Wildfire Effects

All too often in the Western U.S., we hear things like, "Fire danger is extremely high" or, "We are in a tinder box right now." By mid-summer, our surroundings 'dry-out ' and it seems conditions become perfect as we segue into a fifth season. Wildfire Season. Wildfires can wreak havoc! Millions of dollars are spent annually, preparing for Wildfires. Money is allocated for education, training, and preparing to fight Wildfires. Money is spent fighting them and protecting structures that might be in the way. Wildfires can be costly, but they also impact us in other ways. Wildfires tax our resources. They impact our structures and influence where we build and how we build. Wildfires affect our health, especially for those who have health concerns. Wildfires impact our weather and overall environment. Wildfires can even be deadly, impacting our communities.

These areas are called the Coastal, Lowland, Temperate rain forest, Montane, Subalpine, and Alpine. The most common trees and plant in the Coastal Forest is the Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis), Salal (Gaultheria shallon), and the Deer fern (Blechnum spicant). Second, the Lowlands common species are Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), Coast Red Elderberry (Sambucus racemosa), and Bleeding Heart (Dicentra formosa). Third, the Temperate Rain Forest most common trees and plants are Sitka Spruce (Picea sitchensis), Salmonberry (Rubus spectabilis), Licorice fern (Polypodium glycyrrhiza), and Oregon Oxalis (Oxalis oregana). Fourth, the Montane Forest includes the Alaska Yellow-Cedar (Chaemaecyparis nootkatensis), Salal (Gaultheria shallon), and Coralroot (Corallorhiza mertensiana). Fifth, the Subalpine Forest trees and plants are the Mountain Hemlock (Tsuga mertensiana), Blueberries (Vaccinium sp.), and Avalanche Lily (Erythronium montanum). And lastly the Alpine Forest includes only a few common species the Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos), and Flett’s violet (Viola flettii). The variety of tree and plant seem to change with

The Appalachians span over a distance of 1,600 miles, ranging across 14 states, from Newfoundland in the North, to Alabama in the South. The Appalachians are the oldest chain of mountains on the North American continent. With forest, comes forest fires, some natural and some prescribed by humans. In order to reduce the calamitous damage caused by natural wildfires, the technique of prescribed fires is used. This is done by diminishing the amounts of trees, shrubs, and brush in the intended area. By doing this, new native plant growth is encouraged and it helps maintain some plant and animal species that depend on the periodic fires. With this man made force comes numerous effects on vegetation, wildlife, and the human impact.

Looking further into the impacts of the Rodeo-Chediski fire the trees saw the greatest impact of the fire. Almost 90% of the trees suffered complete crown kill (Ffolliott, 2008). Either some trees had survived with low severity, were harmed, or dead because of the drought and the fire combined. Even though some of the trees that had faced high severity apparently after having seen what trees had survived the fire yet by 2004 two years after the fire they had died (Ffolliott, 2008). The wildfire also impacted the standardization structure, post-fire mortality of trees, and stocking of tree reproduction on the Steamer Ridge Watershed (Ffolliott, 2008). After the fire had finally been contained the density of the forest had been forever changed.

For as long as mankind can conceive, fire has been a remarkable tool to conquer. When controlled, it provides necessary heat, energy, and fuel for a consumer to use; however, when fire goes unattended, it has the potential to become a wholly destructive element. The more western states of America, such as Utah and Colorado, have repeatedly experienced this concept in its most devastating form: wildfires. A wildfire is generally considered to be difficult to control and fast moving, swallowing anything that lay in its path, including forest or human habitat. As human incursion reaches more remote areas in wooded mountains, wildfires pose a serious threat to high-end homes and secluded cabins. The untamed nature of these fires also allows them to creep into subdivisions and endanger more

h. fannini, it is expected that species with similar habitats will also benefit from the implemented protection measures. For instance, old growth forests have been shown to be critical habitat for other Species at Risk endemic species such as the Northern Goshawks (A. gentilis laingi), Black Bears (Ursus americanus carlottae), Marbled Murrelets (Brachyramphus marmoratus), and Saw-whet owls (Aegolius acadicus brooski) (Province of British Columbia & Council of the Haida Nation, 2007). Old growth forests also provide habitat for several small mammals, such as the deer mice, that rely on large coarse woody debris on the forest floor for habitat (pers. comm. Morin,

Every forest has a story to tell. By looking closely at its habitants, that story can be interpreted. Much of this narrative is written in the trees: their age, their tolerance to shade, and the rate at which they grow are all characteristics that can imply a lot about their environment. Exploring these relationships and how they connect with each other can indicate the health and history of the land. Heiberg Forest, located in northern New York, was once used for agricultural purposes in the 1800-1900’s. (Nowak, Lecture Notes) Much of the land once used for farming was left to regrow back into a young forest. The life history of different tree species can be determined by examining the most common species in Heiberg.

The focus of this lesson will be teaching the students to examine the history of wildland fires and their impact on society in America and in their community. Students will explore different approaches to living with fire and will examine various fire management techniques including prescribed fire, fire suppression, and fire prevention. They will take a closer look at the Copper King Fire in Montana, and will conduct a research project of wildfire history in another state. Students will also gain a better understanding of the role of fire in a particular culture and the importance of wildfire in the ecosystem. They will also understand ways to reduce wildfire risk around their home and community. Furthermore, students will increase their knowledge

This was attributed to the ranges of vegetation type with elevation and slope, with mixed conifer tree species growing at higher elevations with increased tree cover. Similar patterns can be identified with the Rim Fire in the Stanislaus National Forest. The Pinus ponderosa (ponderosa pine) or Calocedrus decurrens (incense cedar) tree species tend to favor higher elevations, slopes between 0 - 45 degrees, and aspects between 0 - 33 degrees from North (Myers).

Earth’s vegetation and animal life are all part of an intricate “web” of essential relations in which both cannot survive without the other. According to Campbell’s Biology textbook, The transfer of food energy up the trophic levels is referred to as a food chain. This chain usually begins with plants, (primary producers), then herbivores, (primary consumers), to carnivores (secondary, tertiary and quaternary consumers), and finally decomposers. When one part of the chain is low in population, the species above it are likely to be negatively affected and will likely drop in population as well. In order to show how delicate this web is, and how human activity has affected this system, Carson describes a small food chain in which sagebrush

The Acadian forest in Canada takes up 12.1 million hectares, and can be distinguished from other parts of Canadian forests by its location in the lowlands and deep valleys and by its mixed hardwood and softwood composition. The position of these trees in deep valleys isolates them from other forests, and limits their ability to further naturally spread their population geographically, and causes them to be more significantly impacted by disturbances. The Acadian forest region covers the Canadian provinces of Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, with a rich diversity of plant and animal species consisting of many shade-tolerant trees and lichens. Yet these shade-tolerant trees are slowly transitioning into small seedlings as logging practices abolish old trees. The old-growth hardwood population in specific provides critical habitats for animal species though these trees are declining in numbers due to extensive logging. With the declining old-growth trees, the number of critical habitats will also decline and animal species will most likely die out. These regions are affected by climate change at the same time, which increases the vulnerability of Acadian biodiversity.

The ancient forests of the Northeast aren’t the only aspect of the bioregion that’s fate have been at perpetual risk since the early settlement of Europeans. There is no question that forests still dominate the landscape of Northeastern region accounting for “60% of the total land area, and in New England alone, the coverage is 80%”. Still the species that exist within the understory of the forests have undergone an equally dramatic transformation because of human interaction with the land and the harvest of its resources. Some species in the understory of the mixed forests of the Northeast have been driven out of the region, are under intense ecological pressure, are on the brink of extinction, or have already gone extinct in the region. Perhaps one of the most harmful and impactful effects colonization of the Northeast has had on the resources of the land is the introduction of non-native species and diseases into the region. Over time the overall makeup of the forests have changed drastically as an example, “…the American chestnut once made up as much as 25% of the trees in some areas and was economically the most important hardwood in the Eastern forests”. The introduction of chestnut blight at the turn of the century accounts for

Many environmental benefits result from prescribed burns. One benefit resulting from prescribed burns is the “control [of] hardwoods and invasive exotics” (Robinette). The purging of invasive species and hardwood allows for an increase in biodiversity in a couple of ways. A large presence of hardwood trees creates a threat to the forest’s biodiversity, because their foliage creates a dense canopy which sunlight has trouble penetrating, which causes the lower-level, ground cover

Thesis: Politicians are proposing sweeping changes in bills, which have caused great controversy, in efforts to correct the problems that the Forest Service has

The area of Yellowstone National Park has a long history of inhabitants, even before it became the nation’s first national park. In the area now known as Yellowstone National Park, wolves were once very prominent. However due to westward expansion in the 1800s, agriculture began to increase. This led to the wolves that once thrived in this area to being practically completely removed. The increase in agriculture in this region led to a lot of the wolves’ prey becoming reduced or eliminated. Since the wolves had a decrease in prey, the wolves began to prey on domestic animals, which then resulted in humans eliminating the wolves almost completely. By the 1930s the wolf was eliminated from the area. This was before people had an understanding of how ecosystems work and the interrelation of species. Now that the wolves were gone, elk then became overpopulated. A lot of the vegetation began to disappear as well due to the overgrazing of the elk. However after about a 70-year absence, in 1995 the wolves were carefully brought back to Yellowstone. When they brought the wolves back to the park, there was not just an effect on one species or one area but rather they affected the entire ecosystem of the area. I will discuss their effects on areas such elk, beaver colonies, scavengers, aspen trees, willow trees and cottonwood trees.