Effects of fire and other management actions on ecosystem processes in the southwestern United States

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
122	0612	1060	40%
122	0699	2050	30%
122	0699	2061	30%

Progress 11/14/98 to 10/01/10

Outputs
OUTPUTS: The research conducted under this problem area focuses on the effects of fire and management activities on ecosystem processes. During this reporting period, outputs in the form of presentations were provided to audiences that ranged from local lay organizations to international scientific meetings and symposia. A total of 18 of these presentations are detailed below. Trevor Maynard et al., 2009. Laboratory study of particulate emissions factors of prescribed wildland fires. Paper presented at Western States Section of the Combustion Institute meeting, Oct. 26-27, 2009, University of California, Irvine. Seyed Ehsan Hosseini et al. 2009. Chemical and physical characterization of wood smoke under controlled conditions. Paper presented at Western States Section of the Combustion Institute meeting, Oct. 26-27, 2009, University of California, Irvine. Seyed Ehsan Hosseini et al. 2009. Influence of polyethylene cover of silvicultural burn piles on emissions. Paper presented at Western States Section of the Combustion Institute meeting, Oct. 26-27, 2009, University of California, Irvine. A. Asa-Awuku et al. 2009. New Tools for Estimating and Managing Local/Regional Air Quality Impacts of Prescribed Burns. Poster Presentation. Partners in Environmental Technology Technical Symposium and Workshop. Dec. 1-3, 2009, Washington, D.C. Also presented at 2010 Fire Summit, June 2, 2010, South Coast Air Quality Management District headquarters, Diamond Bar, CA. Hosseini, SE et al. Characterization of Smoke Particles by Electron Microscopy, Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy and Image Analysis. Poster presentation. American Association for Aerosol Research 28th Annual Conference, Oct. 26-30, 2009, Minneapolis, MN. Miller, W., Weise, D. New Tools for Estimating and Managing Local/Regional Air Quality Impacts of Prescribed Burns. Oral presentation. SERDP In-Progress Review Meeting, May 7, 2010, Fairfax, VA. Weise et al . Do polyethylene plastic covers affect smoke emissions from debris piles? Poster presentation. 2010 Fire Summit, June 2, 2010, South Coast Air Quality Management District headquarters, Diamond Bar, CA. Narog, Marcia. Esperanza's post-fire seed bank. Poster presentation, Annual Meeting of the Ecological Society of America, 1-6 August 2010, Pittsburgh, PA. Presentations at Fourth International Congress on Fire Ecology and Management: Fire as a Global Process, 30 November - 4 December 2009, Savannah, GA K. OSBORNE et al. Effects of Landscape-Level Fuel Treatments on Burn Probability and Fire Severity in the Klamath Mtns. Poster presentation. J. LARGE et al. 2009. Impacts to Fire Behavior and Ecosystem Services Following Fuel Treatments in the Wildland-Urban Interface. Poster presentation. Haase, S.M. et al. Prescribed Fire Site Characteristic Effects on Soil and Cambium Temperatures. Oral presentation. Haase, S.M. et al. Prescribed Fire Effects from 30-yrs of Interval Burning in Northern Arizona Southwestern Ponderosa Pine. Poster presentation. Beyers, Jan L. et al. First-year effectiveness and vegetation effects of postfire mulch treatments on the Gap fire. Beyers, Jan L. et al. First-year effectiveness and vegetation effects of postfire mulch treatments on the Gap fire. Offered oral presentation Peppin, DL; Beyers, Jan L. Systematic review of post-wildfire grass seeding effectiveness. Invited oral presentation. Beyers, Jan L et al. Vegetation age class effects on fire severity and vegetation recovery after the Esperanza fire. Wohlgemuth, Peter M. et al. The effectiveness of aerial hydromulch as a post-fire erosion control treatment in southern California. Oral presentation, 2nd Joint Federal Interagency Conference on Sedimentation and Hydrologic Modeling, June 27-July 1, 2010, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA PARTICIPANTS: Jan Beyers, Sally Haase, Marcia Narog, Jenny Rechel, Pete Wohlgemuth - PSW4403; Pete Robichaud, Carolyn Sieg - RMRS; Angeles, Cleveland, San Bernardino, Los Padres, Coconino, Humboldt-Toiyabe, Prescott NFs; Prof. Andrea Thode, Cathy Scudieri, Northern Arizona University; University of Redlands TARGET AUDIENCES: Scientists and land managers PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: None to report.

Impacts
Consultations concerning the effectiveness of various postfire treatments have influenced the treatment selection decisions made by BAER teams in southern California on subsequent fires. Publications produced by unit are cited indicating that the information is being utilized by other scientists and natural resource professionals. Prior work developing techniques to mitigate the mortality of overstory trees caused by prescribed fire reintroduction through the removal of accumulated forest floor material from the base of the tree is now widely accepted as a good practice in the western U.S. for high value forest trees.

Publications

Hosseini, S.E.; Li, Q.; Nakao, S.; Shrivastava, M.; Weise, D.; Cocker, D.; Jung, H. 2009. Influence of polyethylene cover of silvicultural burn piles on emissions. Paper presented at Western States Section of the Combustion Institute meeting, Oct. 26-27, 2009, University of California, Irvine.
Large, J. 2010. Effects of Wildland Urban Interface Fuel Treatments on Fire Behavior and Ecosystem Services in the Klamath Mountains of California. M.S. Thesis, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, CA.
MacDonald, Lee H.; Larsen, Isaac J. 2009. Effects of forest fires and post-fire rehabilitation: A Colorado, USA case study. In: Cerdá, Artemi; Robichaud, Peter R., eds. 2009. Fire effects on soils and restoration strategies. Land Reconstruction and Management Series, Volume 5. Science Publishers, Enfield, NH. pp. 423-452
Peppin, D.; Fule, P.J.; Sieg, C.H.; Beyers, J.L.; Hunter, M.E. 2010. Post-wildfire seeding in forests of the western United States: an evidence-based review. Forest Ecology and Management 260(5): 573-586
Potts, J. B.; Stephens, S. L. 2009. Invasive and native plant responses to shrubland fuel reduction: comparing prescribed fire, mastication, and treatment season. Biological Conservation 142(8): 1657-1664
Potts, J.; Marino, E.; Stephens, S. 2010. Chaparral shrub recovery after fuel reduction: a comparison of prescribed fire and mastication techniques. Plant Ecology 210(2): 303-315
Wohlgemuth, P.M.; Beyers, J.L.; Robichaud, P.R. 2010. The Effectiveness of Aerial Hydromulch as a Post-Fire Erosion Control Treatment in Southern California. In: Proceedings of the Joint Federal Interagency Conference, 9th Federal Interagency Sedimentation Conference and 4th Federal Interagency Hydrologic Modeling Conference, June 27-July 1, 2010, Las Vegas, NV.

Progress 10/01/08 to 09/30/09

Outputs
OUTPUTS: Annual data collection on plant and erosion response to postfire rehabilitation treatments on several fires located in southern California and the southwest was completed. Additional sites were established on new fires that occurred in southern California in 2008-09. Annual data collection and prescribed fire treatment application on the Arizona long term prescribed fire study on the Coconino National Forest was completed. Annual data collection on bird abundance was completed at San Dimas Experimental Forest and the San Jacinto Ranger District, San Bernardino NF. Several presentations on these studies were made at various conferences (Pacific Coast Fire Conference, Dec. 2008, San Diego, CA; California Native Plant Society; Southern California Academy of Sciences Annual Meeting; The Wildlife Society Annual Meeting, Sept. 2009, Monterey, CA). Unit personnel consulted with the City of Glendale regarding post-fire rehabiltation measures and effectiveness and made presentations at the R5 RX 310 course in Sacramento, CA. PARTICIPANTS: Jan Beyers, Sally Haase, Marcia Narog, Jenny Rechel, Pete Wohlgemuth - PSW4403; Pete Robichaud, Carolyn Sieg - RMRS; Angeles, Cleveland, San Bernardino, Los Padres, Coconino, Humboldt-Toiyabe, Prescott NFs; Prof. Andrea Thode, Cathy Scudieri, Northern Arizona University; University of Redlands

Impacts
Consultations concerning the effectiveness of various postfire treatments have influenced the treatment selection decisions made by BAER teams in southern California on subsequent fires. Publications produced by unit are cited indicating that the information is being utilized by other scientists and natural resource professionals. Prior work developing techniques to mitigate the mortality of overstory trees caused by prescribed fire reintroduction through the removal of accumulated forest floor material from the base of the tree is now widely accepted as a good practice in the western U.S. for high value forest trees.

Publications

Alexander III, Jack D.; Findley, Jean; Kury, Brenda K.; Beyers, Jan L.; Cram, Douglas S.; Baker, Terrell T.; Boren, Jon C.; Edminster, Carl; Ferguson, Sue A.; McKay, Steven; Nagel, David; Piepho, Trent; Rorig, Miriam; Anderson, Casey; Hoadley, Jeanne; Ford, Paulette L.; Andersen, Mark C.; Fredrickson, Ed L.; Truett, Joe; Roemer, Gary W.; Kury, Brenda K.; Vollmer, Jennifer; May, Christine L.; Lee, Danny C.; Menakis, James P.; Keane, Robert E.; Zhu, Zhi-Liang; Miller, Carol; Davis, Brett; Gray, Katharine; Mix, Ken; Kuvlesky Jr., William P.; Drawe, D. Lynn; Narog, Marcia G.; Ottmar, Roger D.; Vihnanek, Robert E.; Wright, Clinton S.; Paysen, Timothy E.; Pendleton, Burton K.; Pendleton, Rosemary L.; White, Carleton S.; Rogan, John; Stow, Doug; Franklin, Janet; Miller, Jennifer; Levien, Lisa; Fischer, Chris; Underwood, Emma; Klinger, Robert; Moore, Peggy; Wright, Clinton S. 2008. Poster Session- Extended Abstracts. In: Narog, M. G. (tech. coord.). Proceedings of the 2002 fire conference: Managing fire and fuels in the remaining wildlands and open spaces of the Southwestern United States. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-189, Albany, CA: Pacific Southwest Research Station, Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture: p. 329-364.
Beyers, J. L. 2008. Growth of Regreen, seeded for erosion control, in the Manter fire area, southern Sierra Nevada. In Narog, M. G. (tech. coord.), Proceedings of the 2002 fire conference: Managing fire and fuels in the remaining wildlands and open spaces of the Southwestern United States. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-189, Albany, CA: Pacific Southwest Research Station, Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture; 330-331.
Beyers, J. L. 2009. Non-native and native seeding. In: Cerdá, A.; Robichaud, P. R., eds. Fire effects on soils and restoration strategies. Enfield, NH: Science Publishers: 321-336.
Haase, S. M.; Sackett, S. S. 2008. A comparison of visual and quantitative changes from rotational prescribed burning in old-growth stands of southwestern Ponderosa pine. In Narog, M. G. (tech. coord.), Proceedings of the 2002 fire conference: Managing fire and fuels in the remaining wildlands and open spaces of the Southwestern United States. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-189, Albany, CA: Pacific Southwest Research Station, Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture; 65-72.
Jones, G.; Chew, J.; Silverstein, R.; Stalling, C.; Sullivan, J.; Troutwine, J.; Weise, D.; Garwood, D. 2008. Spatial analysis of fuel treatment options for chaparral on the Angeles national forest. In Narog, M. G. (tech. coord.)p Proceedings of the 2002 fire conference: Managing fire and fuels in the remaining wildlands and open spaces of the Southwestern United States. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-189, Albany, CA: Pacific Southwest Research Station, Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture; 237-245.
Montalvo, A.; Beyers, J.; Goode, L. 2009. Developing native seed recommendations for southern California ecoregions: Work in progress. Ecesis 19(1):6-9.
Narog, Marcia G. 2008. Proceedings of the 2002 fire conference: managing fire and fuels in the remaining wildlands and open spaces of the Southwestern United States. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-189, Albany, CA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station. 363 p
Potts, J. B.; Stephens, S. L. 2009. Invasive and native plant responses to shrubland fuel reduction: comparing prescribed fire, mastication, and treatment season. Biological Conservation 142: 1657-1664.
Stephens, S. L.; Moghaddas, J. J.; Edminster, C.; Fiedler, C. E.; Haase, S.; Harrington, M.; Keeley, J. E.; Knapp, E. E.; McIver, J. D.; Metlen, K.; Skinner, C. N.; Youngblood, A. 2009. Fire treatment effects on vegetation structure, fuels, and potential fire severity in western U.S. forests. Ecological Applications 19: 305-320.
Wohlgemuth, P. M.; Beyers, J. L.; Hubbert, K. R. 2009. Rehabilitation strategies after fire: the California, USA experience. In: Cerdá, A.; Robichaud, P. R., eds. Fire effects on soils and restoration strategies. Enfield, NH: Science Publishers: 511-536.
Riechers, George H.; Beyers, Jan L.; Robichaud, Peter R.; Jennings, Karen; Kreutz, Erin; Moll, Jeff. 2008. Effects of three mulch treatments on initial postfire erosion in north-central Arizona. In: Narog, Marcia G., tech. coord. Proceedings of the 2002 Fire Conference: Managing Fire and Fuels in the Remaining Wildlands and Open Spaces of the Southwestern United States. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-189. Albany, CA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station. p. 107-113.

Progress 10/01/07 to 09/30/08

Outputs
OUTPUTS: Beyers presented a lecture to an undergraduate class at UC Santa Barbara on responses of invasive and native species to mechanical fuel reduction. Rechel consulted with the San Jacinto Ranger District Management Team in April 2008 regarding fuel treatments in 2 areas on the District. District fire personnel needed information on TE&S bird species in those 2 areas regarding extent and timing of the upcoming fuel treatments. Findings from 10 years of bird data were shared and District personnel refined their fuel treatments and NEPA plans to account for disturbance during breeding season and to minimize habitat destruction. Wohlgemuth consulted with the City of Sierra Madre (CA) regarding effectiveness of seeding as a post-fire BAER treatment and with the Gap Fire BAER Team regarding effectiveness of straw mulch, aerial hydromulch, and PAM as post-fire BAER treatments. Wohlgemuth and Beyers worked cooperatively with the Cleveland National Forest to acquire BAER monitoring funds to monitor the effects of hydromulch on vegetation cover, hill slope erosion and channel response on the Santiago Fire. Silt fences and vegetation plots were established and have been measured periodically throughout the year. Narog consulted with San Bernardino and Cleveland NFs on proposal to investigate utility of post-fire soil inoculation with cyanobacteria to reduce erosion and prevent non-native species establishment. Haase completed the analysis of live fuel moisture studies to consolidate information in the Live Fuel Moisture Sampling Guide with the San Dimas Tech Development Center. Haase provided data and participated as an author in the preparation of a poster and a paper describing the effectiveness of pine needle removal around the base of mature ponderosa pines. Sackett conducted a classroom lecture to second grade students at Frank Allis Elementary School in the Madison, WI School System on how trees grow and how to tell if they are growing (use of tree rings). Haase completed annual data collection and prescribed fire treatment application on Arizona long term prescribed fire study on Coconino National Forest. Paysen analyzed data from the 20-year canyon live oak prescribed burn experiment, developed a GIS database and prepared a poster for the JFSP study on effects of the Esperanza Fire on plant species, analyzed data for poster presentation on duff fuel moisture (with S. Haase), and analyzed species diversity after the Esperanza fire. With Montalvo, Beyers organized and conducted a workshop produce a list of native species for each major ecoregion in mid to low elevation Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, and Ventura Counties to target for research on growth characteristics, compatibility with natural ecosystems, and potential for agricultural production from locally-collected seed at multiple locations. PARTICIPANTS: Jan Beyers, Ecologist (Research), Forest Service, PSW, Riverside Forest Fire Laboratory Tim Paysen, Research Forester Sally Haase, Research Forester Steve Sackett, Research Forester (retired) Marcia Narog, Ecologist Jennifer Rechel, Geographer Pete Wohlgemuth, Physical Scientist Gloria M. Burke, Forestry Technician Bonni M. Corcoran, Biological Technician Alicia Willens, - Biological Technician Ana Alvarez, - Biological Technician Andrea Thode, Asst. Professor, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ Catherine Scudieri, Graduate student Students from several area colleges were employed on the Esperanza fire project, giving them an introduction to fire ecology and local postfire ecosystems. This research experience will help them refine their educational and employment goals and may help them apply for future employment. The interaction between Haase and Scudieri, a graduate student at Northern Arizona University, is providing specialized training in prescribed fire knowledge and research methods to Scudieri that would not be available through a typical graduate program. TARGET AUDIENCES: The target audiences for most of the research conducted in this problem area are field practitioners who are interested in the effectiveness and effects of various management practices involving fuel treatments and post-fire emergency rehabilitation. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
Consultations concerning the effectiveness of various postfire treatments have influenced the treatment selection decisions made by BAER teams in southern California on subsequent fires. Consultations on bird populations contributed to changes in Forest and District plans on fuel treatments. Rechel provided information on bird populations that met federally mandated (NEPA) reporting needs. Publications produced by unit are cited indicating that the information is being utilized by other scientists and natural resource professionals. Prior work developing techniques to mitigate the mortality of over story trees caused by prescribed fire reintroduction through the removal of accumulated forest floor material from the base of the tree is now widely accepted as a good practive in the western U.S. for high value forest trees.

Publications

Castillo, J. M.; Enriques, G.; Nakahara, M.; Weise, D.; Ford, L.; Moraga, R.; Vihnanek, R. 2007. Effects of cattle grazing, glyphosate, and prescribed burning on fountain grass fuel loading in Hawaii. In: Masters, R. E.; Galley, K. E. M. (eds.). Proceedings of the 23rd Tall Timbers Fire Ecology Conference: Fire in Grassland and Shrubland Ecosystems. Tall Timbers Research Station, Tallahassee, Florida, USA. P. 230-239
Fowler, J.F.; Sieg, C.H.; Wadleigh, L.; Haase, S. 2008. Effectiveness of litter removal in preventing mortality of yellow-barked ponderosa pine. Poster presentation, Fire in the Southwest: Integrating Fire into the Management of Changing Ecosystems, January 28-31, 2008, Tucson, AZ. P. 78. http://www.humboldt.edu/swfire/booklet/10_abstracts_poster.pdf
Haase, S.; Burke, G. M.; Corcoran, B. M. 2008. Management activities, soil and cambium temperatures and forest floor accumulations: are there linkages Poster presentation, Fire in the Southwest: Integrating Fire into the Management of Changing Ecosystems, January 28-31, 2008, Tucson, AZ. P. 79. http://www.humboldt.edu/swfire/booklet/10_abstracts_poster.pdf
Lewis, S.A. 2003. Hyperspectral remote sensing of fire induced water repellent soils. M.S. thesis, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, 111 p.
Moore, M. M.; Covington, W. W.; Fule, P. Z.; Hart, S. C.; Kolb, T. E.; Mast, J. N.; Sackett, S. S.; Wagner, M. R. 2008. Ecological restoration experiments (1992-2007) at the G.A. Pearson Natural Area, Fort Valley Experimental Forest. In: Olberding, S. D.; Moore, M. M., tech coords. Fort Valley Experimental Forest-A Century of Research 1908-2008. August 7-9, 2008; Flagstaff, AZ. US Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station Proceedings RMRS-P-53CD. Fort Collins, CO: p. 290-304
Neary, D. G.; Haase, S. M.; Overby, S. T. 2008. Total carbon and nitrogen in mineral soil after 26 years of prescribed fire: Long Valley and Fort Valley Experimental Forests. In: Olberding, S. D.; Moore, M. M., tech coords. Fort Valley Experimental Forest-A Century of Research 1908-2008. August 7-9, 2008; Flagstaff, AZ. US Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station Proceedings RMRS-P-53CD. Fort Collins, CO: p. 305-312
Beyers, J.L.; Christensen, W.; Parlow, M. 2008. Test of three mulches after fire in central Arizona. Fire in the Southwest: Integrating Fire into the Management of Changing Ecosystems, January 28-31, 2008, Tucson, AZ. http://www.humboldt.edu/swfire/booklet/08_abstracts_oral.pdf.
Robichaud, P. R.; Wagenbrenner, J. W.; Brown, R. E.; Wohlgemuth, P. M.; Beyers, J. L. 2008. Evaluating the effectiveness of contour-felled log erosion barriers as a post-fire runoff and erosion mitigation treatment in the western United States. International Journal of Wildland Fire 17: 255-273.
Rough, D. 2006. Effectiveness of rehabilitation treatments in reducing post-fire erosion after the Hayman and Schoonover Fires, Colorado Front Range. M.S. thesis, Colorado State University, Ft. Collins, CO. 186 p.
Scudieri, C.; Fowler, J.; Sieg, C. H.; Williams, L.; Haase, S. 2008. Vascular plant checklist of the Chimney Spring and Limestone Flats prescribed burning study areas with ponderosa pine experimental forests in Northern Arizona. In: Olberding, S. D.; Moore, M. M., tech coords. Fort Valley Experimental Forest-A Century of Research 1908-2008. August 7-9, 2008; Flagstaff, AZ. US Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station Proceedings RMRS-P-53CD. Fort Collins, CO: p. 339-352
Scudieri, C.; Sieg, C; Haase, S.; Thode, A. 2008. Response of major undersory species to 30 years of interval prescribed burning on a southwestern ponderosa pine site. Poster presentation, Fire in the Southwest: Integrating Fire into the Management of Changing Ecosystems, January 28-31, 2008, Tucson, AZ. P. 92. http://www.humboldt.edu/swfire/booklet/10_abstracts_poster.pdf
Wohlgemuth, P. M. 2007. Post-fire emergency rehabilitation treatments for erosion control. WatershedWise-the Newsletter of the Los Angeles & San Gabriel Rivers Watershed Council. Fall issue: 8-9.
Wohlgemuth, P. M. 2008. Water quality first-aid. California Forests 12(1): 18-19.
Wohlgemuth, P. M.; Hubbert, K. R.; Beyers, J. L.; Weise, D. R. 2007. Evaluating the effectiveness of burned area emergency response (BAER) efforts after the 2003 wildfires, southern California. Pp. 129-137 in Watershed Management on the Edge: Scarcity, Quality and Distribution, Proceedings of the Watershed Management Council Tenth Biennial Conference, November 15-19, 2004, San Diego, California. University of California Water Resources Center Report No. 109. http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/WRCA/WRC/pdfs/WRCReport109.pdf
Wohlgemuth, P.M. 2008. Comparison of BAER hill slope treatments. Fire in the Southwest: Integrating Fire into the Management of Changing Ecosystems, January 28-31, 2008, Tucson, AZ. Abstract p. 64-65. http://www.humboldt.edu/swfire/booklet/08_abstracts_oral.pdf

Progress 10/01/06 to 09/30/07

Outputs
A severe drought in southern California resulted in significant tree and shrub mortality on several national forests. Fire hazard increased as a consequence and fuel reduction treatments were initiated. Data from a long-term study of resident and migratory birds presented an opportunity to determine fuel treatment impacts on bird populations. Few changes in habitat use and ranges of resident birds were observed. After the fuel treatments, decreased canopy cover generally resulted in increases in bird species diversity, especially spring migratory birds. There have been increases in the range of cavity nesting birds that take advantage of the dead trees. The Joint Fire Science Program provided $272,000 in funding to support the 30 year measurements associated with the long-term repeated prescribed burning plots in ponderosa pine near Flagstaff, AZ. We have completed the thirty year sampling of four critical response variables (fuel loading, soil ammonium- and nitrate-nitrogen concentrations, overstory stem and live fuel, and understory vegetation). Data are being summarized and will analyzed with the original and periodic re-measurements. A GIS database is being established so that the data may be analyzed spatially. All scheduled prescribed burn plots were successfully treated in the fall of 2006. A cooperative study with Rocky Mountain Research Station was conducted to evaluate the removal of forest floor material around mature ponderosa pine trees in the southwestern US to mitigate post-fire tree mortality. Removal by raking of material 40" or 9"from a tree's base and removal to 9" using a leaf blower were evaluated. All three methods were effective in reducing cambial heating by prescribed burning and subsequent mortality of the trees. When forest floor material was not removed, mortality was not significant but some cambial death due to the smoldering fire (19 of 204 trees monitored). The study also evaluated the effect of removal of forest floor material in unburned stands on mortality. There was no mortality attributed to the removal of forest floor. We supported a study by Colorado State University to assess post-fire erosion rates and the effectiveness of seeding, straw mulching, and contour felling in reducing erosion after a June 2000 wildfire northwest of Loveland, Colorado. Site characteristics and sediment yields were measured from 2000 to 2003. Sediment yields were most closely correlated with the amount of ground cover. The amount of ground cover on the control plots increased from 33% in fall 2000 to 88% in fall 2003. Seeding had no effect on either the amount of ground cover or sediment yields. Mulching reduced sediment yields by at least 95% and the lower sediment yields are attributed to an immediate increase in the amount of ground cover in the mulched plots. The initial contour-felling treatment did not reduce sediment yields when subjected to a very large storm event, but sediment yields were significantly reduced by a contour-felling treatment installed after this large storm. Contour felling may store most sediment generated in an average year, but will not reduce sediment yields from larger storms.

Impacts
The bird study information can be used by wildlife resource managers to determine appropriate management response to ensure viable avian populations in the forested areas of southern California that were subject to significant structural changes as a result of tree mortality. Conservative removal of forest floor material to 9 feet instead of the more costly removal of material to 40-inch around mature ponderosa pine can reduce post-fire tree mortality at a reasonable cost. Less removal will reduce the likelihood of accumulating fuels elsewhere in the stand. This information is applicable to all managers whose objectives include the preservation of large mature trees during the prescribed burning process. The information from the post-fire erosion study can be used by BAER teams as they determine which emergency rehabilitation treatments will be physically and economically effective.

Publications

Neary, D.G.; Overby, S.T.; Haase, S.M. 2002. Effects of fire interval restoration on carbon and nitrogen in sedimentary- and volcanic-derived soils of the Mogollon Rim, Arizona. Fire, fuel treatments, and ecological restoration: conference proceedings, 16-18 April 2002. Proceedings RMRS-P-29. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station: 105-115.
O'Dea, M. E. 2007. Fungal mitigation of soil erosion following burning in a semi-arid Arizona savanna. Geoderma 138: 79-85.
O'Dea, M. E.; Guertin, D. P. 2003. Prescribed fire effects on erosion parameters in a perennial grassland. Journal of Range Management 56: 27-32.
Benson, A. 2002. Meadow canyon prescribed burn: effects of fire on obsidian hydration bands. In: Effects of fire and heat on obsidian. Loyd, J. M.; Origer, T. M.; Frederickson, D. A., eds. Coyote Press, Salinas, CA; 95-112.
Akers, S. C. 2004. Post-fire soil carbon distribution in steep chaparral watersheds. Dept. of Environmental Sciences, University of California, Riverside; 49 p. M.S. thesis.
Bailey, J. D.; Haase, S. M.; McIver, J.; Edminster, C. 2006. Silvicultural effectiveness of fire and fire surrogate fuels treatments in western ponderosa pine forests. Third international fire ecology and management congress, 12-17 November 2006, San Diego, CA; p. 366.
Benavides-Solorio, J. D.; MacDonald, L. H. 2005. Measurement and prediction of post-fire erosion at the hillslope scale, Colorado front range. International Journal of Wildland Fire 14: 457-474.
Beyers, J. L. 2006. BAER team approach to the massive wildfires of 2003. Third international fire ecology and management congress, 12-17 November 2006, San Diego, CA; p. 183.
Castillo, M.; Weise, D.; Vihnanek, R.; McAdams, A.; Nakahara, M.; Enriques, G.; Ford, L.; Moraga, R. Effects of grazing, burning and herbicides on fountain grass fuel beds in Hawaii. Third international fire ecology and management congress, 12-17 November 2006, San Diego, CA; p. 456.
Deal, K.; McLemore, D. 2002. Effects of prescribed fire on obsidian and implications for reconstructing past landscape conditions. In: Effects of fire and heat on obsidian. Loyd, J. M.; Origer, T. M.; Frederickson, D. A., eds. Coyote Press, Salinas, CA; 15-44
Faeth, S.H.; Haase, S.M; Sackett, S.S.; Sullivan, T.J.; Keithley, R.K.; Hamilton, C.E. 2002. Does fire maintain systemic endophyte infections in native grasses? Symbiosis 32:211-228.
Faeth, S.H.; Hamilton, C.E. 2006. Does an asexual endophyte symbiont alter life stage and long-term survival in a perennial host grass? Microbial Ecology 52: 748-755.
Hart, S.C.; Classen, A.T.; Wright, R.J. 2005. Long-term interval burning alters fine root and mycorrhizal dynamics in a ponderosa pine forest. Journal of Applied Ecology 42: 752-761.
Merriam, K. E.; Keeley, J. E.; Beyers, J. L. 2007. The response of native plant species to mechanical fuel reduction treatments. Abstract COS 149-9; Ecological Society of America, 5-10 August 2007, San Jose, CA. http://eco.confex.com/eco/2007/techprogram/P5464.HTM
Merriam, K. E.; Keeley, J. E.; Beyers, J. L. 2007. The role of fuel breaks in the invasion of nonnative plants. Scientific investigations report 2006-5185. Reston, VA: U.S. Geological Survey; 69 p.
Merriam, K.; Keeley, J. E.; Beyers, J. L. 2006. Pre-fire fuel manipulation impacts of alien plant invasion of wildlands. Third international fire ecology and management congress, 12-17 November 2006, San Diego, CA; p. 453.
Narog, M.; Sclafani, C. J.; Beyers, J. L. 2007. Fire, felling, and floods revamp Cajon Creek sensitive species habitat in a highly disturbed corridor. Abstract OOS 3-7. Ecological Society of America, 5-10 August 2007, San Jose, CA. http://eco.confex.com/eco/2007/techprogram/P1474.HTM
Neary, D.G.; Overby, S.T.; Haase, S.M. 2003.Effects of prescribed fire intervals on carbon and nitrogen in forest soils of the Mogollon Rim, Arizona. In: Proceedings of the second international congress on wildland fire ecology and fire management, 17-20 November 2003, Orlando, FL. American Meteorological Society. Paper 1B2.
Oakley, B. B. 2003. The ecology and biogeography of the Ceanothus-Frankia symbiosis in California. Seattle: College of Forest Resources, University of Washington; 158 p. Ph.D. dissertation.
Oakley, B. B.; North, M. P.; Franklin, J. F. 2003. The effects of fire on soil nitrogen associated with patches of the actinorhizal shrub Ceanothus cordulatus. Plant and Soil 254: 35-46.
Parlow, M. E.; Narog, M. G.; Beyers, J. L. 2007. Persistent effects of type-conversion on post-fire chaparral recovery. Abstract PS 18-178. Ecological Society of America, 5-10 August 2007, San Jose, CA. http://eco.confex.com/eco/2007/techprogram/P8232.HTM
Paysen, T. E.; Narog, M. G. 2006. Twenty year response of canyon live oak to thinning and prescribed burning. Third international fire ecology and management congress, 12-17 November 2006, San Diego, CA; p. 208.
Robichaud, P. R; Beyers, J. L.; Neary, D. G. 2005. Chapter 10: Watershed rehabilitation. In: Wildland fire in ecosystems: Effects of fire on soil and water; Neary D.G.; Ryan K. C.; DeBano, L. F., eds. Gen. Tech. Rep. RMRS-GTR-42-vol.4. Ogden, UT: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station; 179-197.
Solomon, M. 2002. Fire and glass: effects of prescribed burning on obsidian hydration bands. In: Effects of fire and heat on obsidian. Loyd, J. M., Origer, T. M., Frederickson, D. A., eds. Coyote Press, Salinas, CA; 69-93.
Stephens, S.; Moghaddas, J.; Fiedler, C.; Haase, S.; Knapp, E.; Skinner, C.; Youngblood, A.; Metlen, K. 2006. Simulated wildfire performance of the western U.S. fire and fire surrogate treatments. Third international fire ecology and management congress, 12-17 November 2006, San Diego, CA; p. 367.
Wagenbrenner, J. W.; MacDonald, L. H.; Rough, D. 2006. Effectiveness of three postfire rehabilitation treatments in the Colorado front range. Hydrological Processes 20: 2989-3006.
Wohlgemuth, P. M. 2006. Evaluating the effectiveness of mulching as a post-fire erosion control treatment. Third international fire ecology and management congress, 12-17 November 2006, San Diego, CA; p. 184.

Progress 10/01/05 to 09/30/06

Outputs
In a study to evaluate fire risk in Caribbean pine in Nicaragua, analysis of electrical resistance of the tree cambium suggests that this species loses vigor for up to 6 years following fire. These results suggest that growth may be reduced over this time period also. Field work was completed on study of the effects of small-scale burns on Arabis johnstonii, a sensitive plant species, and two co-occurring species on the San Bernardino National Forest. Arabis johnstonii had high survival after both late summer and winter burning, and new plants appeared in some plots. Data collection continued on study sites treated with various kinds of postfire rehabilitation methods, in conjunction with Rocky Mountain Research Station. Four years after fire, sediment movement had decreased to negligible even on the control drainage on the Prescott National Forest. An intense rainstorm, which produced about an inch of rain in half an hour, completely overwhelmed log erosion barriers (LEBs) installed on the Cannon Fire site, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest (burned 2002). The site had been very stable for the previous three postfire years. This finding corroborated results from other LEB study sites in Washington and Montana. Wood chip mulch appeared to retard vegetation recovery compared rice straw pellets and straw mulch in Arizona, but aerially-applied hydromulch used on the southern California Cedar fire did not affect vegetation regrowth. These results were presented at a national ecology meeting. Aerial hydromulch reduced hillslope erosion in both the 50% strip and 100% cover treatments. Because of the decrease in surface erosion, it was assumed that the hydromulch also controlled the movement of water by allowing greater infiltration. The 50% strip hydromulch treatment reduced erosion by >50% in both the gabbro and granitic parent materials. The 100% hydromulch treatment reduced erosion by 75% on granitic parent materials. The actual level of soil cover observed for the 50% treatment was 30 % and for the 100% treatment was 51%. However, the difference in sediment production between the two treatments was relatively small. Because of the small differences in erosion between treatment applications, it is recommended that the more economical 50% strip treatment be used, and increased implementation monitoring be added to ensure better treatment coverage. Fuels and temperature data were collected and analyzed as components of the National Fire Surrogate study and a study to mitigate soil and cambium heating in ponderosa pine resulting from prescribed burning. Analysis of thinning effects in canyon live oak and fire effects on Engelmann oak neared completion.

Impacts
Land managers desperately need to know if their management treatments are effective for wise land stewardship and cost-effective for the expenditure of public funds. Our study suggests that some BAER treatments are ineffective or only marginally effective at reducing erosion, while others are marginally cost-effective: reducing erosion at a prohibitive cost. Information on the fire responses of sensitive, threatened and endangered species will determine if southern California national forests are able to conduct fuel-reduction prescribed burns in these habitats. The Arabis study indicates that prescribed fire can be used in its habitat.

Publications

Merriam, K.E.; Keeley, J.E.; Beyers, J.L. 2006. Fuel breaks affect nonnative species abundance in Californian plant communities. Ecological Applications 16(2): 515-527.
Merriam, K.E.; McGinnis, T.W.; Keeley, J.E. 2004. The role of fire and fire management in the invasion of nonnative plants in California. Park Science 22(2): 32-52.
Kus, B.E.; Beyers, J.L. 2005. Planning for biodiversity: Bringing research and management together. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-195. Albany, CA: Pacific Southwest Research Station, Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture; 274 p.
Beyers,J.; Christensen, W.; Wohlgemuth, P.; Hubbert, K. 2006. Effects of postfire mulch treatments on vegetation recovery in the southwestern United States. Poster in: 91st Annual Meeting; 2006 August 6-11. Memphis, TN: Ecological Society of America.
Narog, M. 2006. Historical land use affects post-fire vegetation development. Poster in: 91st Annual Meeting; 2006 August 6-11. Memphis, TN: Ecological Society of America.
Meixner, T.; Fenn , M.E.; Wohlgemuth, P.; Oxford, M.; Riggan, P. 2006. N saturation symptoms in chaparral catchments are not reversed by prescribed fire. Environmental Science and Technology 40(9): 2887-2894.

Progress 10/01/04 to 09/30/05

Outputs
After the 2003 fire siege in southern California, a variety of BAER treatments were implemented across local National Forests. Based on an effectiveness monitoring strategy developed by RWU-4403 and others, fieldwork was conducted by R5 and RWU-4403 to evaluate the effectiveness of these rehabilitation treatments at reducing hillslope and watershed erosion. Continued measurements were made on research sites testing the effectiveness of postfire watershed rehabilitation treatments at various locations around the western U.S. (in conjunction with a team from Rocky Mountain Research Station); treatments evaluated included contour-felled logs, aerially-applied hydromulch, straw mulch, rice pellets, and whole-tree chipping. Mulch treatments were found to be more effective in reducing sediment movement under high-intensity rainfall than contour-felled logs. Research at the San Dimas Experimental Forest documented the effects of past postfire watershed treatments on erosion and vegetation responses to the 2002 Williams fire. Long-term prescribed fire study areas in Arizona were maintained and prepared for scheduled burning. Completed collecting fuel data and installed soil and cambium temperature equipment to support a JFS study evaluating mitigation method to reduce mature ponderosa pine mortality during prescribed fires. Completed two studies in cooperation with the San Dimas Research and Development Center. One was to determine the effect of chainsaw and handsaws on sampling 3-inch diameter woody fuels for moisture content. A second study was designed to evaluate three different containers commonly used for collecting fuel moisture contents. Information will be used to develop standard guidelines for sampling live and dead fuel moisture content for Region 5. Sample analysis and data summary of fuel information for the Arizona Fire/Fire Surrogate national study has continued and is 80 percent complete. A unit scientist served on the interdisciplinary (ID) team writing the final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the revised Forest Plans for the four southern California national forests. This included scheduling a Science Consistency Review (SCR) of the draft EIS, then coordinating and drafting the ID team response to the SCR report. Besides providing a link to other PSW researchers and published material, the scientist assisted in writing the biological analysis in the final EIS, as well as several supporting documents, helped edit the entire EIS, and revised and edited many of the species accounts that served as supplemental information to the EIS. The scientist also wrote parts of, assembled, and edited the programmatic Biological Assessment that the ID team submitted to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Impacts
Our study suggests that some Burned Area Emergency Rehabilitation (BAER) treatments are ineffective or only marginally effective at reducing erosion, while others are marginally cost-effective: reducing erosion at a prohibitive cost. Based on results of our postfire rehabilitation effectiveness studies, there has been a major shift in treatment selection in the past few years. The use of hillslope erosion barriers has declined and the use of mulches has increased as a direct result of communicating our research results with burned area emergency response (BAER) teams and specialists. Research being conducted for the fire/fire surrogate study will demonstrate potential economical and ecological tradeoffs of mechanical thinning and the prescribed fire use and ultimately guiding decisions made by managers. The high mortality rate of mature ponderosa pine following initial entry prescribed burns may require an additional preventive action by the manager. The information from the JFSP mitigation study coupled with work accomplished by project scientists, may determine the lethal threshold of fuel loadings that are associated with the tree's mortality. Participation of the RWU-4403 scientist on the southern California forest plan revision ID team enabled the biology subteam to complete its analysis. The unit scientist contributed essentially full-time to the effort from late February through September.

Publications

Busse, M.D.; Hubbert, K.R.; Fiddler, G.O.; Shestak, C.J.; Powers, R.F. 2005. Lethal soil temperatures during burning of masticated forest residues. International Journal of Wildland Fire 14(3): 267-276. doi:10.1071/WF04062.
Hubbert, K.R.; Preisler, H.K.; Wohlgemuth, P.M.; Graham, R.C.; Narog, M.G. 2005. Prescribed burning effects on soil physical properties and soil water repellency in a steep chaparral watershed, southern California, USA. Geoderma. doi:10.1016/j.geoderma.2005.02.001.
Hubbert, K.R. 2005. Treatment effectiveness monitoring for southern California Wildfires: 2003 to 2004: The Cedar, Grand Prix/Old, Piru, and Padua fires; 220 p. http://www.fs.fed.us/psw/publications/4403/BAEREffectivenessMonitorin gSoCA.pdf

Progress 10/01/03 to 09/30/04

Outputs
Unit scientists work with National Forest System burned area emergency rehabilitation (BAER) team members to design a monitoring strategy for postfire rehabilitation treatment effectiveness evaluation after the southern California firestorm of 2003. Unit staff assisted in collecting monitoring data as well. In cooperation with the Rocky Mountain Research Station, annual measurement of postfire rehabilitation treatments, including various mulches and log erosion barriers, was continued. Results so far indicate that these hillslope treatments help reduce sediment movement after low intensity storm events but have less protective effect during high intensity rainfall. Research continued in the San Dimas Experimental Forest to measure plant and soil responses to the Williams Fire in 2002. A funded study in cooperation with U.S. Geological Survey scientists showed that fuel breaks with low canopy cover and high levels of bare soil were more likely to contain nonnative invasive species than other fuel breaks; frequent disturbance of native ecosystems adjacent to the fuel breaks was associated with greater spread of weeds into the wildlands. A unit scientist worked with the four southern California national forests, assisting them in analysis of the effects of Forest Plan revision alternatives on threatened, endangered, and sensitive species; the scientist also helped prepare a conservation strategy for the California spotted owl for the four national forests. Scheduled fuel sampling and burning of the Arizona site of the Fire/Fire Surrogate study, a Joint Fire Science funded research project, was completed. Pretreatment fuel sampling was also completed on the new Jemez Springs replication of the same national study, looking at the effect of fuel treatments (thinning and prescribed burning) on protection of forested stands against natural wildfire. The long-term burning rotation study sites in Arizona ponderosa pine have been maintained and protected, and the Chimney Spring site was successfully burned on schedule. Data analysis was begun on the basal area and stem count repeated sampling sites, and photo points were established. Studies of long-term post-fire survival of plant species in the saguaro (Carnegiea gigantea) community continued. This effort requires studies over numerous decades to enable effective application of future conservation or restoration measures. Saguaro post-fire mortality increased from an initial 19 percent to 30 percent 10 years later. Fire-injured saguaro continued to grow in height and produce additional arms, but deterioration and partial decay suggest that more will eventually die from fire injury sustained 10 years earlier. Many saguaro associated plant species, crucial for saguaro survival, regenerated shortly after fire either from seed or by sprouting. Successive post-fire observations show that some plant species associated with saguaro responded similarly to saguaro. The burn site has yet to recover its tree and saguaro components Final 20-year post fire sample plots for a canyon live oak study were put in place.

Impacts
Information developed on effects of specific treatments, and a method for monitoring treated systems after management activities will improve management planning for oak, pine, and desert ecosystems in the Southwest and Pacific Southwest.

Publications

Beyers, J.L. 2004. Postfire seeding for erosion control: Effectiveness and impacts on native plant communities. Conservation Biology 18(4): 947-956.
Faeth, S.H.; Fagan, W.F. 2002. Fungal endophytes: common host plant symbionts but uncommon mutualists. Comparative and Integrative Biology 42:360-368.
Gonzalez-Caban, A.; Wohlgemuth, P.; Loomis, J.B.; Weise, D.R. 2004. Costs and benefits of reducing sediment production from wildfires through prescribed burning: The Kinneloa fire case study. Second Symposium on fire economics, planning and policy: A global view; 2004 April 19-22; Cordoba, Spain; 12 p.
Loomis, J.; Wohlgemuth, P.; Gonzalez-Caban, A.; English, D. 2003. Economic benefits of reducing fire-related sediment in southwestern fire-prone ecosystems. Water Resources Research, volume 39, number 9, 8 p.
Riechers, G.; Moll, J.; Robichaud, P.; Beyers, J.; Kreutz, E.; Christensen, W. 2004. Testing innovative mulch treatments on the 2002 Indian Fire: 2003 results. Two-page progress report with graphics prepared for Prescott National Forest.
Wohlgemuth, P.M. 2003. Post-fire erosion control research on the San Dimas Experimental Forest: Past and present. In Renard, K.G. and others, editors. First interagency conference on research in the watersheds, 2003 October 27-30; Benson, AZ; Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 645-650.

Progress 10/01/02 to 09/30/03

Outputs
Research is focused primarily on the effects of prescribed burning and post-fire rehabilitation treatments on ecosystem responses. Annual measurements on all current studies were completed. A unit scientist worked with the four southern California National Forests, assisting them in planning and analysis of forest plan revision alternatives on threatened, endangered, and sensitive species. In cooperation with the Rocky Mountain Research Station, installation and annual measurement of postfire rehabilitation treatments including log erosion barriers was conducted. Initial measurements of the effectiveness of 3 different mulching treatments indicate that postfire sediment yield on the mulched sites was less than the on the untreated control. The unit continues to support the joint fire science project "Fire and Fire Surrogates" by taking the lead on forest fuel sampling. New studies were initiated to examine the effects of fuel treatments (logging and prescribed fire) on watershed attributes and response using hillslope and channel measurements coupled with landscape analysis. In anticipation of planned prescribed burns or wildfire, the Santa Ana River basin is being described in order to set baseline data. A new joint fire science program study was initiated at San Dimas Experimental Forest to measure plant and soil responses to the Williams Fire in 2002 that burned over 80 percent of the experimental forest. Areas previously treated with prescribed fire will be compared to areas that had not burned in over 40 years until 2002. A photo series comparing the long-term effects of prescribed burning in southwestern ponderosa pine in Arizona on forest stand and fuel structure was compiled. The photos and accompanying data suggest that repeated low intensity fire is not sufficient to thin overstocked stands.

Impacts
Soil erosion routinely occurs after a fire because vegetation has been removed. To mitigate this, agencies routinely apply sometimes costly treatments to prevent or reduce this post-fire erosion. We are studying the effectiveness and ecosystem effects of several post-fire treatments in the western United States. Preliminary results from a treated site in an Arizona forest indicate that several different mulches reduced the amount of soil that moved; however, the economic benefits of these treatments and the long-term ecological effects are not yet known.

Publications

Vega, J.A.; Landsberg, J.; Bara, S.; Paysen, T.E.; Fonturbel, M.T.; Alonso, M. 2000. Effects of prescribed under Pinus Pinaster Forests in forest soils of Galicia and Andalucia. In: Proceedings of the meeting on prescribed fire, notes of the Spanish Society of Forest Science, Number 9:123-136.
O'Dea, M.E. 2002. The post-fire role of plant and soil fungal interactions in semi-arid watershed hydrology, IV International Conference on Forest Fire Research: Forest Fire Research & Wildland Fire Safety, Nov. 2002, Portugal. 7 p.
Benavides-Solorio, Juan. 2003. Post-fire runoff and erosion at the plot and hillslope scale, Colorado Front Range. Dept of Earth Resources, Colorado State University; Spring 2003, 218 p. Ph.D. dissertation.
Paysen, T.E. Prescribed fire in the Southwestern and Pacific Southwestern United States. 2000. In: Proceedings of the meeting on prescribed fire, notes of the Spanish Society of Forest Science, Number 9:71-73.
Riechers, G.; Moll, J.; Jennings, K.; Kreutz, E. 2003. Testing the effectiveness of postfire rehabilitation treatments in the west. Volunteered poster presentation. Forest Vegetation Management Society meeting; 2003 January; Redding, CA.

Progress 10/01/01 to 09/30/02

Outputs
Research is focused primarily on the effects of prescribed burning and post-fire rehabilitation treatments on ecosystem responses. One active study is examining the impact of grazing on the host plant of an endangered butterfly. Annual measurements on all of these studies were completed. We developed methods and techniques for using ground-penetrating radar to identify calic and petrocalcic horizons. This will lead to better understanding of belowground processes in post-fire Sonoran desert ecosystems such as post-fire recovery of Saguaro. A unit scientist worked with the four southern California National Forests, assisting them in planning and beginning to conduct analysis of the effects of forest plan revision alternatives on threatened, endangered, and sensitive species. Tasks included reviewing and revising summary reports on almost 250 plants identified as species of concern. The scientist serves as a member of the Forest Plan Revision interdisciplinary team. Data were collected in an ongoing investigation on the host plant for an endangered butterfly species on the Cleveland National Forest. A scientist from San Diego State University cooperates in this project. In cooperation with the Rocky Mountain Research Station, installation of postfire rehabilitation treatments including log erosion barriers on the Gallatin National Forest was completed and measurements of responses continue. Additional sites have been installed on the Hayman Fire in Colorado (Pike, San Isabell National Forest) and other 2002 fires. On the Indian Fire on the Prescott National Forest in Arizona, unit scientists are investigating rice-straw mulch and two innovative, untested treatments: felling and chipping trees to provide wood chip mulch, and "rice pellets" (made from compressed rice straw coated with a tackifier) that burst, swell, and stick upon first becoming wet, creating a thin mulch treatment. The unit continues to support the Joint Fire Science Project "Fire and Fire Surrogates" by taking the lead on forest fuel sampling. Sampling at the Arizona and New Mexico study sites was completed. Additional prescribed burns were conducted to study soil temperatures, before and after burn soil ammonium- and nitrate-nitrogen, and forest floor fuels on four re-entry project burn sites in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. Analysis, of smoke emissions data from several large experimental burns conducted in the 1980s and early 1990s in a variety of vegetation types suggests that clouds, might be used to remove particulate emissions. Results suggest that particulate smoke emissions might be reduced by 50 percent in all size classes. Inclusion of clouds as part of a fire prescription is recommended.

Impacts
(N/A)

Publications

Radke, L.F.; Ward, D.E.; Riggan, P.J. 2001. A prescription for controlling the air pollution resulting from the use of prescribed biomass fire: Clouds. International Journal of Wildland Fire 10(2): 103-111.
Wohlgemuth, P.M.; Hubbert, K.R.; Robichaud, P.R. 2001. The effects of log erosion barriers on post-fire hydrologic response and sediment yield in small forested watersheds, Southern California. Hydrological Processes 15(15): 3053-3066.
Wohlgemuth, P.M. 2002. The effects of fire and management activities on iparian zone aquatic habitats in southern California. Poster; CAL-NEVA chapter of the American Fisheries Society, annual conference; 2002 April; Tahoe City, CA.