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Fire

Management today
Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010

From the Ground Up:


Wildland Fire Fuels
Also Inside:
• Opinions on Wildland Fire Smoke
• Recruiting a Diverse Workforce
• Trail Cameras Capture Fire Behavior
• Improving Radio Discipline

United States Department of Agriculture


Forest Service
Addendum
In Issue 70(2), page 31, the article, The National Park Service: A History
of Wildland Fire in Resource Management, by Roberta D’Amico and Bill
Halainen should have included the following references:

Rothman, H.A. 2006. A Test of Adversity and Strength: Wildland Fire in the National Park
System. Available at <http://www.nps.gov/fire/fire/fir_wil_history.cfm>.
Cones, G. and Keller, P. 2008. Lessons Learned – Managing Naturally-Ignited Fire:
Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow. Video and document available at <http://www.wildfire-
lessons.net/Additional.aspx?Page=131>.

Fire Management Today is published by the Forest Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC.
The Secretary of Agriculture has determined that the publication of this periodical is necessary in the transaction of
the public business required by law of this Department.

Fire Management Today is for sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, at:
Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: 202-512-1800 Fax: 202-512-2250
Mail: Stop SSOP, Washington, DC 20402-0001

Fire Management Today is available on the World Wide Web at <http://www.fs.fed.us/fire/fmt/index.html>.

Tom Vilsack, Secretary Melissa Frey


U.S. Department of Agriculture General Manager

Thomas L. Tidwell, Chief Monique LaPerriere, EMC Publishing Arts


Forest Service Managing Editor

Tom Harbour, Director Mark Riffe, METI Inc., EMC Publishing Arts
Fire and Aviation Management Editor

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of
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September 2010

Trade Names (FMT)


The use of trade, firm, or corporation names in this publication is for the information and convenience of the
reader. Such use does not constitute an official endorsement of any product or service by the U.S. Department
of Agriculture. Individual authors are responsible for the technical accuracy of the material presented in Fire
Management Today.

Fire Management Today


2
Fire
Management today
Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010

On the Cover: Contents


Anchor Point: Looking to the Future. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Tom Harbour

Pitching Theories From the Duff Mound. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5


Emily C. Garlough and Christopher R. Keyes

Estimating Crown Fire Susceptibility for Project Planning. . . . . . . . . . 8


David C. Powell

Characterizing Hand-Piled Fuels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16


On the Cover:
Clinton S. Wright, Paige C. Eagle, and Cameron S. Balog
Duff mounds like these, formed
in high-elevation ponderosa pine The Results of a Brief Web-Based Questionnaire on
at the Meadow Smith old-growth Wildland Fire Smoke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
restoration project on the Flathead
National Forest, MT, often form at A.R. Riebau and D.G. Fox
the base of mature trees. Prolonged
smoldering in duff mounds can Firefighters Visit Seattle Schools: Recruiting Realizes Results . . . . . 25
lead to decreased vigor, enhanced Renee Bodine
susceptibility to bark beetle attack,
and potentially tree death. Photo: A High-Quality Fuels Database of Photos and Information . . . . . . . . 27
Christopher Keyes, University of
Montana, Missoula. Clint S. Wright, Paige C. Eagle, and Diana L. Olson

Modeling Post-Fire Soil Erosion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32


The USDA Forest Service’s Fire and Aviation Esther Godson and John D. Stednick
Management Staff has adopted a logo
reflecting three central principles of wildland Using Trail Cameras To Understand Fire Behavior. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
fire management:
Karen Ridenour and Rich Gray
• Innovation: We will respect and value
thinking minds, voices, and thoughts of Failure To Communicate: Improving Radio Discipline on the Fireline. . 42
those that challenge the status quo while
focusing on the greater good. Ken Frederick and Mike Tuominen
• Execution: We will do what we say we
will do. Achieving program objectives,
improving diversity, and accomplishing
targets are essential to our credibility. Short Features
• Discipline: What we do, we will do well. How Big Was Dodge’s Escape Fire? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Fiscal, managerial, and operational
discipline are at the core of our ability to
fulfill our mission. 2010 Photo Contest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Firefighter and public safety


is our first priority.

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


3
Anchor by Tom Harbour

Point Director, Fire and Aviation Management


Forest Service, Washington, DC

Looking to the Future

O
ne thing is certain in our busi-
ness—if we wait long enough,
things will change! This seems
to be the case in everything we do.
Fire Management Today (FMT) is
not immune. Over the past year,
I made a decision that I hope will
make the publication a more “nim-
ble” periodical. FMT has moved
from a subject-specific magazine
to one that will allow its authors
to write about those topics that
are current and relevant to what is
happening now. It will no longer be
necessary to wait until a particular
edition is being prepared.

I have been the Director of Fire


and Aviation Management (FAM)
for the Forest Service for more
than 5 years. All along, I have said Smoke from the Deep Harbor Fire levels off at sunset. Wenatchee National Forest, WA.
that it is my goal to be an effective Photo: Eli Lehmann, Forest Service, Mount Baker–Snoqualmie National Forest, Concrete,
WA, 2004.
Director for a decade before I step
down. In the last 5 ½ year period, I
sion with professional ethics, a acy items” in depth, beginning next
have seen my share of changes and
code of conduct, philosophy, and edition with a discussion about the
have had input into many of the
professional qualifications; creat- “cohesive strategy.”
changes that have directly impacted
ing equity and opportunity in fire
“you,” as an employee, and “us,” as
and aviation management; better Until then, as we approach our
an agency and partner in the world
aligning the expectations of the work each day, make risk manage-
of wildland fire management. As I
land with ecologic fire dynamics of ment the priority every day in every
ponder the future and think about
vegetation; and building a strong action we take. Apply the concepts
the things that are important to me
FAM team, the next 4 ½ years will of doctrine to your actions. Let’s
as the Director—building a “cohe-
go quickly! think about how we make deci-
sive strategy” with recognition of
sions, how we apply those deci-
the need for a national intergov-
In the upcoming editions of Fire sions, and how we can improve our
ernmental wildland fire framework,
Management Today, I will take you profession. If you do, each of us
continuing implementation, adap-
along on my journey through the will return safely to our loved ones
tion, identification, and evolution
remainder of my tenure as Director at the end of the day—nothing is
of doctrine and risk management;
and discuss each one of these “leg- more important! 
building a wildland fire profes-

Fire Management Today


4
Pitching Theories From
the Duff Mound
Emily C. Garlough and Christopher R. Keyes

C
rown fires, fire whirls, blow-
ups, conflagrations—presented Prolonged smoldering combustion in duff
with these eye-catching phe-
nomena in the dynamic field of fire
mounds at the base of trees causes cambial
research, garnering attention for injury and fine root mortality.
smoldering duff mounds is a chal-
lenge. Whereas extreme fire behav-
ior leaves immediate and promi-
nent scars, the deleterious effects
of duff mound consumption may
take several years to become appar-
ent. Yet if the goal of prescriptive
burning is to protect large trees
and improve forest health, then
this rather unsung subject deserves
some attention. The benefit to fire
managers is a better understanding
of fuel factors and the avoidance of
unintended consequences.

Relatively little is known about duff


mounds as a unique fuel type other
than that excessive duff mound
consumption often leads to injury
and mortality for large trees (Ryan
and Frandsen 1991, Swezy and
Agee 1991, Stephens and Finney
2002, Varner et al. 2007, Hood et al. Duff mounds like these, formed in high-elevation ponderosa pine at the Meadow Smith
2007). Prolonged smoldering com- old-growth restoration project on the Flathead National Forest, MT, often form at
bustion in duff mounds at the base the base of mature trees. Prolonged smoldering in duff mounds can lead to decreased
vigor, enhanced susceptibility to bark beetle attack, and potentially tree death. Photo:
of trees causes cambial injury and Christopher Keyes.
fine root mortality, but it is unclear
which of these processes ultimately injury, but we have yet to deter- reduced vigor, enhanced suscep-
leads to tree death. Previous studies mine how tree survival is affected tibility to bark beetle attack, and
have shown that tree death can be by the combination of cambial potentially tree death (Ryan and
predicted by the amount of cambial death and fine root mortality. Frandsen 1991, Swezy and Agee
1991, Miyanishi 2001, Varner et al.
Emily Garlough is a senior firefighter for
the Forest Service Lolo Hotshots, based in
Until this relationship can be 2007).
Missoula, MT. She was a graduate research established, informed burning
assistant in the College of Forestry and decisions must be based on what Duff Mound Smoldering
Conservation at the University of Montana, we do know—that smoldering
Missoula, when she completed this Combustion
research. Christopher Keyes is a research combustion in duff mounds deliv-
associate professor of forestry and is direc- ers substantial heat exposure that Duff mounds are largely consumed
tor of the Applied Forest Management may lead to fine root mortality and in a process known as smolder-
Program at the University of Montana,
cambial injury, possibly leading to ing combustion (Frandsen 1987,
Missoula.

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


5
Miyanishi 2001), which spreads Whereas extreme fire behavior leaves
about 1,000 times slower than
the slowest spreading surface fire immediate and prominent scars, the effects
(Frandsen 1987). The spread of of duff mound consumption may take several
smoldering combustion in duff years to become apparent.
relies on the balance between the
energy required to vaporize and
drive off water and the energy The current state of knowledge samples burned above these thresh-
released in the combustion process. concerning duff mound consump- olds. A mineral content threshold
The properties of duff that influ- tion indicates the importance of was found for lower duff—samples
ence water-holding abilities there- moisture content within upper and with greater than 55 percent min-
fore affect smoldering behavior of lower duff layers and the impor- eral content did not burn. Bulk
the material. tance of mineral content in the density is commonly thought to be
lower duff layer. In a recent study a limiting factor in duff consump-
Results from combustion experi- of old-growth ponderosa pine duff tion (Hartford 1989, Hungerford et
ments using both forest floor duff mounds, we found the upper and al. 1995), yet our study found that
and peat moss have shown that the lower duff layers to differ signifi- the natural range of bulk densities
probability of sustained smoldering cantly for factors known to influ- for the upper and lower duff layers
is strongly influenced by duff mois- ence consumption, including mois- was too low to prohibit burning.
ture content and is partially depen- ture content and mineral content Thus, to get the most accurate
dent on bulk density and mineral as well as depth, bulk density, and data to estimate the likelihood that
content. The likelihood that sus- composition. duff mounds will be consumed, we
tained smoldering will take place recommend that managers sample
decreases as any of these properties The moisture content threshold for moisture content of both upper
increase after some threshold has for smoldering combustion was 57 and lower duff layers and mineral
been reached (Hartford 1989). percent and 102 percent, respec- content of lower duff prior to burn-
tively, for upper and lower duff—no ing.
Water requires a large amount of
energy to evaporate, so duff mois-
ture content acts as a significant
heat sink in the combustion pro-
cess (Wein 1983). Densely packed
duff with high bulk densities may
reduce the oxygen concentration
and extinguish smoldering combus-
tion. The probability of ignition
decreases as the ratio of mineral
content to organic material increas-
es, as mineral content absorbs
heat that would have contributed
to combustion (Hungerford et al.
1995). Frandsen (1987) developed
an ignition test to determine the
influence of mineral content and
moisture content on ignition. He
reported that peat moss with less
than 10 percent mineral content
would not smolder if moisture con-
tent was 110 percent or greater.
The probability of sustained smoldering in duff mounds is influenced by duff moisture
content, mineral content, and bulk density. A sample of moisture content of the upper
and lower duff layers and mineral content of the lower duff layer will help to estimate
the likelihood that duff mounds will be consumed during a prescribed burn. Photo:
Christopher Keyes.

Fire Management Today


6
We recognize that fire managers example, our results spur several References
have busy schedules leading up to more questions. Can the low mois- Frandsen, W.H. 1987. The influence of
a prescribed burn, with concerns ture contents we saw after heavy moisture and mineral soil on the com-
over homes, property lines, and air rains be attributed to a hydropho- bustion limits of smoldering forest duff.
Canadian Journal of Forest Research. 17:
quality. Fuel moisture states can bic nature, whereby rainfall and 1540–1544.
be monitored indirectly by observ- stemflow don’t infiltrate upper soil Hartford, R.A. 1989. Smoldering combus-
ing weather patterns. However, our horizons? Or, to a hydroconductive tion limits in peat as influenced by
study revealed that duff mound nature, whereby water rapidly infil- moisture, mineral content and organic
bulk density. In: Maciver, D.C.; H. Auld;
moisture content is not always R. Whitewood, eds. Proceedings of the
predictable, even after extreme rain 10th Conference on Fire and Forest
events. Just 6 days after a historic Meteorology Ottawa, Ontario. Chalk
Duff mound moisture River, ON: Forestry Canada, Netawawa
rain event totaling 18.5 inches (47
cm), field measurements in one
content is not always Forestry Institute: 282–286.
Hood, S.; Reardon, J.; Smith, S.; Cluck,
area showed that duff moisture predictable, even after D. 2007. Prescribed burning to protect
large diameter pine trees from wildfire—
content averaged just 23.9 percent extreme rain events. Can we do it without killing the trees
for the upper duff layer and 22.9 we’re trying to save? Joint Fire Science
percent for the lower duff layer. Program Final Report 03-3-2-04. 33 p.
These moisture contents are far Hungerford, R; Frandsen, W.H.; Ryan, K.C.
trates the duff and passes through 1995. Ignition and burning characteris-
below the consumption thresholds to the mineral soil? What is the tics of organic soils. In: Cerulean, S.I.;
we found in lab testing—57 percent relationship of soil characteris- R.T. Engstrom, eds. Fire in wetlands: a
and 102 percent, respectively, for management perspective. Proceedings
tics to these moisture dynamics? of the Tall Timbers Fire Ecology
upper and lower duff—indicating Temporal study of duff moisture Conference, No. 19. Tallahassee, FL: Tall
that a prescribed fire would have content through the course of a fire Timbers Research Station: 78–91.
resulted in complete duff mound season would be difficult to per-
Miyanishi, K. 2001. Duff consumption. In:
Johnson, E.A., Miyanishi, K., eds. Forest
consumption for more than half of form, but could offer a great deal fires: behavior and ecological effects. San
the stand’s largest and oldest trees. of insight into duff mound wetting Diego, CA: Academic Press: 437-475.
Had burning decisions been based and drying cycles. Ryan, K.C.; Frandsen, W.H. 1991. Basal
on weather data alone, many trees injury from smoldering fires in mature
Pinus ponderosa Laws. International
would likely have been damaged As demands for predictability in Journal of Wildland Fire. 1:107–108.
or lost. Further testing of these prescribed burning outcomes Stephens, S.L.; Finney, M.A. 2002.
results is necessary to determine Prescribed fire mortality of Sierra Nevada
increase, all aspects of fuels behav- mixed conifer tree species: Effects of
applicability in varied field condi- ior will come under scrutiny. Duff crown damage and forest floor combus-
tions. mounds may not represent the tion. Forest Ecology and Management.
162:261–271.
most exciting topic in fire research, Swezy, D.M; Agee, J.K. 1991. Prescribed fire
Future Points To but a better understanding of them effects on fine-root and tree mortality
Ponder can go a long way in preserving in old-growth ponderosa pine. Canadian
Journal of Forest Research. 21:626–634.
The field of duff mound moisture our valuable, mature trees in long- Varner, J.M.; Hiers, J.K.; Ottmar, R.D.;
dynamics has tremendous opportu- unburned stands. Gordon, D.R.; Putz, F.E.; Wade, D.D.
2007. Overstory tree mortality resulting
nities for further investigation—for from reintroducing fire to long-unburned
longleaf pine forests: the importance
of duff moisture. Canadian Journal of
Forest Research. 37:1349–1358.
Duff mounds may not represent the most exciting Wein, R.W. 1983. Fire behavior and ecologi-
cal effects in organic terrain. In: Wein,
topic in fire research, but a better understanding R.W., Maclean, D.A., eds. Chichester,
of them can go a long way in preserving our England: John Wiley and Sons LTD:
81–96. 
valuable, mature trees in long-unburned stands.

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


7
Estimating Crown Fire Susceptibility
for Project Planning
David C. Powell

F
ire managers traditionally rec-
ognize three types of fire (Pyne
and others 1996):

• Ground fires burning in organic


materials such as peat;
• Surface fires burning in herbs
and other fuels lying on or near
the ground surface; and
• Crown fires burning in elevated
canopy fuels.

When considering fire effects on


vegetation and other ecosystem
components, crown fire is acknowl-
edged to be the most severe of the
three fire types. Although crown
fire is normal and expected for fire
regimes III, IV, and V (Schmidt and
others 2002), a large amount of
crown fire is neither normal nor
expected for the dry forests of fire Crown fire in the Blue Mountains, OR, showing the long flame lengths and high fireline
regime I (Agee 1993). (See box on intensity typically produced by crown fire. Photo: David Powell, Umatilla National Forest.
following page for more details on
fire regime condition class.)

Because dry forests are affected by


crown fire with increasing regular-
ity (Mutch and others 1993) and
silvicultural treatments are being
planned for the wildland-urban
interface where crown fire can sel-
dom be tolerated regardless of fire
regime, fire managers need tools to
help them evaluate crown fire sus-
ceptibility for all forested lands. As
expressed by Scott and Reinhardt
(2001) “Crown fires result from cer-
tain combinations of fuels, weather,
and topography.” Land managers
cannot control weather and topog-
raphy, but if they could identify

Aftermath of a crown fire in the Blue Mountains, OR, showing the impact of crown fire
David Powell is a silviculturist on the on soils, coarse woody debris and down wood, and other site-level resources. Photo: David
Umatilla National Forest in Pendleton, OR. Powell, Umatilla National Forest.

Fire Management Today


8
areas with high potential for crown Canopy bulk density, a measure of foliage biomass
fire, the areas could be targeted for
application of prescribed fire and available as crown fire fuel, is “the primary
thinning, two treatments with dem- controlling factor of crown fire behavior.”
onstrated effectiveness for reducing
stand susceptibility to crown fire
behavior (Bilgili 2003; Graham and This article relates five common of available crown fuels, except
others 2004). measures of stand density (stand in a research context (Scott and
density index, trees per acre, basal Reinhardt 2001), and these other
Crown fire susceptibility refers to area per acre, canopy cover, and measures can be collected as part of
the potential for crown fire based equilateral tree spacing) to three stand data. In addition, it is easier
on inherent stand characteristics categories of crown fire susceptibil- to relate stand density to CBD
such as species composition, forest ity (high, moderate, and low). The than to use indirect estimation
structure, and tree density. In this use of stand density measures to techniques relying on hemispheri-
context, crown fire susceptibility estimate crown fire susceptibility cal photography, ceptometers, or
and crown fire hazard are consid- is a practical approach—it is not spherical densiometers (Keane and
ered to be interchangeable terms. feasible to directly measure canopy others 2005).
bulk density (CBD), the measure
Canopy Bulk Density
CBD, a measure of biomass avail-
Fire Regime Condition able as crown fire fuel, is “the pri-
Class Definition* mary controlling factor of crown
fire behavior” (Graham and others
A natural fire regime is a general classification of the role fire would 1999). It is the dry weight of avail-
play across a landscape in the absence of modern human mechanical able canopy fuel (including both
intervention but including the influence of aboriginal burning. The foliage and small branches) per
five natural (historical) fire regimes are classified based on average unit of canopy volume (including
number of years between fires (fire frequency) combined with the spaces between the tree crowns)
severity (amount of replacement) of the fire on the dominant over- and is strongly influenced by spe-
story vegetation. These five regime classes include: cies composition and stand density
(Agee 1996; Keyes and O’Hara
• I: 0–35 year frequency and generally low-severity fires replacing 2002); thus, it varies both within
less than 25 percent of the dominant overstory vegetation, but can and between ecological zones. CBD
include mixed-severity fires that replace up to 75 percent of the is usually expressed in kilograms
overstory; per cubic meter (kg/m3); it ranges
• II: 0–35 year frequency and high-severity fires replacing greater from zero, where there is no can-
than 75 percent of the dominant overstory vegetation; opy, to about 0.4 kg/m3 (0.25 lbs/
• III: 35–200+ year frequency, generally mixed-severity fires, but can ft3) in very dense forests (Scott and
also include low severity fires; Reinhardt 2002).
• IV: 35–200+ year frequency and high severity, replacing greater
than 75 percent of the dominant overstory vegetation; and To relate CBD to crown fire suscep-
• V: 200+ year frequency and generally high severity, but may include tibility, Agee (1996) analyzed seven
fires of any severity in this frequency range. stands that had been thinned and
later exposed to crown fire during
As scale of application becomes finer, these five classes may be defined the 1994 Tyee Fire in north-central
with more detail, or any one class may be split into finer classes, but Washington. He found that crown
the hierarchy to the coarse scale definitions should be retained. fire was not sustained in stands
where recent thinning had reduced
* Definitions are adapted from the Interagency Fire Regime Condition Class (FRCC) Guidebook, Version
1.3.0, June 2008. Available online at <www.frcc.gov> (accessed January 2010). Reference: Hann, W.; Shlisky, CBD below about 0.10 kg/m3 (0.006
A.; Havlina, D.; Schon, K.; Barrett, S.; DeMeo, T.; Pohl, K.; Menakis, J.; Hamilton, D.; Jones, J.; Levesque, M.;
Frame, C. 2004. Interagency Fire Regime Condition Class Guidebook. Boise, ID: National Interagency Fire
lbs/ft3). Conversely, anecdotal
Center. 119 p. evidence from the Southwestern
United States demonstrates that

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


9
stands with CBD exceeding 0.10 kg/ Stand Density Index • Ponderosa pine remains below
m3 (0.006 lbs/ft3) are susceptible SDI expresses the relationship the upper CBD threshold even at
to crown fires (Cram and others between a number of trees per acre its full-stocking SDI of 365.
2003). and a quadratic mean diameter
(QMD); SDI is indexed to a QMD The following relative density per-
Earlier research from Van Wagner of 10 inches (25 cm) (Daniel and centages pertain to the lower CBD
(1977) and Alexander (1988) others 1979, Reineke 1933). Keyes threshold of 0.05 kg/m3(0.003 lbs/
showed that crown fire is nearly and O’Hara (2002) related Agee’s ft3):
impossible below a CBD of 0.05 (1996) upper CBD threshold value
kg/m3 (0.003 lbs/ft3), and research (0.10 kg/m3 or 0.006 lbs/ft3) to • Grand fir crosses the lower CBD
from the Lake States suggests that relative density, a percentage of the threshold at an SDI value of
a CBD as low as 0.037 kg/m3 (0.002 maximum full-stocking SDI, for 70, about 12 percent of its full-
lbs/ft3) might be marginally capable the three tree species included in stocking SDI of 560.
of sustaining crown fire under Agee’s paper: grand fir, Douglas- • Douglas-fir exhibits the lower
extreme circumstances (Sando and fir, and ponderosa pine. Maximum CBD threshold at an SDI value
Wick 1972). Analysis of two stands full-stocking SDI values for the of 100, about 26 percent of its
on the Bitterroot National Forest three tree species were taken from full-stocking SDI of 380.
in western Montana concluded Cochran and others (1994) and • Ponderosa pine exhibits the
that the Sando and Wick threshold Powell (1999). lower CBD threshold at an SDI
value (0.037 kg/m3) might also value of 140, about 38 percent of
be relevant to forests of the inte- The following relative density per- its full-stocking SDI of 365.
rior Pacific Northwest (Scott and centages pertain to the upper CBD
Reinhardt 2001). Nonetheless, I threshold of 0.10 kg/m3 (0.006 lbs/ Table 1 shows how the relative den-
selected a CBD value of 0.05 kg/m3 ft3): sity SDI values are related to low,
(0.003 lbs/ft3) as the lower thresh- moderate, and high categories of
old value for this analysis process. • Grand fir reaches the upper crown fire susceptibility.
CBD threshold at an SDI of
I used these two thresholds—the 200, about 35 percent of its full- Trees per Acre
CBD above which crown fire is stocking SDI of 560. The TPA metric is an absolute mea-
easily sustained (0.10 kg/m3) and • Douglas-fir reaches the upper sure of tree density per unit area.
the CBD below which crown fire CBD threshold at an SDI of To express crown fire susceptibility
is unlikely (0.05 kg/m3)—as the 250, about 66 percent of its full- by using TPA, the SDI values from
boundaries for “high” and “low” stocking SDI of 380. table 1 were converted into their
crown fire susceptibility categories. equivalent TPA values (table 2).
By default, the “moderate” category
then includes all CBD values occur- Table 1—Estimated stand density index (SDI) values for three crown fire
ring between the upper and lower susceptibility ratings.
thresholds.
Cover type group1 SDI2 for each crown fire susceptibility rating3
Relating CBD to
Low Moderate High
Stand Density Ponderosa pine < 141 141–364 > 364
Using the three categories of crown Interior Douglas-fir < 101 101–249 > 249
fire susceptibility, CBD can be
related to stand density metrics Grand fir < 71 71–199 > 199
such as stand density index (SDI), 1
Cover type group composition is:
trees per acre (TPA), basal area per Ponderosa pine: western larch, whitebark pine, lodgepole pine, ponderosa pine
Interior Douglas-fir: Douglas-fir and other species not included in the ponderosa pine or grand fir groups
acre (BAA), canopy cover (CC), and 2
Grand fir: grand fir, subalpine fir, and Engelmann spruce.
SDI ranges are based on Agee (1996), and Keyes and O’Hara (2002).
equilateral spacing (ES). 3
Crown fire susceptibility ratings are based on canopy bulk density:
Low: CBD ≤ 0.05 kg/m3 (≤ 0.003 lbs/ft3)
Moderate: CBD 0.06−0.09 kg/m3 (0.004–0.005 lbs/ft3)
High: CBD ≥ 0.10 kg/m3 (≥ 0.006 lbs/ft3)

Fire Management Today


10
Table 2—Estimated trees per acre (trees per hectare) for three crown fire susceptibility ratings.

Cover Diameter TPA (T/ha) for each crown fire susceptibility rating3
Type Class
Group1 Category2 Low Moderate High
Ponderosa Seed-Sap (< 5” QMD) < 1,174 1,174–3,057 > 3,057
pine (< 475) (475–1,237) (> 1,237)
Poles (5–9” QMD) < 263 263–682 > 682
(< 106) (106–276) (> 276)
Small+ (> 9” QMD) < 102 102–262 > 262
(< 41) (41–106) (> 106)
Interior Seed-Sap (< 5” QMD) < 564 564–1,406 > 1,406
Douglas-fir (< 228) (228–569) (> 569)
Poles (5–9” QMD) < 158 158–390 > 390
(< 64) (64–158) (> 158)
Small+ (> 9” QMD) < 70 70–172 > 172
(< 28) (28–70) (> 70)
Grand Seed-Sap (< 5” QMD) < 593 593–1,692 > 1,692
fir (< 240) (240–685) (> 685)
Poles (5–9” QMD) < 138 138–390 > 390
(< 56) (56–158) (> 158)
Small+ (> 9” QMD) < 55 55–153 > 153
(< 22) (22–62) (> 62)
1 Cover
type groups are described in footnote 1 to table 1.
2 Average
diameter class pertains to an entire forest polygon; QMD is quadratic mean diameter, the diameter associated with a tree of average basal area (Helms 1998). Diameter
class is assumed to reflect an average or representative QMD condition for an entire polygon; “seed-sap” refers to the seedling-sapling diameter classes.
3 Crown fire susceptibility ratings are based on canopy bulk density and described in footnote 3 of table 1.

Because SDI is indexed to a QMD of


10 inches (25 cm), the TPA and SDI The use of stand density measures to estimate
values will only be the same when
a stand’s QMD is 10 inches (e.g.,
crown fire susceptibility is a practical approach—
at a QMD of 10 inches, an SDI of it is not feasible to directly measure canopy bulk
200 is equal to 200 TPA). But for a density except in a research context.
QMD other than 10 inches, the TPA
and SDI values will not be identi-
cal. For this reason, the TPA values cally 4.5 feet or 1.4 m above the Canopy Cover
provided in table 2 are presented ground surface); the BAA metric
for three common size classes. In CC is a forest density metric used
takes the individual tree basal area extensively in ecological studies.
addition, because the other tables values and sums them for every
(tables 3–5) are related to TPA in It is defined as the vertical projec-
tree occurring on an acre to yield tion of vegetation foliage onto the
some way, they also include three a measure of total basal area in ft2/
size classes. ground surface when viewed from
ac (or m2/ha). To express crown above.
fire susceptibility by using the BAA
Basal Area per Acre
metric, it was necessary to convert Stand density expressed as canopy
BAA refers to the cross-sectional the TPA values from table 2 into cover can be estimated from remote
area of a tree (in square feet) at a their equivalent BAA values (table
specified height on the stem (typi- 3).

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


11
Table 3—Estimated basal area per acre in ft2 (basal area per hectare in m2) for three crown fire susceptibility ratings.

Cover Diameter BAA (BA/ha) for each crown fire susceptibility rating3
Type Class
Group1 Category2 Low Moderate High
Ponderosa Seed-Sap (< 5” QMD) < 59 59–149 > 149
pine (< 14) (14–34) (> 34)
Poles (5–9” QMD) < 71 71–181 > 181
(< 16) (16–42) (> 42)
Small+ (> 9” QMD) < 80 80–206 > 206
(< 18) (18–47) (> 47)
Interior Seed-Sap (< 5” QMD) < 29 29–68 > 68
Douglas-fir (< 7) (7–16) (> 16)
Poles (5–9” QMD) < 43 43–104 > 104
(< 10) (10–24) (> 24)
Small+ (> 9” QMD) < 55 55–135 > 135
(< 13) (13–31) (> 31)
Grand Seed-Sap (< 5” QMD) < 30 30–82 > 82
fir (< 7) (7–19) (> 19)
Poles (5–9” QMD) < 38 38–103 > 103
(< 9) (9–24) (> 24)
Small+ (> 9” QMD) < 43 43–120 > 120
(< 10) (10–28) (> 28)
1 Cover
type groups are described in footnote 1 to table 1.
2 Diameter
class categories are described in footnote 2 of table 2.
3 Crown fire susceptibility ratings are based on canopy bulk density and described in footnote 3 of table 1.

sensing information sources, such stand exams or forestry surveys Equilateral Spacing
as satellite imagery or aerial pho- were uncommon then. Because it is A measure of tree spacing is useful
tography, or it can be sampled often important to be able to assess when there is a need to evaluate the
during field surveys such as stand how crown fire susceptibility has spatial relationship between adja-
exams. For polygons created from changed over time, the CC stand cent trees in a stand (tree-marking
remote-sensing information, CC density metric is particularly valu- guides often include inter-tree
(also known as canopy closure, able. spacing specifications). For older
crown cover, or crown closure) is stands, where most of the trees are
typically the only metric that can Attempts to directly measure CC by pole-size or larger, ES is generally
reasonably represent stand density using instruments such as a spheri- thought to be the best measure of
because other measures, such as cal densiometer or moosehorn have tree spacing. To express crown fire
TPA or BAA, cannot be accurately often been unsatisfactory (Cook susceptibility by using the ES met-
determined from this information. and others 1995), so it is common ric, it was necessary to convert the
practice to use mathematical equa- TPA values from table 2 into their
The CC stand density metric is tions to calculate CC (Dealy 1985). equivalent ES values (table 5).
unique in that it allows us to esti- To express crown fire susceptibility
mate crown fire susceptibility for using CC, I converted the BAA val- Cautions and Caveats
historical time periods from old ues into their equivalent CC values
aerial photography. The other stand using Dealy’s (1985) equations The five tables in this article do not
density metrics are seldom available (table 4). predict potential crown fire behav-
for historical time periods because ior because there is no explicit

Fire Management Today


12
consideration of weather, topogra-
phy, or non-CBD vegetation factors
such as canopy base height or foliar
moisture content (Reinhardt and
Crookston 2003).

Because vegetation databases


almost always include more tree
species (cover types) than just the
three included in Agee’s (1996)
study, it was necessary to assign
additional species to one of Agee’s
original forest types. These assign-
ments were influenced primarily by
crown characteristics: for instance,
Engelmann spruce crowns tend to
have a similar shape and density as
those of grand fir, so Engelmann
spruce was assigned to the grand fir
cover type group.

Many users believe the stand den-


sity values for the ponderosa pine
cover type group are too high
because they exceed those for the
grand fir and Douglas-fir groups.
This counterintuitive result reflects
tree canopy differences (particularly
crown density and length), and it
suggests that higher stocking lev-
els of ponderosa pine are required
for a specific amount of CBD than
for either grand fir or interior
Douglas-fir. On average, ponderosa
pine crowns have lower density and
length than Douglas-fir and grand
fir crowns, so it takes more ponder-
osa pine crowns per acre to reach
the same level of CBD as for grand
fir or Douglas-fir.*

Except for the ponderosa pine cover


type group, the stocking levels
associated with the low crown fire
susceptibility category are lower
Figure 1—Existing (upper) and historical (lower) crown fire susceptibility ratings for
than traditional stocking guidelines
the Potamus watershed in northeastern Oregon (Forest Service 2004). Because canopy developed for timber production
cover could be interpreted from 1939 aerial photography, it was possible to use the
rating system in table 4 to estimate historical crown fire susceptibility for more than *Recent experience on the Umatilla National Forest
78,000 acres of forest land in the Potamus watershed: 42 percent had high crown fire suggests that more crown fire is actually occurring in
susceptibility, 28 percent had moderate crown fire susceptibility, and 31 percent had ponderosa pine forests than would be predicted from
low crown fire susceptibility. When evaluating crown fire susceptibility during project susceptibility ratings for the ponderosa pine cover type
group in tables 1–5.
planning, it seems that canopy cover is the best stand density measure for comparing
existing conditions with reference (historical) conditions.

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


13
Table 4—Estimated tree canopy cover (CC) for three crown fire susceptibility ratings.

Cover Diameter CC (%) for each crown fire susceptibility rating3


Type Class
Group1 Category2 Low Moderate High
Ponderosa Seed-Sap (< 5” QMD) < 46 46–60 > 60
pine
Poles (5–9” QMD) < 49 49–63 > 63
Small+ (> 9” QMD) < 51 51–66 > 66
Interior Seed-Sap (< 5” QMD) < 50 50–62 > 62
Douglas-fir
Poles (5–9” QMD) < 56 56–68 > 68
Small+ (> 9” QMD) < 60 60–72 > 72
Grand Seed-Sap (< 5” QMD) < 53 53–68 > 68
fir
Poles (5–9” QMD) < 57 57–72 > 72
Small+ (> 9” QMD) < 59 59–75 > 75
1 Cover type groups are described in footnote 1 to table 1.
2 Diameter class categories are described in footnote 2 of table 2.
3 Crown fire susceptibility ratings are based on canopy bulk density and described in footnote 3 of table 1.

Table 5— Estimated equilateral tree spacing in feet (meters) for three crown fire susceptibility ratings.

Cover Diameter ES in feet (m) for each crown fire susceptibility rating3
Type Class
Group1 Category2 Low Moderate High
Ponderosa Seed-Sap (< 5” QMD) > 6.4 6.4–4.2 < 4.2
pine (> 1.95) (1.95–1.28) (< 1.28)
Poles (5–9” QMD) > 13.8 13.8–8.7 < 8.7
(> 4.20) (4.20–2.65) (< 2.65)
Small+ (> 9” QMD) > 22.2 22.2–13.9 < 13.9
(> 6.76) (6.76–4.24) (< 4.24)
Interior Seed-Sap (< 5” QMD) > 9.4 9.4–6.1 < 6.1
Douglas-fir (> 2.86) (2.86–1.86) (< 1.86)
Poles (5–9” QMD) > 17.8 17.8–11.4 < 11.4
(> 5.42) (5.42–3.47) (< 3.47)
Small+ (> 9” QMD) > 26.8 26.8–17.1 < 17.1
(> 8.17) (8.17–5.21) (< 5.21)
Grand Seed-Sap (< 5” QMD) > 9.1 9.1–5.6 < 5.6
fir (> 2.77) (2.77–1.71) (< 1.71)
Poles (5–9” QMD) > 19.1 19.1–11.4 < 11.4
(> 5.82) (5.82–3.47) (< 3.47)
Small+ (> 9” QMD) > 30.5 30.5–18.2 < 18.2
(> 9.30) (9.30–5.55) (< 5.55)
1 Cover type groups are described in footnote 1 to table 1.
2 Diameter class categories are described in footnote 2 of table 2.
3 Crown fire susceptibility ratings are based on canopy bulk density and described in footnote 3 of table 1.

Fire Management Today


14
purposes. For wildland-urban inter-
faces and other areas where wildfire
resilience and a forest structure
amenable to low crown fire suscep-
tibility are particularly important,
land managers could prescribe
residual stocking levels using the
“low” category in tables 1–5.

References
Agee, J.K. 1993. Fire ecology of Pacific
Northwest forests. Washington, DC:
Island Press. 493 p.
Agee, J.K. 1996. The influence of for-
est structure on fire behavior. In:
Proceedings of the Seventeenth
Annual Forest Vegetation Management How likely is a crown fire? Here, a firefighter takes a break to get more firing devices from
Conference; 16–18 January; Redding, CA: his pack during a night burnout operation on the Blossom Complex, Siskiyou National
52–68. Forest, OR. Photo: Eli Lehmann, Forest Service, Mount Baker–Snoqualmie National
Alexander, M.E. 1988. Help with mak- Forest, Concrete, WA, 2005.
ing crown fire hazard assessments. In:
Fischer, W.C.; Arno, S.F., compilers. Graham, R.T.; Harvey, A.E.; Jain, T.B.; Tonn, Reineke, L.H. 1933. Perfecting a stand-den-
Proceedings of the Symposium and J.R. 1999. The effects of thinning and sity index for even-aged forests. Journal
Workshop: Protecting People and Homes similar stand treatments on fire behavior of Agricultural Research. 46(7): 627–638.
from Wildfire in the Interior West. Gen. in western forests. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW- Reinhardt, E.D.; Crookston, N.L., technical
Tech. Rep. INT-251. Ogden, UT: USDA 463. Portland, OR: USDA Forest Service, editors. 2003. The fire and fuels exten-
Forest Service, Intermountain Research Pacific Northwest Research Station. 27 p. sion to the forest vegetation simulator.
Station: 147–156. Graham, R.T.; McCaffrey, S.; Jain, T.B. Gen. Tech. Rep. RMRS-116. Ogden, UT:
Bilgili, E. 2003. Stand development 2004. Science basis for changing forest USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain
and fire behavior. Forest Ecology and structure to modify wildfire behavior and Research Station. 209 p.
Management. 179: 333–339. severity. Gen. Tech. Rep. RMRS-120. Fort Sando, R.W.; Wick, C.H. 1972. A method of
Cochran, P.H.; Geist, J.M.; Clemens, D.L.; Collins, CO: USDA Forest Service, Rocky evaluating crown fuels in forest stands.
Clausnitzer, R.R.; Powell, D.C. 1994. Mountain Research Station. 43 p. Research Paper NC-84. Saint Paul, MN:
Suggested stocking levels for forest Helms, J.A. 1998. The dictionary of for- USDA Forest Service, North Central
stands in northeastern Oregon and estry. Bethesda, MD: Society of American Forest Experiment Station. 10 p.
southeastern Washington. Research Note Foresters. 210 p. Schmidt, K.M.; Menakis, J.P.; Hardy,
PNW-513. Portland, OR: USDA Forest Keane, R.E.; Reinhardt, E.D.; Scott, J.; C.C.; Hann, W.J.; Bunnell, D.L. 2002.
Service, Pacific Northwest Research Gray, K.; Reardon, J. 2005. Estimating Development of coarse-scale spatial
Station. 21 p. forest canopy bulk density using six indi- data for wildland fire and fuel manage-
Cook, J.C.; Stutzman, T.W.; Bowers, C.W.; rect methods. Canadian Journal of Forest ment. Gen. Tech. Rep. RMRS-87. Fort
Brenner, K.A.; Irwin, L.L. 1995. Spherical Research. 35: 724–739. Collins, CO: USDA Forest Service, Rocky
densiometers produce biased estimates Keyes, C.R.; O’Hara, K.L. 2002. Quantifying Mountain Research Station. 41 p (+CD).
of forest canopy cover. Wildlife Society stand targets for silvicultural preven- Scott, J.H.; Reinhardt, E.D. 2001. Assessing
Bulletin. 23(4): 711–717. tion of crown fires. Western Journal of crown fire susceptibility by linking
Cram, D.S.; Baker, T.T.; Boren, J.; Applied Forestry. 17(2): 101–109. models of surface and crown fire behav-
Edminster, C. 2003. Inventory and classi- Mutch, R.W.; Arno, S.F.; Brown, J.K.; ior. Research Paper RMRS -29. Fort
fication of wildland fire effects in silvicul- Carlson, C.E.; Ottmar, R.D.; Peterson, Collins, CO: USDA Forest Service, Rocky
turally treated vs. untreated forest stands J.L. 1993. Forest health in the Blue Mountain Research Station. 59 p.
of New Mexico and Arizona. Paper pre- Mountains: a management strategy for Scott, J.H.; Reinhardt, E.D. 2002.
sented at the 2nd International Wildland fire-adapted ecosystems. Gen. Tech. Rep. Estimating canopy fuels in conifer for-
Fire Ecology and Fire Management PNW-310. Portland, OR: USDA Forest ests. Fire Management Today. 62(4):
Congress; 16–20 November; Orlando, FL. Service, Pacific Northwest Research 45–50.
14 p. Station. 14 p. USDA Forest Service. 2004. Potamus eco-
Daniel, T.W.; Meyn, R.L.; Moore, R.R. 1979. Powell, D.C. 1999. Suggested stocking system analysis. Unpublished Report.
Reineke’s stand density index in tabular levels for forest stands in northeastern Pendleton, OR: USDA Forest Service,
form, in English and metric units, with Oregon and southeastern Washington: an Umatilla National Forest. 222 p. Available
its applications. Research Report 37. implementation guide for the Umatilla at: <http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/uma/proj-
Logan, UT: Utah State University, Utah National Forest. Technical Publication ects/ecosystem/potamus_wa_final.pdf>
Agricultural Experiment Station. 16 p. F14-SO-TP-03-99. Pendleton, OR: USDA (accessed December 2009).
Dealy, J.E. 1985. Tree basal area as an index Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region, Van Wagner, C.E. 1977. Conditions for the
of thermal cover for elk. Research Note Umatilla National Forest. 300 p. start and spread of crown fire. Canadian
PNW-425. Portland, OR: USDA Forest Pyne, S.J.; Andrews, P.L.; Laven, R.D. 1996. Journal of Forest Research. 7: 23–34. 
Service, Pacific Northwest Forest and Introduction to wildland fire. New York,
Range Experiment Station. 6 p. NY: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 769 p.

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


15
Characterizing
Hand-Piled Fuels
Clinton S. Wright, Paige C. Eagle, and Cameron S. Balog

Resources (DNR) online calculator


The Hand-Piled Fuels Biomass Calculator is available at
(Alexander 2007; <http://www.dnr.
<http://depts.washington.edu/nwfire/handpiles>.
wa.gov/RecreationEducation/Topics/
FireBurningRegulations/Pages/

L
and managers throughout the rp_burn_tonnagecalculator.htm>) .
West pile and burn surface fuels Tools and applications
to mitigate fire hazard in dry Differences in structure and
forests. Whereas piling was histori-
developed for composition between hand and
cally conducted with heavy machin- describing machine machine piles, however, result in
ery following commercial harvest- piles may overestimate different relationships between pile
dimensions, pile volume, and pile
ing operations, land managers are the amount of fuel in weight, so tools and applications
increasingly prescribing the use of
hand piles. developed for describing machine
hand piling and burning to treat
surface fuels created by thinning piles are likely to mis-characterize
and brush cutting. An estimate of hand piles. To address this issue,
the weight of the piled debris to 1996) is incorporated into the we measured and weighed hand
be burned is necessary to assess fire and fuel management deci- piles to document the relationships
potential smoke emissions and air sion support software application between easily measured variables
quality impacts associated with this CONSUME 3.0 (Prichard and oth- and fuel loading and incorporated
practice. ers, no date) and the Washington this information into the Hand-
State Department of Natural Piled Fuels Biomass Calculator, a
How Much Fuel Is in
This Pile?
It is impractical to weigh piled
fuels, so methods have been devel-
oped to estimate weight from pile
dimensions and other characteris-
tics. Data are available for charac-
terizing large, machine-constructed
piles (Hardy 1996; Johnson 1984;
Little 1982; McNab 1980, 1981;
McNab and Saucier 1980), but not
hand-constructed piles. Research
to quantify the amount of woody
debris in machine piles (Hardy

Clint Wright is a research forester with the


Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research
Station, Pacific Wildland Fire Sciences
Laboratory, in Seattle, WA. Paige Eagle
is a Web designer and programmer and
Cameron Balog is a research scientist with
the School of Forest Resources, University
of Washington, Seattle. The authors
Slash is often piled by hand and later burned as a surface fuel treatment to mitigate
acknowledge funding from the Joint Fire
potential negative impacts of broadcast burning and to reduce fire hazard. Photo: Ernesto
Science Program under Project JFSP 07-2-
Alvarado, University of Washington, Seattle.
1-57.

Fire Management Today


16
simple online calculator specifically An estimate of the weight of the piled debris
for characterizing the relationship
between hand pile dimensions, vol- to be burned is necessary to assess potential
ume, and weight. smoke emissions and air quality impacts
associated with this practice.
The equations in the calculator
are based on measurements of the
dimensions, volume, and weight of 1. Measure pile dimensions and factor = emissions) to estimate
121 hand piles composed primar- calculate pile volume; potential emissions.
ily of coniferous (n=63) and shrub/ 2. Assess the pile composition
hardwood (n=58) material located (conifer or shrub/hardwood Pile volume and fuel weight
in Washington and California. debris); A potentially large portion of the
Equations using pile dimensions, 3. Calculate the weight of fuel error associated with estimating
shape, and type allow users to more in the pile using equations pollutant emissions from fire is
accurately estimate the volume and that relate pile volume to pile related to difficulties and inaccura-
weight of hand piles for regulatory weight; cies in characterizing fuel weight
reporting and smoke-management 4. Calculate consumable fuel or loading (Peterson and Sandberg
planning (Wright and others 2010). weight (pile weight × percent- 1988). In the calculator, users
age of expected consumption = select a geometric shape that best
Calculating Emissions consumable fuel weight); and represents their pile or piles and
Calculating emissions from pile 5. Apply an emission factor (con- enter the measured dimensions
burning is a five-step process: sumable fuel weight × emission required for that pile shape. These
inputs are used to calculate the
volume of the pile based on specific
geometric formulas. Pile volume
determined from pile dimensions
and geometric formulas (geometric
pile volume) is not perfectly cor-
related with true pile volume, so
the calculator applies an empiri-
cally derived adjustment to the
geometric volume, resulting in a
more accurate estimate. Adjusted
or true pile volume is then used as
a predictor to estimate pile weight
for different pile types (that is, piles
composed primarily of coniferous
debris or piles composed primarily
of shrub and hardwood debris).

Estimating Consumable Fuel


CONSUME 3.0 assumes that 90
percent of piled fuels are consumed
during a burning operation based
on observations of 75–95 percent
consumption reported by Hardy
(1996). Hardy observed consump-
The online calculator allows the user to estimate the volume and weight of hand-piled tion in machine pile burns; no
fuels according to the shape selected and the entered dimensions. Potential emissions of studies that we know of have docu-
different pollutants are calculated based on the calculated weight, emission factors, and mented the fuel consumption when
user-specified consumption proportions.

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


17
hand piles are burned, although Looking ahead, we would like to improve this
we expect hand piles to burn in a
manner similar to machine-piles, tool so that users will have a single resource for
in which most, if not all, of the characterizing piles of any type.
piled debris is consumed. Users can
adjust the estimated percentage
consumption when hand piles are (6.75, 7.75, and 10.95 kg per met- References
burned under conditions that are ric ton) for PM2.5, PM10, and PM, Alexander, M.E. 2007. How much fuel is in
expected to reduce fuel consump- respectively. Assuming that 70 per- that pile or windrow? Fire Management
tion, such as in wet or snowy con- cent of consumption occurs during Today 67(3): 12–27.
ditions. the flaming phase of combustion Hardy, C.C. 1996. Guidelines for estimating
volume, biomass and smoke production
and that 15 percent occurs during for piled slash. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-
Adjusting Emission each of the smoldering and residual 364. Portland, OR: USDA Forest Service,
The amount of soil that is mixed phases of combustion, emission Pacific Northwest Research Station. 17 p.
Johnson, V.J. 1984. How shape affects the
into a pile when it is constructed factors for carbon monoxide (CO), burning of piled debris. Fire Management
affects the amount of smoke that carbon dioxide (CO2), methane Notes 45(3): 12–15.
is produced during burning. Soil (CH4), and nonmethane hydrocar- Little, S.N. 1982. Estimating the volume
contamination reduces combustion of wood in large piles of logging residue.
bons (NMHC) are 152.0, 3,327.4, Administrative Report PNW-1. Portland,
efficiency and effectively increases 11.2, and 9.0 pounds per ton (76.0, OR: USDA Forest Service, Pacific
the emissions of airborne pollut- 1,663.8, 5.6, and 4.5 kg per metric Northwest Forest and Range Experiment
ants that are produced for each Station. 7 p.
ton), respectively (Prichard and McNab, W.H. 1980. A technique for invento-
increment of fuel that is consumed. others, no date). Multiplying fuel rying volumes and weights of windrowed
Machine piles can contain sig- weight consumed by the above- forest residues. Research Paper SE-215.
nificant quantities of mineral soil listed emission factors yields the Asheville, NC: USDA Forest Service,
Southeastern Forest Experiment Station.
depending upon the soil conditions weight of pollutant emissions. 8 p.
at the time of piling and the skill of McNab, W.H. 1981. Inventorying windrowed
the equipment operator who con- Looking Ahead logging residues. Gen. Tech. Rep. SO-34.
New Orleans, LA: USDA Forest Service,
structed the pile. Hand piles, on the
We designed the initial version of Southern Forest Experiment Station, pp.
other hand, are virtually free of soil 234–237.
contamination and, therefore, burn this online calculator specifically McNab, W.H.; Saucier, J.R. 1980.
more efficiently, producing fewer for estimating the volume and Estimating quantities of windrowed
pollutants for each increment of weight of hand-piled fuels. This forest residues: a management tool for
tool complements CONSUME 3.0 increased biomass utilization. Georgia
fuel that is consumed. Hardy (1996) Forest Research paper No. 11. Macon,
provides emission factors for total and the Washington DNR calcula- GA: Georgia Forestry Commission,
particulate matter (PM), particulate tor that address machine-piles. Research Division. 4 p.
It enables fire managers and Peterson, J.L.; Sandberg, D.V. 1988. A
matter less than 10 micrometers in national PM10 emissions inventory
mean diameter (PM10), and particu- air-quality regulators to more approach for wildfires and prescribed
late matter less than 2.5 microm- accurately estimate fuel consump- burning. In: Mathai, D.V.; Stonefield,
tion and emissions for hand piles. D.H., eds., Transactions: PM10: imple-
eters in mean diameter (PM2.5) mentation of standards: an APCA/EPA
from the burning of piled fuels Looking ahead, we would like to International Specialty Conference;
with differing levels of combus- improve the functionality of this February 22–25, 1988, San Francisco,
tion efficiency related to differing tool by integrating the algorithms CA, pp. 353–371.
for estimating machine pile weight, Prichard, S.J.; Ottmar, R.D.; Anderson,
levels of soil contamination. Using G.K. no date. Consume 3.0 User’s Guide.
a combustion efficiency of 0.91 for consumption, and emissions into Seattle, WA: USDA Forest Service, Pacific
“clean” piles yields emission factors a future version so that users will Northwest Research Station. Available
have a single resource for charac- online at: <http://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/fera/
of 13.5, 15.5, and 21.9 pounds of research/smoke/consume>. 234 p.
emissions per ton of fuel consumed terizing piles of any type. Wright, C.S.; Balog, C.S.; Kelly, J.W. 2010.
Estimating volume, biomass, and poten-
tial emissions of hand-piled fuels. Gen.
Tech. Rep. PNW-805. Portland, OR:
USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest
Research Station. 23 p. 

Fire Management Today


18
The Results of a Brief
Web-Based Questionnaire
on Wildland Fire Smoke
A.R. Riebau and D.G. Fox

F
rom October 2009 through
February 2010, fire manage- Almost all respondents indicated that they
ment and other professionals
with interest and experience in fire
expect increasing air quality regulatory
smoke issues were asked to com- pressure on smoke as a pollutant.
plete a short online questionnaire
as part of a smoke science plan
development effort by the Joint Fire Gauging Concern for needs. In 2009, it was determined
Science Program, sponsored by the that these 11 recommendations
Smoke Issues
U.S. Department of the Interior were not sufficient to guide future
(DOI) and U.S. Department of Since at least the U.S. 1977 Clean smoke research investments. As
Agriculture (USDA). Five hundred Air Act Amendments, there has a result, JFSP commissioned the
and fifty-four individuals answered been concern that air quality regu- development of a smoke science
the questionnaire. Although some lations and smoke from prescribed plan, a framework to focus smoke
of the results might have been fires could collide in conflicting research for the next 5 years. As a
anticipated, there are differences in legal requirements, vested interests, foundation for this, a brief Web-
responses between this and previ- overly bureaucratic interpretations based questionnaire was developed
ous needs assessments; one exam- of regulations, lack of appreciation to gauge current perceptions of
ple is that, although many respon- for ecosystem health and public wildland fire smoke as an issue,
dents saw regulatory restrictions health, and fumbled communica- what research topics are perceived
increasingly impacting the ability tion. Although there has been fric- as highest need, and what value
of fire managers to apply prescribed tion over the issue, air quality and people placed on the 11 recom-
fire (a common perception since at forest management have avoided a mendations of the preceding JFSP
least the late 1970s), there are also national showdown. There may be smoke roundtables.
new concerns that the public’s per- a number of reasons for this happy
circumstance, but it can be right-
ceptions of fire may also increas- Distributing the
ingly limit its use. Finally, the fully said that the fire community’s
support of smoke research has pro- Questionnaire
questionnaire results and written
comments highlight a perceived duced tools to ameliorate potential The use of a Web-based question-
fundamental tension between the conflicts. The Joint Fire Science naire is not unique to development
need for fire to maintain ecosystem Program (JFSP) has been very sup- of the JFSP smoke science plan.
health and air quality regulations portive of fire smoke research and An earlier Web-based question-
to protect public health. has funded more than 34 studies naire was used to complete a smoke
on the topic, much of this funding research needs assessment in
based on results from needs assess- 1999 (Riebau and Fox 1999). This
Allen Riebau is principal scientist for
Nine Points South Technical Pty., Ltd., in ments. In 2007, JFSP conducted 2 questionnaire was brief (12 ques-
Clarkson, Western Australia. He retired workshops to identify new smoke tions) and took only about 10 to
from the Forest Service as chief atmo- research areas at both regional 15 minutes to complete. A link to
spheric scientist. Doug Fox is the senior
contributing scientist for climate change, and national levels, resulting in 11 the questionnaire was distributed
meteorology, and air quality for Nine recommendations. Some recom- by email to about 150 individuals
Points South Technical Pty., Ltd., and mendations were clearly within the beginning in early October 2009.
retired from the Forest Service as chief
meteorologist and climate change program research scope of JFSP and others Recipients were asked to complete
director at the Rocky Mountain Research addressed technology or procedural the questionnaire themselves and
Station.

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


19
to send the link on to others they egories than those defined that the become more important in the
knew that might have useful input. authors considered meaningful to next decade. (Out of 554 people,
Although, at first, response was the results. only 6 stated that smoke would
light, subsequent email reminders become a less important issue in
fed the momentum of the survey, Twenty-six people responded from the next decade.) When asked to
with 554 people responding before outside of the United States, while rate smoke as a general issue on
the Web-link was deactivated at the the remaining 528 were from a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being “criti-
end of February 2010. Well over within the United States. The great- cal”), 111 people rated smoke as
two times the number of people est number of respondents work for 10, 85 people rated smoke as 9,
completed the questionnaire than Federal Government agencies, pri- 139 people rated smoke as 8, and
were initially emailed. This, itself, marily for the Forest Service. There only 6 people rated smoke as 1
may reflect a grass-roots interest was some representation from most (“safe to ignore”). Thus, 60 percent
in the issues of fire smoke and the of respondents see smoke as one
future actions of the JFSP. (Readers of the top three issues relating to
should note, however, that the It may be that a new natural resources or environmen-
questionnaire was not designed to tal concerns. Sixty-nine percent
meet scientific social sciences sur-
dialogue is needed of respondents stated the reason
vey standards. The questionnaire between those who for this was increasing regulatory
results and following conclusions advocate education pressure by both Federal and State
are based on the authors’ interpre- and social sciences governments, while 47 percent felt
tation of the volume and patterns that smoke would adversely impact
of response to the questionnaire.)
investigations on fire public health. When asked what
Due to the size of the response to and those who advocate might make smoke less important
the questionnaire and strength of air quality and health (or ameliorate smoke concerns),
convictions expressed, we believe science concerned with 72 percent of respondents said that
that the results should be shared. fire smoke. increased public awareness about
smoke might do so. Respondents
Results of the were allowed space for short writ-
Questionnaire ten comments within the ques-
USDA and DOI agencies, many of tionnaire. Two views (expressed in
Who Responded which are significant clients for different ways) appeared repeat-
The questionnaire’s first two ques- JFSP research products. Among job edly: (1) smoke does impact public
tions asked for the respondent’s classifications, the largest group health and no amount of public
employer and primary job function. (190 respondents) defined them- education about smoke would make
Respondents to the questionnaire selves as fire managers or firefight- people accept serious health threats
were offered 31 choices to iden- ers. Table 1 presents the breakdown from smoke; and, conversely, (2) if
tify their employer and 12 choices among the largest groups and posi- the public understood the reasons
to describe their job category. tion classifications. This represents, for prescribed fire (in particular),
These job categories and employer to our knowledge, the largest and they would accept any resulting
choices were developed from our widest response to a wildland fire smoke without hesitation.
personal experience in fire smoke smoke questionnaire to date.
(more than 50 years between the Smoke Research Priority
authors) and our understanding The Importance of Wildland
Fire Smoke One important question in devel-
of the audience for the Joint Fire oping a JFSP smoke science plan
Science Program. As the question- The question “How important is
is the priority of smoke research.
naire was voluntary (not required wildland fire smoke?” has been
Eighty-four percent (450) of the
by employers, for example), it was addressed in published literature,
respondents stated that more
not possible to set targets for a conference proceedings, and in
research should be done on smoke
required number of responses from unpublished internal government
in the United States by universi-
a specific type of employer or spe- documents. Questionnaire respon-
ties, governments, and nongov-
cific job category. There were also dents generally agreed that smoke
ernment agencies (NGOs). When
respondents from different job cat- factors are important now and will

Fire Management Today


20
Table 1—Employers and job functions of respondents to the Joint Fire Science Program Smoke Science Plan development activity
Web-based questionnaire.

Employer Scientist Fire Manager Air Quality Natural


(researcher) or Manager Resources
Firefighter or Specialist Manager
USDA Forest Service 22 94 16 8
DOI Fish and Wildlife Service 0 34 0 3
DOI National Park Service 2 16 1 5
DOI Bureau of Land Management 0 21 0 0
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 4 0 2 0
National Aeronautics and Space Administration 3 0 0 0
(NASA) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA)
U.S. State and Local Agencies 2 18 20 18
International Respondents 12 4 1 2
U.S. Universities 22 1 0 1
Other 5 20 3 20

asked how much of a $100,000


research budget they would spend There was a clear division on the balance
on smoke, 30 percent of the 550
people who answered the ques-
between the need for fire in ecosystems and
tion stated they would spend half the protection of the public from unhealthy
or more of the budget on smoke smoke concentrations.
research and 21 percent stated that
they would spend a quarter of the
budget. Less than 12 percent of listed smoke as most important Joint Fire Science Program
respondents stated that they would and 17 of the respondents chose Smoke Roundtables
not spend any of the $100,000 on to skip the question. Respondents In 2007, smoke roundtables involv-
smoke research and only 6 percent were given the opportunity to write ing invited specialists produced 11
stated they would spend it all on short comments to this question, recommendations for future fire
smoke. Of the respondents who and the comments submitted sup- research needs (SRA 2007). Only
did not recommend spending all ported the tabular results. There about 14 percent of respondents to
the available $100,000 on smoke, was an interesting feature to the the questionnaire stated that they
we asked what other wildland fire responses in that fireline profes- were fully aware of the roundtables
research topics had higher prior- sionals were most supportive of and their results. Forty-nine per-
ity for research in their opinion social research concerning fire (61 cent stated that they had no knowl-
(fig. 1). The 2 most important percent of the fire managers and edge of the roundtables whatsoever.
research issues identified from the fire fighters who responded to the
12 choices given were social issues question), research scientists put Respondents were asked to rate
and fire (48 percent or 259 respon- most emphasis on climate change each of the roundtable recom-
dents) and fire fuels management fire research (51 percent), and air mendations as high, medium, or
(45 percent or 242 respondents). quality managers rated climate low usefulness or need, with an
Running a close third place to change and then smoke research opportunity to state whether they
these two topics were fire ecology as highest priority (45 percent for found that the recommendation
and climate change and fire, tied at climate change and 42 percent for wasn’t useful or was impossible to
41 percent (220 respondents) each. smoke). understand. (The recommendations
Interestingly, 99 respondents still
were not all strictly smoke research

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


21
topics, as some suggestions—such inventory for fire smoke as high a greenhouse gas inventory (also
as holding annual summits to share (61 percent), a campaign for school about 39 percent); the roundtable
information and names of respon- education as medium (41 percent), recommendation with lowest inter-
sible people in agencies concerning and climate change regulation national respondent ranking was
smoke—might best be approached receiving the most ticks for a low that of holding local “summits” to
as topics for government agency ranking (48 percent). exchange information about fire
policymaking or operations.) smoke (39 percent as low and 12
Researchers and scientists who percent as not useful at all).
Fire managers who responded were responded also ranked fire emis-
supportive of a campaign to educate sions inventory their numerically Interestingly, of the 11 recom-
schoolchildren about the need for highest choice of the roundtable mendations, the 2 that directly
fire (54 percent of them ranked this recommendations (49 percent), but mentioned climate change and
as high) but ranked climate change more of them ranked the campaign fire got the most marks for low
issues and fire as low (climate for school education about fires as or no usefulness by the entire
change regulations: 44 percent; low than any other choice (37 per- group of respondents. Although
greenhouse gases: 42 percent; and cent). International respondents to the roundtable recommendations
climate change regulation effect on the questionnaire ranked the two were presented without explana-
fire management prognostication: emissions inventory roundtable tion due to space limitations on the
37 percent). Air quality managers recommendations (for general pol- questionnaire, very few respondents
who work for the Forest Service, lutants and greenhouse gases) as checked a box indicating they could
the U.S. Environmental Protection high (61 percent and 39 percent, make no sense of the recommenda-
Agency, or State and local govern- respectively) but considered the tions (on average about 2 percent)
ments rank the roundtable recom- campaign for school education or didn’t think the recommenda-
mendation for a national emissions about fire as equal in usefulness to tions on average were useful at all
(about 6 percent of respondents).
Among smoke research topics, the
responses to the questionnaire con-
cerning the roundtable recommen-
dations support (1) fire emissions
inventory, (2) fire smoke impacts
to health of populations, (3) a field
experiment(s) for smoke model
performance evaluation, and (4)
climate change smoke issues. Such
topics for smoke research invest-
ments have been identified by oth-
ers (Bytnerowicz and others 2009)
and thus have some confirmation of
these results outside of the smoke
roundtables and the questionnaire.

Two Important
Viewpoints
While many written comments
were received, an interesting over-
all pattern in them emerged. In
general, fire and natural resources
managers (especially those from
U.S. agencies) believe that educa-
Figure 1—Research priorities chosen from 537 people who completed the Joint Fire
Science Program Smoke Science Plan questionnaire. Responses answer the question tion on the need for fire as an eco-
“What issues concerning fires are more important research topics than smoke?” WUI system process will lower the con-
stands for wildland–urban interface. cerns of the public about smoke.

Fire Management Today


22
Researchers and air quality manag-
ers in general (from the comments
they wrote) disagreed and stated
that it is unlikely the public could
be educated or informed in a man-
ner that would make them accept
potential adverse impacts to their
health from smoke. Some com-
ments on either side of this divide
were almost vehement; it may
be that a new dialogue is needed
between those who advocate edu-
cation and social sciences inves-
tigations on fire and those who
advocate air quality and health sci-
ence concerned with fire smoke. A
simplistic way to harmonize these
two views may be to balance the
health of ecosystems and the health
Figure 2—Sixty-seven percent (67%) of all respondents (554) to the Joint Fire Science
of human populations in an as-yet Program Smoke Science Plan questionnaire say that smoke from prescribed fires will
undiscovered, generally satisfying become a more important issue in the next decade. Responses answer the question “Do
manner. you think fire smoke will become a more important issue to society in the next 10 years?”

Conclusions managers who responded indicated there was danger to public health
that education of the public about from smoke intrusion.
It was both gratifying and perhaps the ecological and emergency
even a bit surprising that the ques- response needs for fire manage- It is clear that the debate over
tionnaire drew so many people to ment would ultimately lessen con- wildland fire smoke is far from
respond and that the questionnaire troversy about wildland fire. Air over. Readers of this paper who
was forwarded by so many individu- quality managers didn’t necessarily have been involved in the issue of
als to their colleagues. A conclusion agree that this was so. Almost all smoke, from either air quality or
we draw from this is that smoke respondents indicated that they fire management perspectives, will
from prescribed fires is an impor- expect increasing air quality regula- not find the results reported here
tant issue that many respondents tory pressure on smoke as a pollut- surprising. It is clear that conflicts
said would surely become more ant, with some written responses between smoke production and air
important in the next decade very gloomy about the future of quality regulations are still seen
(fig. 2). prescribed fire in the light of per- as threatening the application of
ceived more stringent regulations. prescribed fire, just as they have
A majority of the respondents There was also a clear division in earlier decades. Of course, a
also voted that the United States between respondents on the bal- common concern of respondents
should spend more research funds ance between the need for fire in is whether or not future regula-
for smoke research, and a major- ecosystems and the protection of tions related to climate change will
ity indicated that about 25 percent the public from unhealthy smoke somehow preclude all prescribed
of fire research funding should concentrations. Some extremes burning, favoring (as expressed by
address the smoke issue. The JFSP in expressed views were that the some respondents) the requirement
smoke roundtable recommenda- public should just accept smoke to turn all excess fire fuels in all
tions were not well known to the or be educated enough to accept U.S. forest ecosystems into boiler
questionnaire respondents, but a that burning to improve ecosystem fuels or biofuels. Although such a
significant number of respondents health should trump concerns for concern may at first appear novel,
expressed that the recommenda- their own health. Another extreme climate change regulations and
tions had value, although to vary- was that fire and resulting smoke fire smoke concerns have been dis-
ing degrees, relating closely to must be stopped at whatever cost if cussed since the 1980s and perhaps
the respondents’ work duties. Fire

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


23
earlier. That such dire circumstanc- Acknowledgement Riebau, A.R.; Fox, D.G. 1999. Technically
Advanced Smoke Estimation Tools
es have not occurred as yet, in our
The authors wish to thank the Joint (TASET): Needs Assessment and
estimation, demonstrates the use- Feasibility Investigation. Joint Fire
Fire Science Program for its finan-
fulness of past smoke science, mod- Science Program. Washington, DC:
cial and intellectual support of this USDA Forest Service, Wildlife, Fisheries,
eling and models, collegial relations
work under the JFSP project num- Watershed, and Air Research. 80 p.
between all parties, and continuing The Society of Research Administrators
ber 10-C-01-01.
thoughtful attention to the issue. International (SRA). 2007. Joint Fire
Science Program Smoke Management
More information on the ques- References and Air Quality Roundtables Research
Needs Assessment. Internal Joint Fire
tionnaire and its results may be Bytnerowicz, A.; Arbaugh, M.J.; Anderson, Science Program Document. 18 pps.
C.; Riebau, A.R. 2009. Integrating fire
downloaded at <http://www.nine- research and air quality: Needs and rec-
Thompson, G. P.; Pouliot, G. 2007. Wildland
Fire in the National Emissions Inventory:
pointsouth.com.au>. Readers are ommendations. In: Wildland Fires and Past Present and Future. Slide presenta-
reminded that the questionnaire Air Pollution. Oxford, United Kingdom: tion. Available online at: <http://weather.
was not a scientifically designed Elsevier. Developments in Environmental msfc.nasa.gov/conference/aq_presen-
Science, Vol. 8: 585–602. tations/Day%202%20afternoon%20
survey and should approach its Riebau, A.R.; Fox, D. 2001. The new smoke pdf/Wildland_Fire_EI_PPF_NASA_
results with that understanding. management. International Journal of AQTeam_2007_TGP.pdf> (accessed June
Wildland Fire. 10 (3–4): 415–427. 2010). 

How Big Was Dodge’s Escape Fire?


Martin E. Alexander

S
everal published accounts In a recent paper (part of a project Operations Safety Conference held
exist of how smokejumper dealing with survival zones for in March 2010 in Portland, OR.
foreman Wag Dodge survived wildland firefighters), Alexander
the 1949 Mann Gulch Fire in and others (2009a) critically exam- For a copy of the paper, includ-
northwestern Montana by setting ined the question of how big an ing an associated presenta-
an “escape fire” in cured grass area was burned off before Dodge tion at, visit <http://fire.feric.
fuels, the most notable among was overrun by the main advanc- ca/36702008/36702008.asp>.
them being Norman Maclean’s ing fire front. They also addressed
1992 book Young Men and Fire. the issue of how tall the flames of References
Two other smokejumpers sur- the advancing fire front were that Alexander, M.E.; Baxter, G.J.; Ackerman,
vived by reaching a rockslide. initially met and ultimately swept M.Y. 2009a. Is a wellsite opening a
Sadly, 12 smokejumpers and a around the area burned out by safety zone for a wildland firefighter or
a survival zone or neither? In: Masters,
local fireguard perished in their Dodge’s escape fire. R.E.; Galley, K.E.M.; Despain, D.G., eds.
attempt to try and outrun the The ’88 Fires: Yellowstone and Beyond.
rapidly spreading grass fire in The contents of the paper pre- Tall Timbers Miscellaneous Publication
No. 16. Tallahassee, FL: Tall Timbers
steep terrain. pared by Alexander and others Research Station: 110.
(2009b) were first presented at the Alexander, M.E.; Ackerman, M.Y.; Baxter,
10th Wildland Fire Safety Summit G.J. 2009b. An analysis of Dodge’s
sponsored by the International escape fire on the 1949 Mann Gulch
Dr. Marty Alexander is an adjunct Fire in terms of a survival zone for
professor of wildland fire science and Association of Wildland Fire held wildland firefighters. In: Proceedings
management in the Department of in April 2009 in Phoenix, AZ, and, of 10th Wildland Fire Safety Summit;
Renewable Resources and Alberta School 2009 April 27–30; Phoenix, AZ.
of Forest Science and Management at
again, as an invited presenta-
Birmingham, AL: International
the University of Alberta in Edmonton, tion at the Pacific Northwest Fire Association of Wildland Fire. 27 p.
Alberta, Canada. CD-ROM. 

Fire Management Today


24
Firefighters Visit Seattle Schools:
Recruiting Realizes Results
Renee Bodine

A
bout 22 South Lake High
School students crowded into
the tiny room listening quietly
to Gerald Williams describe what
it is like to be a Forest Service
firefighter. “I don’t want to sugar-
coat this. This is hard, grueling
work. You dig all day,” he said. He
described fuel breaks and explained
a controlled burn, digging lines,
and how to fight a wildfire in the
middle of nowhere. They liked the
pictures he showed of what could
be their office next summer: tents
staked outdoors with fixed-wing
airplanes and a helicopter in the
background. “We ask you to show
up, ready to work, have a strong
work ethic, and be in shape,” he Gerald Williams, supervisor of Mt. Baker Initial Attack Fire Crew, instructs students
during basic firefighter training, or “guard school.” Photo: Renee Bodine.
said. Students asked questions
about physical training, travel, fire
former student from the commu- those interested in applying to nav-
camp, and money.
nity helps his recruiting efforts and igate through their first experience
gives kids a first-hand perspective with Avue.
Most of the kids Williams recruits
on working as a firefighter for the
are from the city. “The learn-
Forest Service. Williams has been successful filling
ing curve is incredible. Imagine
the six to eight vacancies on his
never having been in a forest
Williams starts in early spring initial attack crew with diverse can-
environment, never even taking
recruiting at local area high schools didates every year since he started.
a walk in the woods, then learn-
and colleges. Williams’ approach His additional recruits round out
ing the business of fighting fires,”
is systematic. For the last 6 years, other fire and recreation crews on
Williams said. Richard Tavares,
he’s started early in the year coordi- the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National
who has worked several summers
nating with Seattle schools, coun- Forest, and the excess candidates
for Williams on the fireline, helped
selors, teachers, the International go to other forests in the Pacific
present to his former classmates
District, tribes, the National Northwest Region. After presenting
and neighborhood friends. He
Association for the Advancement to 60 students at 6 Seattle schools
shared his experiences: camping
of Colored People, and women’s and 2 in Burlington this year, he
outdoors for the first time, trying
groups. Williams schedules back- identified 20 who were serious
to sleep through a thunderstorm,
to-back presentations throughout about going to work for the Forest
and standing on the edge of the
Seattle in early spring. “Finding Service.
Grand Canyon and feeling like
highly motivated recruits who can
he was on the top of the world.
take orders, handle hard labor, “Gerald is successful because he is
Williams explained that having a
who enjoy the outdoors, takes passionate about what he does: fire
extra effort,” described Williams. and outreach to diversity. He does
Renee Bodine is a public affairs officer on
the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest He brings his computer and helps the job, and the candidates respond
in Everett, WA.

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


25
Williams’ 2010 guard school graduates pose with Thomas Taylor, assistant supervisor, after completing on-the-ground firefighter
training. The Mt. Baker Initial Attack Fire Crew takes pride in diversity. Photo: Renee Bodine.

to that,” said Tony Engel, fire man- hours a day, 7 days a week, eating, of a team. “It helps that I hire the
agement officer for the Mt. Baker- working, and resting. “Under these best of the best, highly motivated
Snoqualmie National Forest. conditions, compatibility, camara- people,” explained Williams. “It is a
derie, understanding, communica- hard, but rewarding job.”
When school gets out and the tion, and crew pride are an absolute
recruits start firefighter training, necessity,” noted Williams. For more information about the
Williams immediately sets the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie type 2 initial
tone for the season. He’s build- Williams says his hope is that all attack firefighters, contact Gerald
ing a team—when they deploy to members of his crew get a sense Williams or go to <http://www.
fight a fire, they will be together 24 of accomplishment out of being fs.fed.us/r6/mbs/fire/mbs-ia>. 
firefighters and working as part

Fire Management Today


26
A High-Quality Fuels
Database of Photos
and Information
Clinton S. Wright, Paige C. Eagle, and Diana L. Olson

by making it available in an elec-


The Digital Photo Series is available at tronic format.
<http://depts.washington.edu/nwfire/dps>.
The Digital Photo

P
hoto series and their associated The Natural Fuels Series
data provide a quick and easy Photo Series Fire and fuels management
way for managers to quantify requires extensive fuel and veg-
and describe fuel and vegetation Accurate, complete, detailed fuels
data are critical for fire manage- etation data, like those included
properties, such as loading of dead in the NFPS, to effectively plan
and down woody material, tree den- ment planning and implemen-
tation, but are often lacking, management activities, including
sity, or height of understory vegeta- the application of prescribed fire
tion. This information is critical for insufficient, or difficult to obtain
for many geographic areas or and mechanical fuels treatment.
making fuel management decisions Development of new fire- and natu-
and for predicting fire behavior and ecosystems. Developed to address
the need for high-quality fuels ral resource-based software applica-
fire effects. The Digital Photo Series tions that require fuel and stand
(DPS) is a user-friendly, Web-based information, the NFPS is a printed
compilation of georeferenced data information as inputs further high-
application that displays data and light the need for electronically
images from all 16 currently pub- and photographs that displays
conditions and fuel loadings in a accessible data.
lished volumes of the Natural Fuels
Photo Series (NFPS) (42 differ- wide variety of forest, woodland,
shrubland, and grassland ecosystem The objective of the DPS project
ent photo series for a total of 438 was to create a user-friendly, intui-
sites). The database format of DPS types (Ottmar and others 2009).
tive software application that could
enables searching, downloading, be accessed online or run locally
customized site generation, and The NFPS is built on a well-estab-
lished tradition and methodology and would be capable of displaying
side-by-side comparison of data and site-level data and images in a for-
images. DPS follows the published (see Blank 1982, Fisher 1981a,
Maxwell and Ward 1980a, and oth- mat that is familiar to users of the
volumes in both content and pre- printed volumes of the NFPS. The
sentation. ers). At the inception of the NFPS
project in the mid-1990s, conven- result is a Web-based application
tional printing was the most effec- that provides better access to and
tive way to distribute the images enhanced functionality of NFPS
and data in a concise, economical, fuels data and images. The digital
Clint Wright is a research forester with the
Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research intuitive, and user-friendly package. form of NFPS data provides users
Station, Pacific Wildland Fire Sciences Technological changes enabled us with the ability to view data and
Laboratory, Seattle, WA. Paige Eagle is a
to enhance the utility of the NFPS images across series and volumes,
Web designer and programmer with the
College of Forest Resources, University of
Washington, Seattle. Diana Olson was a
forester with the Forest Service, Pacific
Northwest Research Station, Pacific Photo series provide quick and easy ways
Wildland Fire Sciences Laboratory, and
is now the project manager for the Fire for managers to quantify and describe fuel
Research and Management Exchange and vegetation properties.
System (FRAMES) project in the College
of Natural Resources, University of Idaho,
Moscow.

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


27
to query the database by various use the application with their Web • Select the “Site browser” tab to
criteria (e.g., cover type, fuelbed browser to mimic the online ver- view an expandable navigation
category, species composition, or sion. An installation CD is avail- tree (fig. 3) that includes all 438
Bailey’s ecoregion), to compare the able upon request from the Pacific sites organized by volume.
fuels on sites side-by-side, and to Wildland Fire Sciences Laboratory1. • Create and save custom sites
build and save user-defined fuel- with the controls on the
beds. The DPS complements book A Quick User Guide “Custom site builder” page (fig.
versions of the data, and NFPS data 4); data tables can be combined
The DPS homepage (fig. 1) is
can be extracted from the DPS in a to create custom sites that are
organized into tabbed Web pages,
number of commonly used formats. more representative of a spe-
allowing a user to navigate to photo
The reporting feature allows users cific land management unit or
series sites in a variety of ways:
to print reports or to save data to a desired management state.
a variety of mainstream digital file Custom sites created in this way
• Retrieve sites of interest by
formats (text, spreadsheet, and can be saved and shared between
selecting the “Site search” tab
XML). DPS users.
(fig. 2). Select a specific site or
sites by clicking on the map or
Development and by selecting geographic (State,
The user can access application
Design documentation, a more detailed
Bailey’s ecoregion, and/or land-
introduction, and a description of
DPS developers surveyed users of owner) and/or ecological cri-
the differences between the DPS
the NFPS books and the wider user teria (e.g., cover type, species,
and published volumes of the NFPS
community to determine what fea- and fuel and stand structural
under the “DPS Help” tab on the
tures they wanted to see in the DPS attributes) from the drop-down
far right of any screen. DPS Help
and to ensure that the technology menus below the map. Clicking
includes instructions for navigating
requirements (particularly those on the “Get sites” button will
the DPS (including descriptions of
employed by Federal land manage- display all of the photo series
the site search, site browser, and
ment agencies), interface design, sites that meet the selection cri-
custom site builder tabs), perform-
and output specifications met the teria.
needs of fire and fuels managers
and planners.

Developers scanned film images at


a high resolution, and data from
438 photo series sites were con-
solidated and standardized in a
relational database. The DPS appli-
cation consists of a user-friendly
interface that is accessed through
a Web browser (such as Microsoft
Internet Explorer or Mozilla
Firefox).

In the absence of an Internet con-


nection, a stand alone version of
the DPS (utilizing the desktop
server emulator MicroWeb) can
be used to run the Web site from
a local computer hard drive. Once
the standalone version of DPS is
installed, the user can start and
Figure 1—DPS home page. This page can be accessed directly or through a link
1 Request CD versions of the Digital Photo Series by on the home page for the Fire and Environmental Research Applications team
telephone (206-732-7827) or email (cwright@fs.fed.us). (<http://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/fera>).

Fire Management Today


28
DPS is robust, easy to
use, and can readily
accept new data as they
become available.

of the NFPS books, fire and fuels


planners, managers, and scien-
tists. For example, we would like
to allow data from the DPS to be
easily extracted and formatted to
interface with existing and future
fire and fuel-management software
packages (e.g., Fuel Characteristic
Classification System, BehavePlus,
FOFEM, and Consume 3.0).

At present, the DPS offers wide-


angle photos for each site; we are
hopeful that, in coming years, users
will be able to view stereoscopic
images on a computer screen.
Data from other published photo
series (e.g., Blonski and Schramel
1981; Fischer 1981b, 1981c, 1981d;
Koski and Fischer 1979; Maxwell
Figure 2—Site search page for DPS. Sites can be selected by any combination of map and Ward 1979, 1980b; Ottmar
selection and query building criteria. In the example shown, all sites with ponderosa pine and Hardy 1989a, 1989b; Reeves
in the overstory, manzanita presence, and shrub cover >20 percent were selected from the
438 sites that form the current DPS database. The species search function allows users
1988; Scholl and Waldrop 1999;
the flexibility to search for all species or just overstory species by full or partial scientific Weise and others 1997), or other
or common names. Users can select an individual photograph to view a larger image and photographically documented fuels
detailed site-level information. sources could also be added to the
DPS.
ing tasks (e.g., downloading and to DPS that was not originally
interpreting data files, viewing published in the NFPS (e.g., land- Summary
larger photographs, etc.), and run- owner information and Bailey’s
ning the stand alone MicroWeb ecoregions); in others, data were The DPS is robust, easy to use, and
version of DPS. Links to all of the rearranged and terminology (e.g., can readily accept new data as they
documentation included in the field names and table headings) become available. The DPS effec-
printed NFPS volumes are available was standardized among sites. DPS tively complements printed ver-
in the DPS at the bottom of every also offers a choice of measurement sions of the NFPS by extending the
site-level page; it is very important units: the DPS default is English usefulness of NFPS data. Enhanced
to check this documentation to units (the original NFPS units), but functionality includes the follow-
ensure proper interpretation and users can toggle between English ing:
use of the data for each series. and metric units.
• Data characterizing all of the
vegetation and fuels, not just the
The DPS diverges slightly from the Future Development
published volumes of the NFPS down woody and surface fuels
Enhancements to the DPS will be in an ecosystem, are viewable
in content and presentation. In
released as they are developed, with and available as printed or saved
many cases, information was added
input coming from current users reports.

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


29
Acknowledgments
Numerous individuals contrib-
uted to the successful comple-
tion of the DPS: Alynne Bayard,
Lara Kellogg, Mike Tjoelker, Jeff
Kelly, Joe Restaino, Jon Dvorak,
Aarin Sengsirirak, Paul Campbell,
Frank Archuleta, Ann McCauley,
Noah Carlson, Felicia Mehl, Zhen
Zhu, and Veronica Mendoza. John
Szymoniak helped us distribute our
development survey to Federal fire
and fuels professionals. The mansu-
cript was improved by reviews from
Ernesto Alvarado, Ellen Eberhardt,
and David L. Peterson. The authors
acknowledge funding from the
Joint Fire Science Program under
Project JFSP 04-4-1-02.

References
Blank, R.W. 1982. Stereo photos for
evaluating jack pine slash fuels. Gen.
Tech. Rep. NC-77. St. Paul, MN: USDA
Forest Service, North Central Forest
Experiment Station. 23 p.
Blonski, K.S.; Schramel, J.L. 1981. Photo
series for quantifying natural forest
residues: southern Cascades, northern
Sierra Nevada. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-
56. Berkeley, CA: USDA Forest Service,
Pacific Southwest Forest and Range
Figure 3—Example of site-level data displayed by DPS. Data content and page display
Experiment Station. 145 p.
vary dynamically based on the type and amount of data collected at the different sites.
Fischer, W.C. 1981a. Photo guides for
The contents of DPS can be browsed much as in the printed volumes by using the
appraising downed woody fuels in
navigation tree (left side of page) or by selecting the previous or next site in a series
Montana forests: how they were made.
(lower and upper right of page). Data can be displayed in English or metric units and can
Res. Note INT-299. Ogden, UT: USDA
be printed (top left of page) or exported to a Microsoft Excel, text, or XML file (bottom of
Forest Service, Intermountain Forest and
page). Species are listed with their scientific names; hovering the cursor above a name
Range Experiment Station. 12 p.
will display the accepted common name. Documentation describing the NFPS in general
Fischer, W.C. 1981b. Photo guide for
and the volume or series in particular can be viewed using the links at the bottom of the
appraising downed woody fuels in
page.
Montana forests: grand fir-larch-
Douglas-fir, western hemlock, western
• As a free, Web-based tool, DPS ecosystem or fuel type to com- hemlock-western redcedar, and west-
provides fire management and pare them with other, less famil- ern redcedar cover types. Gen. Tech.
Rep. INT-96. Ogden, UT: USDA Forest
academic instructors with data iar types. Service, Intermountain Forest and Range
and images for a wide variety of • DPS is expandable, allowing Experiment Station. 53 p.
ecosystems. it to accept new NFPS images Fischer, W.C. 1981c. Photo guide for
appraising downed woody fuels in
• Users are able to draw on data and data as they are developed. Montana forests: interior ponderosa
and images from all published Future versions may also incor- pine, ponderosa pine–larch–Douglas-
volumes simultaneously. Among porate data from other published fir, larch–Douglas-fir, and interior
Douglas-fir cover types. Gen. Tech.
other uses, the ability to query photo series or photodocument- Rep. INT-97. Ogden, UT: USDA Forest
across locations and ecosystems ed fuels inventories. Service, Intermountain Forest and Range
allows users familiar with one Experiment Station. 133 p.

Fire Management Today


30
Pacific Northwest Forest and Range
Experiment Station. 230 p.
Ottmar, R.D.; Hardy, C.C. 1989a. Stereo
photo series for quantifying forest resi-
dues in coastal Oregon forests: second-
growth Douglas-fir–western hemlock
type, western hemlock–Sitka spruce type,
and red alder type. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-
231. Portland, OR: USDA Forest Service,
Pacific Northwest Research Station. 67 p.
Ottmar, R.D.; Hardy, C.C. 1989b. Stereo
photo series for quantifying forest resi-
dues in the Douglas-fir-hemlock type
of the Willamette National Forest. Gen.
Tech. Rep. PNW-258. Portland, OR:
USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest
Research Station. 63 p.
Ottmar, R.D.; Vihnanek, R.E.; Wright, C.S.
1998. Stereo photo series for quantifying
natural fuels. Volume I: mixed-conifer
with mortality, western juniper, sage-
brush, and grassland types in the interior
Pacific Northwest. PMS 830. Boise, ID:
National Wildfire Coordinating Group,
National Interagency Fire Center. 73 p.
Ottmar, R.D.; Vihnanek, R.E.; Wright, C.S.;
Olson, D.L. 2004. Stereo photo series for
quantifying natural fuels. Volume VII:
Oregon white oak, California deciduous
oak, and mixed-conifer with shrub types
in the Western United States. PMS 839.
Boise, ID: National Wildfire Coordinating
Group, National Interagency Fire Center.
Figure 4—Custom site builder page in DPS. Custom sites can be developed when 75 p.
users feel that the characteristics of their site are best represented by several different Ottmar, R.D.; Wright, C.S.; Prichard, S.J.
sites in DPS. In the example shown, the species composition and overstory structure 2009. A suite of fire, fuels, and smoke
are represented by two different sites in the mixed-conifer with shrub (MCS) series management tools. Fire Management
from Volume VII (Ottmar and others 2004). Woody material loading and forest floor Today. 69(2): 34–39.
characteristics are represented by two different sites in the mixed-conifer with mortality Reeves, H.C. 1988. Photo guide for
(MC) series from Volume I (Ottmar and others 1998). Medium-sized thumbnail images appraising surface fuels in east Texas:
accompany the data for each site selected. Users can append short descriptions to their grass, clearcut, seed tree, loblolly pine,
custom sites, save the resulting file to their computers, and share the file with colleagues. shortleaf pine, loblolly/shortleaf pine,
slash pine, longleaf pine, and hardwood
Fischer, W.C. 1981d. Photo guide for the Sierra mixed conifer type, Sierra cover types. Nacogdoches, TX: Center
appraising downed woody fuels in true fir type. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-95. for Applied Studies, School of Forestry,
Montana forests: Lodgepole pine, and Portland, OR: USDA Forest Service, Stephen F. Austin State University. 89 p.
Engelmann spruce–subalpine fir cover Pacific Northwest Forest and Range Scholl, E.R.; Waldrop, T.A. 1999. Photos
types. Gen. Tech. Rep. INT-98. Ogden, Experiment Station. 79 p. for estimating fuel loadings before and
UT: USDA Forest Service, Intermountain Maxwell, W.G.; Ward, F.R. 1980a. Guidelines after prescribed burning in the upper
Forest and Range Experiment Station. for developing or supplementing natu- coastal plain of the southeast. Gen. Tech.
143 p. ral photo series. Res. Note PNW-358. Rep. SRS-26. Asheville, NC: USDA Forest
Koski, W.H.; Fischer, W.C. 1979. Photo Portland, OR: USDA Forest Service, Service, Southern Research Station. 25 p.
series for appraising thinning slash in Pacific Northwest Forest and Range Weise, D.R.; Gelobter, A.; Haase, S.M.;
north Idaho: western hemlock, grand Experiment Station. 16 p. Sackett, S.S. 1997. Photo series for
fir, and western redcedar timber types. Maxwell, W.G.; Ward, F.R. 1980b. Photo quantifying fuels and assessing fire risk
Ogden, UT: USDA Forest Service, series for quantifying natural forest resi- in giant sequoia groves. Gen. Tech. Rep.
Intermountain Forest and Range dues in common vegetation types of the PSW-GTR-163. Albany, CA: USDA Forest
Experiment Station. 50 p. Pacific Northwest. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW- Service, Pacific Southwest Research
Maxwell, W.G.; Ward, F.R. 1979. Photo 105. Portland, OR: USDA Forest Service, Station. 49 p. 
series for quantifying forest residues in

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


31
Modeling Post-Fire
Soil Erosion
Esther Godson and John D. Stednick

W
ith the expansion of the
wildland–urban inter- Fire often results in changes in soil
face, social pressures have
increased to reduce potential
properties, reducing nutrient content and
wildfire threats to human life and promoting soil erosion, sedimentation, and
property and minimize the nega- lower surface water quality.
tive environmental effects of fire
(Pierson and others 2001; Elliot
and Robichaud 2001; Parsons
2003; Pyne 2004; Stephens 2005;
Miller and others 2003; Cochrane Bridging Suppression
and Flanagan 2005). The Watershed and Rehabilitation
Stephens and Ruth 2005; Carroll Erosion Prediction Project (WEPP)
and Cohn 2007). Because fire often and the geospatial interface for
Efforts
results in changes in soil proper- WEPP (GeoWEPP) are two process- Initial attack incident organizers
ties, reducing nutrient content and based erosion models developed for (IAIOs), pamphlets used by Forest
promoting soil erosion, sedimenta- forested environments (Flanagan Service initial attack forces, are
tion, and lower surface water qual- and Livingston 1995; Elliot and used to track fires and collect infor-
ity (Neary and others 1999; Cannon Hall 1997; Elliot and others 2000a, mation on fire suppression efforts.
2001; Ice and others 2004), Federal 2000b; Renschler 2001, 2003). Such IAIOs can contain site-specific
and State land management agen- models predict post-fire soil erosion information, such as fuel type, fire
cies often focus on post-fire soil potential and help resource manag- character, fire spread potential,
erosion control as a first step in ers prioritize areas for site reha- threatened resources, and weather
post-fire site rehabilitation. bilitation (Moody and Martin 2000; conditions (NWCG 2006). IAIOs
Elliot and Robichaud 2001). are maintained for all wildfire
Computer-driven prediction models incidents (types 5, 4, and 3) until
of post-fire soil erosion can aid site Site rehabilitation efforts are often the fire is declared out or until it
prioritization for erosion control limited by funding, time, available becomes more complex (type 2
measures (Robichaud and oth- information, and staff resources or 1), at which point the use of a
ers 2003; Covert and others 2005) (USDA 1995; Robichaud and oth- higher level incident action plan is
and incorporation of geographical ers 2000; Beeson and others 2001; required.
information system (GIS) data has Robichaud and others 2003).
made these models useful water- Furthermore, post-fire manage- The site-specific information gath-
shed management tools (Renschler ment decisions often lack detailed ered by on-the-ground personnel
and others 1999; Flanagan and information about which areas are could serve to increase the accu-
others 2000; Elliot and Foltz 2003; at highest risk of soil erosion and racy of fire severity classification,
where to assign erosion control which currently is based on remote
treatments for watershed rehabilita- sensing imagery, and post-fire ero-
Esther Godson is the assistant tanker base tion. Fire and site characterization sion potential models, which are
manager for the San Juan National Forest based on soil and topography data.
in Durango, CO. When completing the by fire crews during suppression
work presented in this article, Godson was efforts could address this informa- The addition of an IAIO field for fire
a squad leader on the Price Valley heli-rap- tion gap and provide information severity could serve this need.
pel crew on the Payette National Forest in
New Meadows, ID, and a Master’s student
to resource managers immediately
in forestry at Colorado State University after fire containment for better
in Fort Collins, CO. John Stednick is a post-fire management decisions.
professor in the Department of Forest,
Rangeland, and Watershed Stewardship at
Colorado State University.

Fire Management Today


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INITIAL ATTACK FIRE SIZE-UP
IC to Dispatch for Wildfires Models of post-fire soil
Incident Name: ______________________ Date: _______________________________ erosion can aid site
Estimated Size: ______________________ Time: ______________________________
Approximate Location: _______________ Datum: NAD83
prioritization for erosion
Incident Number: ____________________ Lat/Long: DD MM SEC ______ control measures.
UTM: E N _____________
Incident Commander _________________ Legal: T R S ¼ _____
Qualifications ________________________ Estimated # Personnel to Control _______
Home Unit __________________________ ____________________________________
Estimated Equipment Needed __________ Payette National Forest, located
CAUSE: H L INV Needed? ___________ ____________________________________ in west-central Idaho. The forest
IF HUMAN Need: Temp RH_______ Special Needs ________________________ averages 150 fires per year, with
____________________________________
Today’s ERC of Unit __________________ Today’s BI of Unit ____________________
a 20-year mean annual burn area
of 50, 418 acres (20,403 ha); 70
Character % Active ________________ Adjacent Fuel _______________________ percent of the fires are less than
smoldering crowning grass snag
creeping spotting brush/sage log/duff 0.25 acres (0.1 ha) in size. The
running re-prod p. pine study focused on the New Meadows
heavy timber Doug-fir
Estimated Size _______________________ logging slash alpine fir Ranger District, where lower eleva-
spot 1 acre thin slash lodgepole
¼–½ acre 1–5 acres tion, dry grasslands transition to
½–¾ acre 6–25 acres Aspect ________________________ forested uplands (Schnur 2009).
flat south
Estimated Wind ______________________ north southwest The New Meadows Ranger District
0–5 20+ northeast west
5–20 variable east northwest
averages 20 wildfires per year,
Wind Direction ______________________ southeast ridgetop burning an average of 8,000 acres
down canyon north Slope (Percent)_______________________ (3,237 ha) (Buescher 2004).
up canyon south flat 20–40
down slope east 0–20 40+
up slope
variable
west
Position on Slope _____________________ Putting IAIO Data
Fuel Type ________________________
ridge top
upper 1/3
lower 1/3
valley/canyon bottom
to Use
grass snag
brush/sage log/duff
middle 1/3 flat or rolling We used the April 2005 version of
re-prod p. pine Elevation ________________________ WEPP and the March 2005 ver-
heavy timber Doug-fir
logging slash alpine fir sion of GeoWEPP (ArcX 2005.1) to
thin slash lodgepole Remember to give dispatch regular updates.
model soil erosion. Input require-
Management Factors ments for GeoWEPP included a
Values/Improvements _________________ Fuel Continuity ______________________ 10-meter digital elevation model
Close proximity Continuous Fuels
Distance from values Abundant Breaks (DEM) and soils, land cover, land
Potential Fire Size ____________________ Limited Fuel Breaks management, and climate data. We
<1000 acres Potential Duration____________________
1000–5000 acres Short Term
developed a GIS point layer of the
>5000 acres May persist until WX change IAIO fire locations and incorpo-
Barriers (e.g., old burns) ______________ Long Term
Few
rated the IAIO fields wildfire loca-
Moderate tion (latitude and longitude), fuel
Numerous
type, fire character, and fire spread
potential into the model.
Sample page from an initial attack incident organizer for the Forest Service
Intermountain Region (Region 4) showing fire size-up fields.
The fire character and fire spread
potential fields from the IAIOs
Revisiting Fires on objectives were to model post-fire
were used to produce a fire sever-
the Payette soil erosion using IAIO data fields,
determine erosion model sensitiv- ity rating. We assumed that a fire
The Payette National Forest took ity to erosion factors, and propose with high spread potential and
part in a proof-of-concept study future amendments to IAIO input an extreme fire character would
to assess the potential use of the in prioritizing rehabilitation efforts remove a majority of the overstory
IAIOs as a site-specific data source to limit soil erosion. and ground vegetation, and thus
for WEPP and GeoWEPP to aid in rated it as high severity. This cor-
prioritization of post-fire water- We compiled IAIO data for fire relation is not always direct, as fire
shed rehabilitation sites. The study incidents from 2000 to 2004 on the duration and residence time also

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


33
influence fire severity; however, fire and weighted by contributing area ha/yr (19,100 lbs/ac/yr), compared
severity is often quantified by the and length. The flowpath method to 78.2 and 115.7 Mg/ha/yr (69,800
amount of canopy cover removed (although more time-consuming to and 103,000 lbs/ac/yr) for moder-
(Neary and others 1999; Robichaud model) represents a more detailed ate- and high-severity fires, respec-
2000; Parsons 2003). For purposes assessment of soil loss and more tively. Differences in the potential
of modeling, the percentage of can- accurately predicts on-site erosion soil erosion rates from watershed
opy cover removal for low-, moder- impacts (Flanagan and others 2000; and flowpath models were statisti-
ate-, and high-severity wildfire was Renschler 2003; Elliott and others cally significant only for fires of low
defined as 25, 45, and 90 percent, 2006; Schnur 2009). severity.
respectively, using Disturbed WEPP
parameters as a guide (Flanagan Several factors could have influ-
and Livingston 1995; Renschler enced the model’s sensitivity to the
2001). Fire and site increase of fire severity from low to
characterization by moderate. The model’s sensitivity
Erosion Models for fire crews during to fire severity suggests that canopy
the Payette cover change strongly influences
suppression efforts model output (Miller and others
We loaded the IAIO data in the soil could provide 2003). This raises the question as
erosion model to predict soil ero- information to resource to whether there is a threshold
sion rates and conducted a model
sensitivity analysis of predicted
managers immediately of canopy cover removal beyond
after fire containment which other factors become more
rates using wildfire severity, soil important in predicting erosion.
texture (from the Disturbed WEPP for better post-fire
soil categories), and slope as vari- management decisions. The model was found to be less
ables. Soil types were determined sensitive to slope, although pre-
from land cover maps, slopes were dicted soil erosion increased about
input from the DEM, and fire sever- The model was run with IAIO 25 Mg/ha/yr (22,000 lbs/ac/yr) for
ity was based on fire character and data for a total of 62 fires: 38 fires every 10-percent increase in slope
fire spread potential from the IAIO. of low severity, 15 of moderate (Schnur 2009). The IAIOs include
severity, and 9 of high severity slope classes of 0–20 percent,
We used two erosion simulation (Schnur 2009). We then compared 20–40 percent, and over 40 percent.
methods: the watershed method the model outputs for watershed Smaller slope class intervals would
and the flowpath method. The con- and flowpath soil erosion using improve estimates of potential soil
ventional watershed level method Student’s paired t-test (SAS 2006). erosion.
outputs sediment yields and distri-
bution maps from representative
hillslopes, including stream chan-
Relating Erosion and The model was notably less sensi-
Fire Severity tive to soil texture than to slope.
nel routing within the watershed; We assigned four different soil
this method assesses the off-site Predicted soil erosion rates textures to the modeling runs: clay
impact on sediment yield. The user increased with fire severity in both loam, silt loam, sandy loam, and
can set a threshold of concern and simulation models (watershed loam. The sandy loam and loam soil
then map the sediment yield, show- and flowpath). For the watershed textures had the greatest effect on
ing areas where sediment produc- method, the mean soil erosion rate model output: a difference of 0.67
tion exceeds the level of concern. for low-severity fires was 13.3 Mg/ Mg/ha/yr (600 lbs/ac/yr) in soil ero-
ha/yr (11,900 lbs/ac/yr), while soil sion was predicted between the two
The flowpath method differs from losses following moderate- and fire severities (low and high) mod-
the watershed method in that it high-severity fires were ecologi- eled in areas with the sandy loam
simulates and merges soil loss cally similar: 63.6 and 69.4 Mg/ha/ texture. Additional soil information
along all possible flowpaths for yr (56,800 and 62,000 lbs/ac/yr), would not necessarily improve pre-
every pixel within the watershed. respectively (table 1). For the flow- diction of soil erosion potential.
Soil loss is simulated for every path method, the mean soil erosion
flowpath individually, merged, for low-severity fires was 21.4 Mg/

Fire Management Today


34
Table 1—Summary statistics and Student’s paired t-test results for watershed and flowpath methods’ soil loss estimates,
2-year annual average in Mg/ha/yr (lbs/ac/yr) for all fires, according to wildfire severity.

Sample p-Value
Fire Severity Size Soil Loss Mean Std. Dev. Minimum Maximum (α = 0.05)
Low  38 Watershed 13.3 ± 3.2 20 0 111 0.01
(11,800 ± 2,800) (18,000) (0) (99,000)
Flowpath 21.4 ± 4.4 27 0 110
(19,000 ± 3,900) (24,000) (0) (98,000)
Moderate  15 Watershed 63.6 ± 13.9 51 1 186 0.20
(56,700 ± 12,000) (46,000) (890) (166,000)
Flowpath 78.2 ± 15.5 60 0 182
(69,800 ± 14,000) (54,000) (0) (162,000)
High 9 Watershed 69.4 ± 19.9 60 0 154 0.08
(61,900 ± 18,000) (54,000) (0) (137,000)
Flowpath 115.7 ± 33.0 99 3 286
(103,000 ± 29,000) (88,000) (2,700) (255,000)

Summary and sensitive to soil slope, we recom- include the roles of off-site erosion
Recommendations mend that IAIOs have smaller slope and stream connectivity to post-fire
class intervals for more accurate conditions in the fire area. The next
Results from this proof-of-concept modeling and use of fine scale GIS step in site prioritization would be
study suggest that IAIO data can data. to incorporate these considerations
be used in the GeoWEPP model in the post-fire management strat-
to estimate post-fire soil erosion Based on the sensitivity analysis, egy and decision process.
potential. Using this methodology, we recommend that an additional
land managers can better identify data entry field for fire severity be Literature Cited
and prioritize site rehabilitation included within the IAIO, accom- Beeson, P.C.; Martens, S.N.; Breshears,
and make efficient post-fire deci- panied by a description of each D.D. 2001. Simulating overland flow fol-
sions. classification, similar to the fuel lowing wildfire: Mapping vulnerability
to landscape disturbance. Hydrological
type descriptions. This would help Processes. 15: 2917–2930.
Modeling efforts pointed to a few improve rating consistency and Buescher, C. 2004. Annual Fire Report,
issues to be addressed in future use decrease subjectivity. A field guide Payette National Forest. McCall, ID:
of GeoWEPP and IAIO data. Output for classifying fire severity would be USDA Forest Service, Payette National
from the watershed and flowpath Forest. 19 p.
a useful supplement to the IAIOs to Cannon, S.H. 2001. Debris-flow genera-
methods of modeling of soil erosion provide ready classification guid- tion from recently burned watersheds.
differed significantly for low sever- ance for use by suppression forces. Environmental and Engineering
ity fires only, but potential eco- Geoscience. 7(4): 321–341.
Carroll, M.S.; Cohn, P.J. 2007. Community
logical differences between model We also recommend that future impacts of large wildland fire events:
outputs suggest that additional modeling include additional factors. consequences of actions during the
research is needed to recommend fire. In: Raish, C., ed. People, Fire, and
To better anticipate site-specific Forests: A Synthesis of Wildfire Social
one method over the other. Because effects, further investigation should Science. Corvallis, OR: Oregon State
estimated soil erosion rates were University Press: 104–123.
Cochrane, T.A.; Flanagan, D.C. 2005. Effect
of DEM resolutions in the runoff and soil
loss predictions of the WEPP watershed
model. Transactions of the American
Results from this proof-of-concept study suggest Society of Agricultural Engineers. 48(1):
that IAIO data can be used in the GeoWEPP model 109–120.
Covert, S.A.; Robichaud, P.R.; Elliot, W.J.;
to estimate post-fire soil erosion potential. Link T.E. 2005. Evaluation of runoff

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


35
prediction from WEPP-based erosion International Conference on Integrating Renschler, C.S.; Cochrane, T.A.; Harbor,
models for harvested and burned water- GIS and Environmental Modeling (GIS/ J.; Diekkruger, B. 1999. Regionalization
sheds. Transactions of the American EM4): Problems, Prospects and Research methods for watershed management:
Society of Agricultural Engineers. 48(3): Needs. Banff, Alberta, Canada. 15 p. hydrology and soil erosion from point to
1091–1100. Ice, G.A.; Neary, D.G.; Adams, P.W. 2004. regional scales. In: Stott, D.E.; Mohtar,
Elliot, W.J.; Foltz, R.B. 2003. The challeng- Effects of wildfire on soils and water- R.H.; Steinhardt, G.C., eds. Selected
es in developing the WEPP cumulative shed processes. Journal of Forestry. 102: Papers From the 10th International
effects model. In: Proceedings of the 2nd 16–20. Soil Conservation Organization
Forest Engineering Conference, Vaxjo, Miller, J.D.; Nyhan, J.W.; Yool, S.R. 2003. Meeting: Sustaining the Global Farm.
Sweden: 55–58. Modeling potential erosion due to the West Lafayette, IN: Purdue University
Elliot, W.J.; Hall, D.E. 1997. Water erosion Cerro Grande Fire with a GIS-based and the USDA Agricultural Research
prediction project (WEPP) forest applica- implementation of the revised universal Service, National Soil Erosion Research
tions. Gen. Tech. Rep. INT-365. Moscow, soil loss equation. International Journal Laboratory: 1062–1067.
ID: USDA Forest Service, Intermountain of Wildland Fire. 12: 85–100. Robichaud, P. 2000. Forest fire effects
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Elliot, W.J.; Miller, I.S.; Glaza, B.D. 2006. hydrologic and geomorphic response fol- Watershed Management Council
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of Agricultural and Biological Engineers; Folliott, P.F.1999. Fire effects on below- Neary, D.; Martin, D.; Ashmun, L. 2003.
Portland, OR. 11 p. ground sustainability: a review and syn- Postfire rehabilitation of the Hayman
Elliot, W.J.; Robichaud, P.R. 2001. thesis. Forest Ecology and Management. Fire. In: Graham, R.T., tech. ed. Hayman
Comparing erosion risks from for- 122: 51–71. Fire Case Study. Gen Tech Rep. RMRS-
est operations to wildfire. In: The National Wildfire Coordinating Group 114. Ogden, UT: USDA Forest Service,
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and 11th Pacific Northwest Skyline Boise, ID: National Wildfire Coordinating 293–314.
Symposium, Seattle, WA: 78–89. Group. Robichaud, P.R.; Beyers, J.L.; Neary, D.G.
Elliot, W.J.; Scheele, D.L.; Hall, D.E. Parsons, A. 2003. Burned area emergency 2000. Evaluating the effectiveness of
2000a. The Forest Service WEPP rehabilitation (BAER) soil burn sever- postfire rehabilitation treatments. Gen.
Interfaces, Paper No. 005021. In: Annual ity definitions and mapping guidelines. Tech. Rep. RMRS-63. Ft. Collins, CO:
International Meeting, American Society Unpublished draft. Placerville, CA: USDA USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain
of Agricultural Engineers; Milwaukee, Forest Service, Eldorado National Forest. Research Station. 85 p.
Wisconsin. St. Joseph, Michigan: 8 p. SAS. 2006. SAS Enterprise v. 4.1. SAS
American Society of Agricultural Pierson, F.B.; Robichaud, P.R.; Spaeth, Institute Inc.
Engineers. 8 p. K.E. 2001. Spatial and temporal effects Schnur, E. 2009. Using initial attack
Elliot, W.J.; Scheele, D.L.; Hall, D.E. 2000b. of wildfire on the hydrology of a steep incident organizers in prediction of
Disturbed WEPP (Draft 02/2000): WEPP rangeland watershed. Hydrological postfire soil erosion potential. Master’s
interface for disturbed forest and range Processes. 15: 2905–2916. thesis. Fort Collins, CO: Colorado State
runoff, erosion and sediment delivery. Pyne, S.J. 2004. Pyromancy: reading stories University. 77 p.
Available at: <http://forest.moscowfsl. in the flames. Conservation Biology. Stephens, S.L. 2005. Forest fire causes and
wsu.edu/fswepp/docs/distweppdoc.html> 18(4): 874–877. extent on United States Forest Service
(accessed February 2010). Renschler, C.S. 2001. GeoWEPP: the lands. International Journal of Wildland
Flanagan, D.C.; Livingston, S.J. 1995. geo-spatial interfaces for water erosion Fire. 14(3): 213–222.
WEPP User Summary. NSERL Report prediction project (WEPP). Available at: Stephens, S.L.; Ruth, L.W. 2005. Federal
No. 11. West Lafayette, IN: National Soil <http://www.geog.buffalo.edu/~rensch/ forest-fire policy in the United States.
Erosion Research Laboratory. geowepp>. (accessed March 2010). Ecological Applications. 15(2): 532–542.
Flanagan, D.C.; Renschler, C.S.; Cochrane, Renschler, C.S. 2003. Designing geo-spatial United States Department of Agriculture
T.A. 2000. Application of the WEPP interfaces to scale process models: (USDA). 1995. Burned area emergency
model with digital geographic infor- the GeoWEPP approach. Hydrological rehabilitation handbook. FSH 2509.13.
mation. In: Proceedings of the 4th Processes. 17: 1005–1017. Washington DC: USDA Forest Service. 

Fire Management Today


36
Using Trail Cameras To
Understand Fire Behavior
Karen Ridenour and Rich Gray

E
ach year in Texas, wildfire rates of spread, flame lengths, and captured fire photos in this study
events impact many small rural fireline intensity relationships in ranged in price from $80 to $100.
communities. On Thursday, controlled conditions on small-
April 9, 2009, Texas experienced scale fires. Clark and others (2005) Land managers establish objectives
an outbreak of wildfires in 12 used digital video imagery to ana- prior to conducting a prescribed
North Texas counties. In Montague lyze the convective-scale motion burn. Afterward, they can deter-
County, where 7 fires burned inde- in the plane viewed by the camera mine the success or failure to meet
pendently of each other, 36,408 and then develop a computational objectives but generally cannot
acres (14,734 ha) of agriculture observe how these objectives are
land, 86 homes, and 4 lives were met during the burn. Regarding the
lost. A case study team was sent to By using trail cameras, threat to homes in the wildland–
examine the economic, agricultur- urban interface (WUI), understand-
al, and community impacts to the researchers and ing fire behavior and effects that
area, and the factors affecting home professionals can gain take place within different ecosys-
loss during this fire event. a unique view of fire tem types can encourage builders
activity during an event to develop fire-resistant building
Observing Fire From at a low, affordable cost. techniques for homes in areas of
Within high risk.
While collecting data for the case
study, several homeowners indicat-
Monitoring Fire
technique to derive quantitative Conditions
ed that they had acquired images estimates of the convective motion
of the fire within the fire perimeter within a grass fire from the digital The timber fuels throughout
from game cameras placed around video imagery. The latter stud- Montague County were composed
their property. The cameras provide ies yielded valuable information of mixed hardwoods, including
a firsthand view of the fire move- regarding fire behavior, but each blackjack oak (Quercus marilandi-
ment within the cameras’ sight cost thousands of dollars. This cost ca), post oak (Quercus stellata),
range. The study team recognized makes the technology unattainable and, in some places, hickory (Carya
that such images could have great to most land managers and fire spp.) and elm (Ulmus spp.). Dead
value in fire analysis. analysts. oak leaves are sizeable and create a
deep layer of burnable biomass on
Existing equipment can capture Trail cameras are a logical com- the forest floor. These dead leaves
high-quality images, collect data, plement to equipment already increase ember production and
and produce scientific fire outputs being used to study fire behavior. spotting ahead of the fire front.
for examination; however, this Researchers have used buried elec- The undergrowth in some parts of
information comes at an extremely tronic data loggers and surface the study area was so matted with
high cost. McMahon and others thermocouples to capture tempera- greenbrier (Smilax bona-nox), a
(1986) discuss using a low-cost ture dynamics during prescribed thorny vine, that almost impen-
video imagery analysis system to fires, yielding information on etrable “roughs” were formed.
measure fire behavior in both lab heat outputs and rates of spread. Greenbrier can overwhelm the
and field experiments. Nelson and Equipment cost is about $300 per lower canopy of hardwood forests
Adkins (in preparation) studied firelogger (Grace and others 2005). and create elaborate vine communi-
Trail cameras can capture images at ties on hardwood trunks. With each
Karen Ridenour is a GIS specialist and
Rich Gray is mitigation and prevention an affordable cost to complement series of photos, visual inference of
coordinator with the Texas Forest Service firelogger data. The cameras that the fire that took place in specific
in Bastrop, TX.

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


37
post oak areas emerged. Upon early Fire researchers and managers rou- a spike in temperature of a short
examination of images, some infer- tinely map and model fire spread duration. The trail cameras pro-
ences could be made with regard to as a linear progression. Most hom- vided a microsite viewpoint that
fire behavior in the post oak–grass eowners believe that, when a fire revealed not a spike but an arc in
understory ecosystem. moves through an area, there is ambient air temperatures. Ambient

Images taken by a game camera during a wildfire on April 9, 2009, on the property of Dan Cordonnier. Photos: Dan Cordonnier.

Fire Management Today


38
temperatures at one trail camera than 1,000 °F (537 °C) for several The trail cameras revealed that
were elevated to 116 °F (47 °C) for seconds but then logged a drop in elevated temperatures occurred
6 minutes. The fireloggers located ambient temperatures similar to throughout the vertical profile
at ground level measured an that recorded by the trail cameras. of the landscape and not just at
extreme temperature spike of more ground level: not only as radiant

Images taken by a game camera during a wildfire on April 9, 2009, on the property of Robert Lindsey. Photos: Robert Lindsey.

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


39
heat, but as a heated air mass The trail cameras revealed that elevated
affecting the fire environment,
potentially promoting re-burning of temperatures occurred not only as radiant
fuels after the fire front had passed. heat, but as a heated air mass affecting the fire
This heated air mass contributed environment, potentially promoting re-burning of
to long-duration burning in 100- fuels after the fire front had passed.
and 1,000-hour fuels. These fuels
exhibited complete consumption
due to radiant and convective heat
as well as residual burning, which of 110° F (43 °C) for determin- observe flame lengths and the resi-
reflected dry fuel conditions in ing fine dead fuel moisture, which dence time of fire in a particular
the heavy down and dead fuels contributes to such fire behaviors area in order to calibrate BEHAVE
represented in the images. as reaction intensity and rates of runs. These trail cameras could also
spread. Observed temperatures be used to evaluate how prolonged
The massive heat given off by the exceeded that maximum, requiring heat duration affects management
fire created extreme heat pulses an examination of this and other objectives and how the fire affects
that increased the ambient air parameters. targeted vegetation even after pas-
temperature by as much as 32 °F sage of the fire front.
(18 °C) in a matter of minutes; the As land managers plan prescribed
temperatures remained elevated burns and model expected fire Fire Behavior and Fire
above the initial ambient air tem- behavior, real-time observations Protection
perature for 60 minutes. A different could aid in defining objectives
and obtaining desired outcomes. When examining homes in the
trail camera located a mile (1.6 km) WUI, the customary tactic is to
away on the same property pro- Planners should consider the
increase and duration of tempera- protect homes from fire only until
duced a similar long-duration heat- the fire front passes. Given that
ing arc following fire passage. tures in the environment, and mod-
els could be adjusted to reflect this a secondary fire danger remains,
temperature exposure to vegeta- fire managers need to re-examine
Local remote area weather sta- tactical decisions in pretreating
tions validated initial ambient air tion. Trail cameras could be placed
in predetermined locations prior or protecting homes, retreating
temperatures recorded by the trail when safety becomes an issue, but
cameras throughout the burn area. to a prescribed burn and used to
Typically, onsite weather data is
collected at the flank or back of the
fire but does not include data from
the center point of fire activity; trail
cameras could be used to provide
onsite fire weather information as
well as images in the most extreme
area of the fire.

Rethinking Fire
Modeling
Assumptions built into existing
fire models do not accommodate
the temperatures and prolonged
duration of the fire environment
observed in this study. For example,
BEHAVE, a fire modeling program
commonly used to predict wild- Ambient air temperatures recorded on game cameras and surface fire temperatures
land fire behavior, has a maximum recorded on research fireloggers for a wildland fire in Montague County, TX, on April 9,
dry bulb temperature parameter 2009. Although the firelogger captures the extreme temperature spike of more than 1,000
˚F (537 ˚C), the trail cameras reveal longer duration, elevated ambient air temperatures.

Fire Management Today


40
then re-engaging the fire after the
front passes to prevent the delayed
ignition of homes exposed to pro-
longed elevated temperatures.
Ember production, for instance, is
routinely noted in literature as a
major source of home loss in the
WUI. Images from the trail cameras
reveal the showering of embers into
both receptive and nonreceptive
fuels, and large fuels located in dirt
can be seen burning as a result of
fallen embers, not flame contact.

Each trail camera presents a unique


series of images; this information
can be used to make visual infer-
ences that would not be possible
otherwise. As current fuel models
project only average temperatures, Position of camera. Photo: Karen Ridenour, Texas Forest Service, 2009.
the data from trail cameras can
be used to compare modeled and ued ecosystems as well as creation Grace J.; Owens, A.; Allain, L. 2005.
real-time data. Rates of spread in Firelogger user’s manual. USGS Open-
of defensible space around homes file Report 2005-1212. Lafayette, LA: U.S.
different surface fuels, such as grass and communities and implementa- Geological Survey National Wetlands
or leaf litter, could be examined by tion of other activities recommend- Research Center. Version III. 24 p.
this low-cost method. After wildfire ed by Firewise programs. Available online at: http://www.nwrc.
usgs.gov/about/web/OFR2004-1212.pdf
events, data from these trail cam- (accessed June 2010).
eras could provide reference photos Thanks to Dan Cordonnier and McMahon, C. K.; Adkins, C. W.; Rodgers,
of fire behavior to verify rates of Robert Linsdey for providing trail S. L. 1986. A video image analysis sys-
tem for measuring fire behavior. Fire
spread, ember production, and camera data. Management Notes. 47(1): 10–15.
flame length in the area. Also, these Nelson, Ralph M., Jr.; Adkins, Carl W.
trail cameras would help managers References In preparation. Flame characteristics
of wind-driven fires in surface fuels.
determine if prescribed fire objec- Clark, T.L.; Reeder, M.J.; Griffiths, M.; Submitted to Canadian Journal of Forest
tives had been achieved by looking Packham, D.; Krusel, N. 2005. Infrared Research. 
at vegetation impacts based on observations and numerical modelling of
grassland fires in the Northern Territory,
observed time of heat duration and Australia. Meteorology and Atmospheric
fire intensity. Further investigation Physics. 88(3–4): 193–201.
could improve management of val-

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


41
Failure To Communicate:
Improving Radio Discipline
on the Fireline
By Ken Frederick and Mike Tuominen

formal and informal) associated These aren’t the only issues


Editor’s note: This article is with communication using hand- involved with radio communica-
published in conjunction with held, mobile, and base radios. Radio tion. Operations and communica-
Public Safety Communications, discipline falls into three general tions specialists cite several other
where it appeared in issue 76(8) areas: common issues: scanning more
in August 2010. channels than can meaningfully
• Avoidance of offensive, deroga- be understood, overriding another
tory, or disrespectful language in person’s radio traffic, competition

I
t has become one of the most radio transmissions; for frequencies, failure to clear fre-
memorable lines in the history of • Avoidance of radio use that quencies during emergencies, and
American cinema: “What we’ve reflects panic, anger, or other difficulty enforcing standards of
got here is failure to communi- behaviors associated with a loss behavior related to radio use. This
cate.” That line, from the 1967 film of professional composure; and article focuses specifically on the
Cool Hand Luke, aptly and ironi- • Avoidance of pointless traffic in overabundance of radio traffic, its
cally describes a serious issue in radio transmissions—communi- ramifications on the fireline, and
radio communication on wildfires cation that is irrelevant or only how leadership can respond to this
and other incidents: too much marginally relevant to the job at issue.
radio traffic. Rather than facilitat- hand.
ing communication, too much of
a good thing actually causes prob-
lems. Constant radio transmission is likely to diminish a
person’s ability to mentally sort, track, and act on
Overabundant radio communica-
tion isn’t just an annoyance; it can
information in a dynamic environment.
have serious consequences in all
areas of fire suppression. Leaders
in fire and aviation management—
particularly supervisors at the crew
level—should be mindful of radio
discipline and encourage good
radio use and etiquette.

Defining “Radio
Discipline”
Radio discipline is the adherence
to codes of use and behavior (both

Ken Frederick is a public affairs special-


ist with the Bureau of Land Management
at the National Interagency Fire Center
in Boise, ID. Mike Tuominen is a Forest
Service telecommunications specialist
with the National Interagency Incident
Communication Division at the National Handheld radios are indispensible tools in wildland fire suppression. Photo: National
Interagency Fire Center in Boise, ID. Interagency Fire Center.

Fire Management Today


42
Causes of Too Much
Radio Traffic
Buck Wickham is a long-time fire
management officer, operations
section chief, and firefighter on the
Coconino National Forest in north-
ern Arizona. He recalls an instance
that demonstrates how commu-
nication was handled prior to the
widespread use of radios:

At the start of my career in the


early 1970s, I worked at a remote
guard station in central Arizona.
One time, two 80-year-old gents
came to visit my guard sta-
tion, as they had worked there
decades ago. As we visited, we
got to discussing how things Fireline supervisors discuss tactics while working on a large fire in the Pacific Northwest.
Division/group supervisors use multiple radio frequencies to coordinate operations on
used to be. They recalled in the their divisions. Photo: National Interagency Fire Center.
old days, they would climb a tree
after lightning and if they saw a single radio can now operate on crew. Now, the typical type 2 hand
fire, they would naturally head multiple bands, not just multiple crew often has six to eight radios.
over to it. When they arrived, frequencies. In terms of communi- Hotshot crews carry an average
they would assess the fire, and if cation capability, this means we’ve of 11 radios among the crew, and
they could handle it, they would gone from a sedan to a sports car in some hotshot crews supply all 20
pile up some green limbs and just the past couple of years.” But crewmembers with a radio, accord-
set them on fire. This individual one of the downsides of the avail- ing to the National Interagency
smoke column would send the ability of technology is occasionally Incident Communication Division
message to everyone else back at having too much radio traffic. What (NIICD) at NIFC. This abundance
the guard station that they had has caused this? of radios has naturally led to an
the fire in hand and didn’t need increase in the volume of radio
any help. I asked them what they First, the increase in radio chat- traffic.
would do if they needed help. ter is a reflection of our culture
They just looked at each other and society. Our world is saturated Third, placing a radio in a firefight-
and told me, “Son, if we needed with instant communication. Cell er’s hands is essentially an autho-
help everyone knew because the phones, texting, instant messaging, rization to use it. It is, however,
smoke column from the main social networking Web sites, and counterintuitive to give someone
fire got big!” It shows that we other communication technolo- use of a tool like a radio while tell-
have come a long way. gies drive this phenomenon. People ing him or her at the same time to
expect to communicate rapidly, restrict his or her use of that tool.
Technological advances have constantly, and without restraints. Merely having a tool helps create
indeed come a long way. Handheld As younger firefighters enter the the need to use the tool.
radios are far more advanced ranks, they bring these expectations
than their distant cousins of a
generation ago. “One of the new-
with them. Consequences of
est technologies is multiband Overabundant Radio
The second causal factor relates to
radios,” said Mike Tuominen, who Traffic
the sheer number of radios being
works at the National Interagency used in wildland fire. Twenty years The problem of overabundant
Fire Center (NIFC) in Incident ago, hand crews normally shared radio traffic is not new. The 1998
Communications Operations. “A 3 radios among the 20-person Firefighter Safety Awareness

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


43
Study pointed out the same prob- Overabundant radio traffic clogs the airwaves and
lem: “The intended result [of
increased radio communication] is can force necessary communication to wait in line
to increase the flow of important or become lost amid the cacophony.
information through interaction,
without the unintended result
of flooding the available radio over a telephone overshadowed Firefighting pilots are especially
communication frequencies and the cognitive processes needed to cognizant of the distractions
interfering with critical messages” evaluate, compare, and draw infer- caused by too much radio traffic.
(NIFC 1998; emphasis added). ences about a dynamic situation Overabundant radio traffic can pose
(in the study cited: while driving). special challenges for pilots flying
Too much chatter relates to several The parallels between talking on a a firefighting mission without a
significant problems. First, con- telephone while driving and talk- copilot, observed Mark Bickham of
stant radio transmission is likely to ing on a radio while supervising the Bureau of Land Management’s
diminish a person’s ability to men- multiple tasks in a wildfire envi- National Aviation Office. In addition
tally sort, track, and act on infor- ronment are apparent. Acting as a to safely flying the aircraft, solo
mation in a dynamic environment. lookout, directing water or retar- pilots have to communicate with
Researchers have studied how talk- dant drops, and supervising direct dispatch, air attack, other tactical
ing on a cellular telephone affects a line construction are examples of aircraft, and ground contacts on up
person’s ability to sustain his or her firefighting activities that require to three radios. “It’s important for
attention in a dynamic visual envi- a high level of focus and attention. ground personnel to communicate
ronment (Kunar and others 2008). Research suggests that this focus with pilots using clear and concise
They concluded that the cognitive and attention can be impaired by speech,” Bickham emphasized.
processes necessary to converse excessive radio conversation.
Overabundant radio traffic clogs
the airwaves and can force neces-
sary communication to wait in line
or become lost amid the cacophony.
For example, one analysis of radio
traffic transcripts from training
exercises and actual emergencies
found that up to 12 percent of radio
messages went unacknowledged
(Timmons 2007). In many instanc-
es, messages to the incident com-
mander went unacknowledged—
presumably, because the messages
were not heard. This is a significant
safety issue because, when the lives
of firefighters or the public may be
in danger, critical information must
be communicated by radio.

Furthermore, crowded airwaves


tend to trigger unrealistic pres-
sure for additional frequencies on
incidents. Frequencies are finite
resources and simply may not
be available. U.S. Department of
Agriculture and U.S. Department of
A firefighter uses a driptorch to burn out fuels inside a section of fireline. Clear radio
communications are essential to coordinate complex suppression tactics like burnouts. the Interior land management units
Photo: National Interagency Fire Center. with fire management responsibili-

Fire Management Today


44
ties number in the hundreds, yet
these units together have only 208
permanently allotted frequencies.
“Radio frequencies are intangible,
so it’s understandable that people
don’t think of them as they do a
more tangible firefighting resource,
like airtankers and hotshot crews,”
added Tuominen. “Sometimes every
available frequency is being used.”

Some crews attempt to work


around overcrowded frequencies
on incidents by using their home
unit radio frequencies on assign-
ments, especially for intercrew
communication. “What many
A member of the Eldorado Hotshots directs aerial support. When speaking with pilots,
people don’t realize,” said Stephen targets should be described clearly and concisely. Photo: National Interagency Fire
Jenkins, director of the NIICD, “is Center.
that they don’t own their home
unit frequencies.” Radio frequen- 1. Effective preseason training in Mark Bickham. “But it’s a skill
cies are assigned and authorized radio etiquette and use helps that can be improved by prac-
throughout the country by either prevent problems on incidents. ticing in a simulated environ-
the Federal Communications Kyle Cannon is a fire manage- ment.”
Commission or the National ment officer on the Okanogan- 3. Education on radio discipline
Telecommunications and Wenatchee National Forest in can and should occur at inci-
Information Administration. Units central Washington State. As dents. Briefings before shifts
are authorized to use their “home” a former interagency hotshot present a good opportunity to
frequencies only on their home crew superintendent, Cannon address issues like overabun-
unit. That frequency might be in has dealt with radio discipline dant or irrelevant radio traffic.
use in dozens of other localities in issues on many occasions. “We “At each briefing, I mention
the country. “Not only is using a found that carefully addressing the need for brevity and think-
‘home unit’ frequency in another radio etiquette and use issues ing ahead in radio communi-
part of the country illegal, it can before fire season was a good cations,” said Paul Glazer, a
cause serious communication and approach,” he said. “Most hot- communications unit leader
safety problems,” Jenkins noted. shot crews have a good reputa- and National Park Service tele-
tion and senior crew members communications manager in
Improving Radio Use don’t want the crew’s reputation Arizona. “I have a saying that’s
Habits tarnished by improper radio sort of my mantra: ‘On the
communication by newer mem- radio, if you have nothing to
A number of approaches exist for bers of the crew. Once everyone say…don’t say it.’ After a few
alleviating problems in radio disci- knew what our crew’s standards days of repeating that phrase at
pline, etiquette, and use. One thing were, much of the accountabil- morning briefings, all I have to
that will not be done is to start tak- ity for proper radio use occurred say is, ‘If you have nothing to
ing away radios. Handheld radios within the crew.” say…’ and the firefighters will
offer far more benefits than prob- 2. Describing complex situations finish my sentence.” Similarly,
lems, and no one is suggesting the and locations over the radio can safety officers can use a few
removal of radios as a response to be aided by practice. “Clearly minutes at briefings to outline
radio discipline issues. Still, leader- and concisely describing a target procedures for keeping frequen-
ship can take some positive steps to location to a pilot flying above cies clear during emergencies.
improve radio use: a fire is not always easy,” said

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


45
4. Glazer pointed out another People expect to communicate rapidly, constantly,
important aspect of radio dis-
cipline: radio users need to and without restraints. As younger firefighters
think through what they want enter the ranks, they bring these expectations
to say well ahead of keying the with them.
microphone. This point is made
succinctly in a recent U.S. Fire
Administration report: “Prior
to transmitting a message,
firefighters should collect their
thoughts and format the mes-
sage in their head” (USFA 2009).
Time is wasted—and confusion
is created—when people talk
over the radio without saying
what they need to say.
5. Messages about radio discipline
and etiquette can also be pub-
lished in the incident action
plan, posted on bulletin boards,
and placed in dining areas at
the incident command post.
Simple and direct methods of
getting the message to firefight-
ers are useful because, if they
understand why radio discipline
is important, firefighters will be A division/group supervisor conducts a briefing prior to a shift on the fireline. Briefings
much more apt to use self-disci- offer opportunities to reinforce radio discipline principles with firefighters. Photo:
pline to curb poor or unneces- National Interagency Fire Center.
sary radio use.
6. In some cases, operations sec- Conclusion References
tion chiefs have removed crews The radio communication system Hutchins, S.G.; Timmons, R.P. 2008. Radio
from assignments for serious interoperability: Addressing the real rea-
used for incident management son we don’t communicate well during
violations of radio etiquette. across the United States is world- emergencies. Paper presented at the 12th
Though punitive measures are class. Its technological capabil- International Command and Control
almost always a last resort, lead- Research and Technology Symposia;
ity, ease of use, and exceptional 19–21 June; Newport, RI.
ers should maintain meaning- effectiveness add up to a fantastic Kunar, M.A.; Carter, R.; Cohen, M.;
ful accountability for improper tool. This system reflects the inter- Horowitz, T.S. 2008. Telephone conversa-
radio use. agency commitment to excellence tion impairs sustained visual attention
7. After-action reviews are another via a central bottleneck. Psychonomic
in fire management. However, Bulletin and Review. 15(6): 1135–1140.
means of reinforcing good radio the system’s effectiveness can be National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC).
etiquette, especially if a crew degraded by poor radio use habits. 1998. Firefighter Safety Awareness
witnessed an egregious example Study; Phase III: Implementing
Good radio etiquette and discipline Cultural Changes for Safety; Chapter
of poor radio use on an incident. should be practiced by fire crews, 3: Organizational Culture. Boise, ID:
Facilitated learning is a good supervisors, and leaders on the National Interagency Fire Center, p. 73.
method of ingraining positive Timmons, R.P. 2007. Interoperability: Stop
fireline for a safe and productive blaming the radio. Homeland Security
behavior. firefighting environment. Affairs. III(1): 7.
United States Fire Administration. 1999.
Improving firefighter communica-
tions. Special report USFA-TR-099.
Washington, DC: U.S. Department of
Homeland Security. 17 p. 

Fire Management Today


46
2010 Photo Contest
Deadline for submission is 6 p.m. eastern time, Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Fire Management Today (FMT) number of entries taken at any the release, see http://www.fs.fed.
invites you to submit your best fire- time, but you must submit each us/fire/fmt/release.pdf.
related images to be judged in our image with a separate release/
photo competition. Entries must application form. You may not Disclaimer
be received by close of business at enter images that were judged in • A panel of judges with signifi-
6 p.m. eastern time on Wednesday, previous FMT contests. cant photography and publish-
December 1, 2010. • You must have the author- ing experience will determine
ity to grant the Forest Service the winners. Their decision is
Awards unlimited use of the image, and final.
Winning images will appear in you must agree that the image • Images depicting safety viola-
a future issue of FMT and may will become public domain. tions, as determined by the
be publicly displayed at the Moreover, the image must not panel of judges, will be disquali-
Forest Service’s national office in have been previously published fied.
Washington, DC. in any publication. • Life or property cannot be jeop-
• FMT accepts only digital images ardized to obtain images.
Winners in each category will at the highest resolution using • The Forest Service does not
receive the following awards: a setting with at least 3.2 mega encourage or support deviation
• 1st place: One 20- by 24-inch pixels. Digital image files should from firefighting responsibilities
framed copy of your image. be TIFFs or highest quality to capture images.
• 2nd place: One 16- by 20-inch JPGs. Note: FMT will eliminate • Images will be eliminated from
framed copy of your image. date-stamped images. Submitted the competition if they are
• 3rd place: One 11- by 14-inch images will not be returned to obtained by illegal or unauthor-
framed copy of your image. the contestant. ized access to restricted areas,
• Honorable mention: One 8- by • You must indicate only one cat- show unsafe firefighting practic-
10- inch framed copy of your egory per image. To ensure fair es (unless that is their expressed
image. evaluation, FMT reserves the purpose), or are of low technical
right to change the competition quality (for example, have soft
Categories category for your image. focus or camera movement).
• Wildland fire • You must provide a detailed cap-
• Aerial resources tion for each image. For exam- To help ensure that all files are kept
• Wildland-urban interface fire ple: A Sikorsky S-64 Skycrane together, e-mail your completed
• Prescribed fire delivers retardant on the 1996 release form/contest application
• Ground resources Clark Peak Fire, Coronado and digital image file at the same
• Miscellaneous (fire effects, fire National Forest, AZ. time.
weather, fire-dependent commu- • You must submit with each
nities or species, etc.) digital image a completed and E-mail entries to:
signed Release Statement and fmtphoto@me.com
Rules Photo Contest Application grant-
• The contest is open to everyone. ing the Forest Service rights to Postmark Deadline is 6 p.m.,
You may submit an unlimited use your image. For a copy of Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Volume 70 • No. 3 • 2010


47
To fax your orders: 202-512-2104
To phone your orders: 202-512-1800 or 1-866-512-1800
For subscription cost and to Order on Line: http://bookstore.gpo.gov

Mail To: U.S. Government Printing Office - New Orders


P.O. Box 979050
St. Louis, MO 63197-9000

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