Fuels & Fuel Treatments
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There are thousands of abandoned mine land (AML) sites in the U.S. that need to be restored to reduce wind and water erosion, provide wildlife forage, shade streams, and improve productivity. Biochar created from woody biomass that would normally be burned in slash piles can be applied to soil to improve soil properties and is one method to restore AML soil productive capacity. Using this ‘waste’ biomass for biochar and reclamation activities will reduce wildfire risk, air pollution from burning, and particulates released from burning wood. Biochar has the potential to improve water quality, bind heavy metals, or decrease toxic chemical concentrations, while improving soil health to establish sustainable plant cover, thereby preventing soil erosion, leaching, or other unintended, negative environmental consequences. Using forest residues to create biochar also helps reduce woody biomass and improves forest health and resilience. We address concerns surrounding organic and inorganic contaminants on the biochar and how this might affect its’ efficacy and provide valuable information to increase restoration activities on AMLs using biochar alone or in combination with other organic amendments. Several examples of AML biochar restoration sites initiated to evaluate short- and long-term above- and belowground ecosystem responses are presented.
Webinar recording.
This webinar shares research on forest structure and understory vegetation responses to three restoration treatments (thin/burn, burn, and control) over 10 years on a mixed-conifer site in southwestern Colorado. Forest density, canopy cover, and crown fuel loads were consistently lower, and crown base height was higher, in thin/burn than burn or controls, but the effects diminished over time. There was more than a 250% increase post-treatment in shrub density and an increase in the average shrub height. Taken together, these conditions create challenges for managers aiming to reestablish natural fire patterns and sustain mixed-conifer forests. The second part of the webinar will be a dialog with managers about how common these results are across the region and how to respond to the challenge presented by the increase potential for crown fire.
Webinar recording.
Rapid advancements in wildland fire modeling are promoting innovations in how we characterize and map wildland fuels. Before these models can be widely used, more research on fuel characterization and mapping methods is needed to support3D model inputs. The 3D Fuels Project is characterizing surface and canopy fuels on pine-dominated sites in the southeastern and western United States and western grasslands that represent fuels commonly characterized for prescribed burning. Through this project, researchers are developing a library of tools and datasets to leverage multi-scale estimates of 3D fuel structure and consumption that can be used directly within models of fire behavior and smoke production.
Visit the PJ website, authored by Rick Miller
Pinyon (Pinus spp.) and juniper (Juniperus spp.) woodlands occupy over 78,000 square miles of the Great Basin and northern Colorado Plateau. These woodlands have persisted for tens of thousands of years and provide important biodiversity and habitat for many species across the region. Yet, relatively recent infill of new trees into old-growth woodlands and expansion of trees into adjacent sagebrush-steppe, riparian, and aspen communities have created a considerable mix of concerns around wildfire, drought-mortality, invasive species, watershed function, tree removal, and loss of habitat, biodiversity, and resilience.
This website provides background information on the ecology and management of PJ woodlands useful to the interested public and emerging information important to resource managers.
1) PJ 101 provides a brief introduction to and description of PJ woodlands with links to more in-depth information.
2) FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) briefly addresses questions related to the ecology and management of PJ woodlands.
3) Tools provides information and concepts for evaluating landscapes, which are specifically useful for predicting disturbance or vegetation management responses in PJ woodlands.
4) Literature provides brief summaries and links to recently published PJ woodlands studies. Study findings are highlighted and discussed in terms of our current understanding.
This website will be continually updated with new articles, questions, and tools.
This is the last of six webinars in our Fuel Breaks in Sagebrush Country: A Multidisciplinary Webinar Series and Discussion.
To learn about other webinars in the series, see the webinar series webpage.
This webinar features: How do we move forward in an era of uncertainty: Facilitated panel Q & A – Jeremy Maestas, NRCS, Justin Boeck, BLM, and Michele Crist, BLM
This is the fifth of six webinars in our Fuel Breaks in Sagebrush Country: A Multidisciplinary Webinar Series and Discussion.
To learn about other webinars in the series, see the webinar series webpage.
This webinar features:
A fuels treatment success story in the Pine Nut Mountains of Nevada – Keith Barker, BLM
Successes and challenges with a suite of fuel break projects – Lance Okeson, BLM
This is the fourth of six webinars in our Fuel Breaks in Sagebrush Country: A Multidisciplinary Webinar Series and Discussion.
To learn about other webinars in the series, see the webinar series webpage.
This webinar features:
Targeted grazing: A large multiregional fuel breaks project – Pat Clark, ARS
Sheep grazing success in the WUI – Lyndsey Boyer, Carson City Parks, Recreation, and Open Space
This is the third of six webinars in our Fuel Breaks in Sagebrush Country: A Multidisciplinary Webinar Series and Discussion.
To learn about other webinars in the series, see the webinar series webpage.
This webinar features:
Science and data gaps: How we’re addressing them – Doug Shinneman, USGS
Current use of fire and fuels models – Russ Parsons, USFS
SageSTEP: What are the most effective treatments for constructing fuel breaks? Lisa Ellsworth and Claire Williams, Oregon State University
Webinar recording.
This is the second of six webinars in our Fuel Breaks in Sagebrush Country: A Multidisciplinary Webinar Series and Discussion.
To learn about other webinars in the series, see the webinar series webpage.
This webinar features the following topics and speakers:
Overview of fuel break ecological considerations – Eva Strand, University of Idaho
Control of cheatgrass and other weeds in fuel breaks – Tim Prather, University of Idaho
How to use the “Science Framework” for fuel break planning – Michele Crist, BLM
This is the first of six webinars in our Fuel Breaks in Sagebrush Country: A Multidisciplinary Webinar Series and Discussion.
To learn about other webinars in the series, see the webinar series webpage.
This webinar features the following topics and speakers:
Purpose of fuel breaks – Jeff Rose, BLM
BLM agency/policy perspective – Jolie Pollet, BLM
USFS agency/policy perspective and how it relates to Shared Stewardship – Daren Turner, USFS