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Fire And Fuels: Vegetation Change Over Time In The Zuni Mountains, New Mexico, Luke Wylie

Master's Theses

The Zuni Mountains are a region that has been dramatically changed by human interference. Anthropogenically, fire suppression practices have allowed a buildup of fuels and caused a change in the fire-adapted ponderosa pine ecosystem such that the new ecosystem now incorporates many fire-intolerant species. As a result, the low-severity fires that the ecosystem once depended on to regenerate the forest are much reduced, and these low-severity fires are now replaced by crown-level infernos that threaten the forest and nearby towns. In order to combat these effects, land managers are implementing fuel reduction practices and are striving to better understand the …

Wildfire Assessment Using Farsite Fire Modeling: A Case Study In The Chihuahua Desert Of Mexico, John Brakeall

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Chihuahua desert is one of the most biologically diverse ecosystems in the world, but suffers serious degradation because of changes in fire regimes resulting in large catastrophic fires. My study was conducted in the Sierra La Mojonera (SLM) natural protected area in Mexico. The purpose of this study was to implement the use of FARSITE fire modeling as a fire management tool to develop an integrated fire management plan at SLM.

Firebreaks proved to detain 100% of wildfire outbreaks. The rosetophilous scrub experienced the fastest rate of fire spread and lowland creosote bush scrub experienced the slowest rate of …

Quantifying Fire Behavior Versus Societal Benefits Of Southern California Shrublands And Grasslands, Christopher Dicus, Maurica A. Zimmerman

Natural Resources Management and Environmental Sciences

Urban sprawl in southern California perpetually threatens native shrublands and grasslands, which intrinsically provide both biophysical and socioeconomic benefits to society. However, these vegetation types are simultaneously prone to high-intensity wildfires that lead to enormous damage to human interests. After the southern California firestorms of October 2003, new regulations were adopted that increased the mandatory vegetation clearance around structures in order to reduce fire risk, which may significantly impact the positive benefits that grasslands and shrublands provide. To address this apparent conflict, we investigated the tradeoffs between societal benefits derived from major shrubland, grassland, and woodland vegetation types in southern …

Reduction Of Potential Fire Behavior In Wildland-Urban Interface Communities In Southern California: A Collaborative Approach, Christopher Dicus, Michael E. Scott

Natural Resources Management and Environmental Sciences

This manuscript details a collaborative effort that reduced the risk of wildfire in an affluent, wildland-urban interface community in southern California while simultaneously minimizing the environmental impact to the site. FARSITE simulations illustrated the potential threat to the community of Rancho Santa Fe in San Diego County, California, where multimillion-dollar homes were located immediately above a designated open space area that consisted primarily of 60-year-old, decadent chaparral. Post-treatment fire behavior simulations demonstrated the potential ability to moderate fire behavior. Results of the fire behavior modeling led to a recognition for the need for fuels treatments by both homeowners and regulatory …