modified logistic mortality model was parameterized for the most important Saxon species based on tree dimensions and basal area increment. Data came from permanent sample plots distributed throughout the region and from three chronosequence plot series established specifically for obtaining model input data. The new components were included into the existing structure of BWINPro. As a result of the adaption, the regional version BWINPro-S provides enhanced opportunities of planning and management for forest conversion and for multi-storied stands.     

Nomographs for predicting crown fire initiation in Aleppo pine (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Pinus halepensis</Emphasis> Mill.) forests

Nomographs that calculate the threshold values of surface fire parameters which lead to crown fire initiation were created by linking two separate fire behavior models: Van Wagner’s crown fire ignition criteria and Byram’s surface fire model. The nomographs were also based on the existing surface (fuel load, fuel heat content) and canopy (foliar moisture content, live crown base height) fuel models of Aleppo (Pinus halepensis Mill.) pine forests of Mediterranean Greece. The most important fire parameters for crown fire initiation that are calculated by the nomographs are the critical flame length and the forward spread rate of the surface fire. These parameters are readily observable in the field during fires. The nomographs provide a judicious way to assess whether a crown fire is likely to occur in a conifer forest stand. Although the fire behavior models used had limited testing and are based on certain assumptions, yet they are widely applied in forestry practice worldwide, as a basis for justified fire prevention and suppression planning.     

Varying moisture content and eigen-stresses in timber elements

Abstract

The load-bearing capacity of timber elements and systems is affected by moisture exposure. Varying moisture content in the ambient air and resulting non-uniform moisture profiles on cross-sections generate stresses perpendicular to grain because of restraint of hygroexpansion. This paper presents effects of indoor moisture diffusion in timber elements; moisture profiles within member and corresponding stresses are determined using finite element analysis and a relevant constitutive model. The stress variability is larger near the surface compared with the middle of a cross-section. No major differences are noticed between different climatic locations, but the induced stresses reach high levels above the characteristic strength in tension perpendicular to grain. It appears that indoor moisture effects differ insignificantly between the different climatic locations investigated in this study.     

Seasonal changes of understorey herbage yield in relation to light intensity and soil moisture content in a Pinus pinaster plantation

The relationship of understorey herbage yield with light intensity and soil moisture content was investigated in a 20-year-old Pinus pinaster plantation in Kilkis of Macedonia, northern Greece, in three seasons (fall, winter and spring). The plantation was thinned at three density levels, high, medium and low (2500, 1750 and 1000 trees/ha respectively) and it was seeded with Dactylis glomerata. In addition, two fertilization levels (0 and 110 N+150 P₂O₅ kg/ha) and grazing intensity levels (0 and 0.8 sheep/ha/yr) were applied in a split-split plot experimental design. It was found that herbage yield was highest in the ungrazed and fertilized low tree density stands in all seasons. In the medium tree density stand, although light was lacking, fertilized plots produced higher herbage yield as compared to unfertilized low tree density stands while fertilization is of no use in close stands if herbage production is the goal. Animals seemed to prefer fertilized and medium density stands. Third degree polynomial equations were the best to explain herbage variation through the seasons both in fertilized and unfertilized plots.     

冀北山地典型林分生长季土壤水分动态规律

以华北落叶松桦木混交林、山杨桦木混交林和油松蒙古栎混交林为研究对象,分别对其6~9月间的土壤含水量动态变化实时监测,结果表明:华北落叶松桦木混交林、山杨桦木混交林和油松蒙古栎混交林土壤含水量变动范围分别为5.67%~15.43%、7.10%~24.23%、2.25%~14.57%,土壤水分调节层分别在50cm、20cm、30cm,土壤蒸发总量分别为43.1cm、38.1cm、50.2cm;3种林地7月份土壤蒸发量最大,导致土壤含水量最低。     

卫星遥感技术在林火管理与研究中的应用(英文)

卫星遥感已经成为森林火险等级预测、可燃物和火烧区制图、林火监测和火生态研究的一个主要数据来源。本文综述了这些研究领域的研究成果,分析了未来林火管理中采用的卫星遥感技术的发展趋势。根据卫星遥感数据制取的可燃物分布图可以满足林火管理在空间和时间尺度上的需要。单独采用遥感数据或结合地面气象数据可以生成一些火险指数,用于森林火险的预报。目前NOAA 和MODIS 卫星由于有高的时间分辨率已被广泛用于林火探测和监测,这些监测结果可以在许多林火网站上见到,这为世界各地的林火管理和研究提供了重要的参考资料。作为低成本的有效工具, 卫星遥感技术在确定火烧面积和过火区制图上发挥了重要作用。遥感技术的发展也可以用来推断火烧时间和估计火烧程度。卫星遥感也非常适合用来估计生物燃烧面积,这是估计全球或区域生物燃烧排放量和理解火对全球变化的影响的基础。本文还讨论了林火研究中采用的卫星类型。文章最后建议中国需要在卫星遥感技术的应用上进一步发展,提高我国的林火管理水平。参71。     

Changes in soil faunal assemblages during conversion from pure to mixed forest stands

Replacement of native deciduous forests by coniferous stands was a common consequence of former European afforestation policies. However, these changes have proven to lead to serious ecological problems. Therefore, re-establishing mixed forests with native tree species became an increasingly popular management strategy to fulfil the demands of multi-functional forestry. We report about changes in collembolan assemblages and microbial performances during conversion of pure coniferous stands to mixed forests. The study was carried out in the Black forest area (SW of Germany), where a gradient of conversion from pure spruce stands (S1) to equally mixed stands (spruce, beech, and fir) at S4, through two intermediate stages (S2 and S3) was selected. Results clearly indicated strong modifications of the collembolan communities with an enrichment of the assemblages over the course of the conversion process. Mean species richness increased by 47% from S1 to S4 accompanied by diversity indices (Shannon and Simpson) higher at S4. Significantly different soil biota assemblages were found at each phase of the conversion process. Spatial turnover and nestedness contribute almost equally to the modification of assemblages from S1 to S2 while later on in the mixing process only spatial turnover was acting. Concomitantly, significant shifts in the functional structure of the collembolan assemblages were depicted, deep-dwelling collembolan (euedaphic) being, surprisingly, the most responsive group. In contrast, neither microbial nor coarse environmental parameters were influenced by the factor “conversion phase”. We suggest that stimulation of Collembolan communities after the mixing process was mainly due to the input of more suitable food sources and/or microhabitat increases. Our findings underline the crucial role of aboveground processes on the belowground system, with the intensity and scheme of the mixing-process as important factors to consider when aiming at soil biodiversity improvement in forest systems.     

Estimation of shrub biomass by airborne LiDAR data in small forest stands

The presence of shrub vegetation is very significant in Mediterranean ecosystems. However, the difficulty involved in shrub management and the lack of information about behavior of this vegetation means that these areas are often left out of spatial planning projects. Airborne LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) has been used successfully in forestry to estimate dendrometric and dasometric variables that allow to characterize forest structure. In contrast, little research has focused on shrub vegetation. The objective of this study was to estimate dry biomass of shrub vegetation in 83 stands of radius 0.5 m using variables derived from LiDAR data. Dominant species was Quercus coccifera, one of the most characteristic species of the Mediterranean forests. Density of LiDAR data in the analyzed stands varied from 2 points/m² to 16 points/m², being the average 8 points/m² and the standard deviation 4.5 points/m². Under these conditions, predictions of biomass were performed calculating the mean height, the maximum height and the percentile values 80th, 90th, and 95th derived from LiDAR in concentric areas whose radius varied from 0.50 m to 3.5 m from the center of the stand. The maximum R² and the minimum RMSE for dry biomass estimations were obtained when the percentile 95th of LiDAR data was calculated in an area of radius 1.5 m, being 0.48 and 1.45 kg, respectively. For this radius, it was found that for the stands (n = 39) where the DTM is calculated with high accuracy (RMSE lower than 0.20 m) and with a high density of LiDAR data (more than 8 points/m²) the R² value was 0.73. These results show the possibility of estimating shrub biomass in small areas when the density of LiDAR data is high and errors associated to the DTM are low. These results would allow us to improve the knowledge about shrub behavior avoiding the cost of field measurements and clear cutting actions.     

Short- and long-term effects of thinning and prescribed fire on carbon stocks in ponderosa pine stands in northern Arizona

Euro-American logging practices, intensive grazing, and fire suppression have increased the amount of carbon that is stored in ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa Dougl. Ex Laws) forests in the southwestern United States. Current stand conditions leave these forests prone to high-intensity wildfire, which releases a pulse of carbon emissions and shifts carbon storage from live trees to standing dead trees and woody debris. Thinning and prescribed burning are commonly used to reduce the risk of intense wildfire, but also reduce on-site carbon stocks and release carbon to the atmosphere. This study quantified the impact of thinning on the carbon budgets of five ponderosa pine stands in northern Arizona, including the fossil fuels consumed during logging operations. We used the pre- and post-treatment data on carbon stocks and the Fire and Fuels Extension to the Forest Vegetation Simulator (FEE-FVS) to simulate the long-term effects of intense wildfire, thinning, and repeated prescribed burning on stand carbon storage.The mean total pre-treatment carbon stock, including above-ground live and dead trees, below-ground live and dead trees, and surface fuels across five sites was 74.58 Mg C ha⁻¹ and the post-treatment mean was 50.65 Mg C ha⁻¹ in the first post-treatment year. The mean total carbon release from slash burning, fossil fuels, and logs removed was 21.92 Mg C ha⁻¹. FEE-FVS simulations showed that thinning increased the mean canopy base height, decreased the mean crown bulk density, and increased the mean crowning index, and thus reduced the risk of high-intensity wildfire at all sites. Untreated stands that incurred wildfire once within the next 100 years or once within the next 50 years had greater mean net carbon storage after 100 years compared to treated stands that experienced prescribed fire every 10 years or every 20 years. Treated stands released greater amounts of carbon overall due to repeated prescribed fires, slash burning, and 100% of harvested logs being counted as carbon emissions because they were used for short-lived products. However, after 100 years treated stands stored more carbon in live trees and less carbon in dead trees and surface fuels than untreated stands burned by intense wildfire. The long-term net carbon storage of treated stands was similar or greater than untreated wildfire-burned stands only when a distinction was made between carbon stored in live and dead trees, carbon in logs was stored in long-lived products, and energy in logging slash substituted for fossil fuels.