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Estimating the avoided fuel-reatment costs
of wildfire
Donovan, Geoffrey H.; Brown, Thomas C. 2008. Estimating the avoided fuel-reatment costs of wildfire. Western Journal of Applied Forestry. 23(4): 197-201.
Although the importance of wildfire to fire-adapted ecosystems is widely recognized, wildfire management has historically placed less emphasis on the beneficial effects of wildfire. We estimate the avoided fuel treatment cost for 10 ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) stands on the Umatilla National Forest in the Pacific Northwest. Results show that fires in stands that show the greatest divergence from the archetypical ponderosa pine stand structure (large trees in an open, parklike stand) tend to have higher avoided costs. This is a reflection of the higher cost of fuel treatments in these stands: treatments designed to restore a stand to a desired condition are normally more expensive than treatments to maintain a stand in a desired condition.
Keywords: avoided costs, wildfire benefits, Umatilla National Forest, ponderosa pine, fuel management
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Title: RMRS Other
Publications: Estimating the avoided fuel-reatment costs of wildfire
Electronic Publish Date: January 14, 2009
Last Update: January
14, 2009