Pacific Southwest Research Station

Pacific Southwest Research Station
800 Buchanan Street
West Annex Building
Albany, CA 94710-0011

(510) 559-6300

Research Topics Fire Science

Imaging: PSW is developing new technology to monitor the progress and intensity of major wildland fires and their impacts on the environment. Fire behavior data will support tactical fire operations and the development of predictive models.

Forecasting Fire Weather: Climate models are being applied to forecast conditions affecting fire severity over periods from days to months.

Managing Fire and Fuels: PSW is supporting fire management with studies of biomass and fuel accumulation, prescribed burning, and fire emissions. Information technology is being developed to better integrate resource, environmental, social, political, economic, and fire-behavior information.

Masticated Fuels: Dense flammable vegetation and seasonally extreme fire weather present a daunting fuels management challenge in the foothill and mountain regions of California and southern Oregon. Much of this area historically burned in relatively frequent low to moderate severity fires, helping to thin the forest understory and reduce the potential for severe wildfires.

Fire Effects and Watershed Response: Serious resource and societal losses can occur after the wildfire is suppressed. Forces driving postfire soil erosion and flooding and their mitigation are being investigated throughout the West.

Social Aspects of Fire: Research will examine social impacts due to fire and fire management in the urban-wildland interface. Studies will examine values, attitudes and behaviors of recreationists, the general population in regions surrounding fireprone ecosystems, recreation residence owners, and year-round residents. We will provide information and management tools related to constituent perceptions about fire suppression, post-fire forest health issues, beliefs about recreation activities, beliefs about human health and safety, and beliefs about impacts to fire-prone ecosystems in the wildland-urban interface (including smoke).