Fire and Environmental Research Applications Team

FIRE-CLIMATE CONNECTION SUMMARIZED BY THE JOINT FIRE SCIENCE PROGRAM

FERA’s Don McKenzie is among the contributors to the 12-page summary of Joint Fire Science Program-funded climate and fire research. It helps explain relationships among the large-scale drivers of climate and the occurrence and extent of wildfire in the various regions of the western United States.

http://www.firescience.gov/Digest/Fire_Science_Digest_1.pdf

DIGITAL PHOTO SERIES AND SHRUB CONSUMPTION PROJECTS COMPLETED

Clint Wright completed two Joint Fire Science Program projects this month. The Digital Photo Series, an electronic compilation of photos and data from the natural fuels photo series, is now available online. For the shrub consumption study, fuel loading, consumption, moisture, site conditions, and fire weather were measured in 95 shrub-dominated before and after prescribed fires. This information will be incorporated into the Consume 3.0 program to improve predictions of shrub consumption during fires.

Final reports for both research projects are available at:

http://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/fera/research/fuels/photo_series/digital_photo_series.shtml
http://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/fera/research/smoke/shrubs.shtml

GEORGIA REGIONAL FUELS WORKSHOP TO IMPROVE SMOKE MANAGEMENT

The Georgia Forestry Commission sponsored a regional fuels workshop, taught by the FERA teaching cadre, at the Joseph W. Jones Ecological Research Center at Ichauway September 11-13. Approximately 24 attendees, mostly district rangers in Georgia, were taught to use the photo series, Fuel Characteristic Classification System (FCCS) and Consume 3.0. Along with VSmoke, this set of software can assist state managers in estimating the amount of emissions from fire and help predict its impacts on communities.

http://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/fera/research/outreach/workshops.shtml

TRIPOD FIRE FUEL TREATMENT EFECTIVENESS RESEARCH RECEIVES ADDITIONAL FUNDING

Susan Prichard’s Tripod Fire fuel treatment effectiveness research, sponsored by the Joint Fire Science Program, recently received funding to augment the effectiveness research with an evaluation of the fire severity patterns in that fire. This information will be synthesized with other data from the Tripod Fire (2006) to provide inferences about how large wildfires affect forest resources in mountainous landscapes.

http://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/fera/research/treatment/tripod/index.shtml

FERA SUPPORTS FIRE MANAGEMENT IN EASTERN HARDWOODS

A current research project examining eastern data in eastern hardwoods -- fuels, fuel consumption, emissions, and transport and dispersion of smoke -- has its basis in 3 software products developed by FERA. The Fuel Characteristic Classification System (FCCS), Consume 3.0, and the Fire Emission Product Simulator (FEPS) are all part of the project led by Matt Dickinson of the Northern Research Station.

http://www.firescience.gov/First_Look/First%20Look%20Eastern%20Hardwood%20FCCS%20September%202007.pdf

FCCS PAPERS SCHEDULED TO BE PUBLISHED IN NOVEMBER 2007

Recent information from the Canadian Journal of Forest Research indicates that the seven papers supporting the scientific basis of the Fuel Characteristic Classification System will be published in the November 2007 issue.

http://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/fera/fccs/pubs.shtml

MCKENZIE PAPER TO BE PRESENTED AT THE 7TH SYMPOSLIUM ON FIRE AND FOREST METEOROLOGY

Dr. Don McKenzie’s paper titled “Stochastic Modeling of Fire at Daily Time Steps from Mesoscale Meteorology” will be presented by Dr. Sim Larkin at the 7th Symposium on Forest and Fire Meteorology in Bar Harbor, Maine October 23-25, 2007.

http://ams.confex.com/ams/7firenortheast/techprogram/paper_127441.htm