Adaptive Management Services Enterprise Unit

Projects

San Bernardino Mastication Fuel Treatment Monitoring

Little information exists on fuels or fire characteristics in masticated fuel beds. The San Bernardino National Forest contracted AMSET to characterize masticated fuel beds as a foundation for understanding potential fire behavior in masticated fuels.[ More about the Mastication Fuel Treatment ]

Prescribed Fire Monitoring

We conduct monitoring of fuel treatments throughout California for Fire and Aviation Management of the Pacific Southwest Region of the US Forest Service (USFS). [ More about the Prescribed Fire Monitoring Project ]

Joint Fire Science / Red Mountain Mastication Study

The Greenhorn Ranger District of the Sequoia National Forest requested that AMSET collaborate with them to formally assess effectiveness of mastication fuel treatments in ponderosa pine plantations. The proposal was to determine how well mastication works in reducing fuel hazard and wildfire behavior while maintaining live trees. Findings from this research would meet a local need, and would also provide practical knowledge to managers in similar areas in the western U.S.   [ More about the Red Mountain Mastication Study ]

LTBMU Fuels Monitoring Pilot

The Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit requested that AMSET design and implement a fuels treatment monitoring program. The objectives of the program include treatment application effectiveness, vegetation regeneration affects, and treatment longevity. At this point the project remains a pilot program. [More about the LTBMU Fuels Monitoring Pilot]

Groveland Vegetation/Fuels Inventory

[More about the LTBMU Fuels Monitoring Pilot]

TNF Disturbance Layer

The Tahoe National Forest maintains a GIS layer showing disturbances such as timber harvesting, thinning, and planting. This information is used to evaluate potential effects of proposed activities. The Sierraville and Truckee Ranger Districts needed assistance to bring their layer up-to-date using new aerial photograph imagery, recent harvest plans, and the FACTS database. AMSET checked existing data and added new information as needed. The updated database is compatible with the existing database, and includes additional data relating to the Quincy Library Group data requirements.

TNF LiDAR Contract

The Sierraville District wants to conduct stream restoration projects at several locations. Very high resolution imagery with precise vertical control is needed to conduct the restoration projects. Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) imagery can provide this level of precision. AMSET provided Contracting Officer Representative (COR) services to expedite the contract and obtain the raw data within a restricted time period. AMSET also provided oversight to convert the raw data into GIS raster datasets which can be used by ArcGIS.

Meyers Landfill Oversight

AMSET is providing hydrogeologic technical assistance and COR support for the on-going investigation and remediation of the closed Meyers Landfill, located on Forest Service land in the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit (LTBMU). The landfill which operated for many years under a Special Use permit was closed in the early 1970’s. The landfill generated leachate which impacted surface and groundwater. Leachate flowing at ground surface was eliminated, but groundwater continues to be impacted by leachate from the waste. The Forest Service, Eldorado County, and the City of South Lake Tahoe are working to determine the extent of impacted groundwater, and select appropriate remediation measures. The Forest Service is working toward installing an impermeable cap over the landfill to prevent infiltration of precipitation, which is producing leachate and impacting groundwater.

AMSET is providing technical expertise in groundwater contamination investigation and remediation to assist the On-Scene Coordinator with moving the project forward through the CERCLA process. AMSET is interacting with contractors, responsible parties, and Forest Service staff, reviewing and commenting on technical documents, providing oversight for field activities and a groundwater remediation pilot study, and coordinating contractor and Forest Service activities.

AMSET is also providing technical expertise for the COR by preparing scopes of work, reviewing proposals and contract modification documents, assisting with contractor selection, and providing inspector services.[More about the Meyers Landfill Project]

Ventura County Fire Behavior Analysis

Ventura County Fire Department (VNC) in California hired AMSET to conduct a fire behavior analysis that would validate Ventura County’s 100-foot clearance requirement around structures as it relates to firefighter safety. In addition, VNC requested that we evaluate site specific location where 100-foot clearance may be inadequate for safe operational space for firefighters.[More about the Ventura County Project]

San Bernardino Fire and Fuels Assessment

In 2003 and 2004 the San Bernardino National Forest hired AMSET to write a fuels and fire behavior assessment. The forest had been experiencing severe drought with landscape level mortality of 5-100% in the timber and chaparral over approximately 350,000 acres. The fuels and fire behavior assessment was utilized by forest staff for wildland fire planning and NEPA documents.[More about the San Bernardino Project]

Nationwide USFS and BLM Broad Based Fuel Treatment Effectiveness Monitoring

In 2007, the Wildland Fire Leadership Council (WFLC) organized a task group to: Develop a monitoring plan for implementing a directive from the National Fire Plan’s 10-Year Implementation Strategy, and Respond to the Healthy Forest Restoration Act requirement of monitoring a representative sample of projects. A broad-based monitoring approach was utilized to qualitatively answer specific monitoring questions about overall fuel treatment objectives and treatment effects on aquatic and terrestrial habitat and air and water quality. Monitoring was completed on 98 percent of 120 randomly selected sites. Most of the monitored sites (71 percent) were within the wildland-urban interface. Most of the treatments involved prescribed fire as a stand-alone treatment (42 percent), or were combined with mechanical/manual treatments (28 percent). Overall, monitoring teams reported that the treatments met the fuel treatment objectives on 92 percent of the sites - attaining the 95 percent "confidence interval" (calculated to determine the reliability of the estimate) of 87.5 to 97.2 percent.

Project management was provided by Carol Ewell of AMSET. Multiple team members of AMSET were involved and some served as monitoring team facilitators in multiple regions. Plans are underway to continue another round of monitoring in the upcoming year. The 2008 summary report is available at: www.forestsandrangelands.gov/plan/index.shtml (3rd report from the bottom of the page). [More about Fuel Treatment Effectiveness Monitoring]

USDA Forest Service - Adaptive Management Services Enterprise Unit
Last Modified: Tuesday, 31 August 2010 at 19:09:16 EDT