COARSE-SCALE SPATIAL
DATA FOR WILDLAND FIRE AND FUEL MANAGEMENT
Now Available: Version 2000
Includes the final products of this mapping effort. Version 2000 products
supercede all other products distributed prior to March 2001. Note:
National Fire Occurence, Fire Characteristic Probabilities (now Potential Fire
Characteristics), and Wildland Fire Risk to Flammable Structures have not
changed from prior versions.
Co-Principals: Colin C. Hardy1 and
David L. Bunnell2
|
Lead Analyst: James P. Menakis1
|
GIS Analyst/Web Developer: Kirsten M. Schmidt1
|
GIS Analyst: Donald G. Long1
|
Graphics Support: Dennis G. Simmerman1
|
System Support:Cameron M. Johnston1
|
1USDA Forest
Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory, Missoula,
Montana
2USDA Forest Service, Fire and Aviation Management, National Interagency
Fire Center, Boise, Idaho
A coarse scale assessment and mapping effort was
initiated as two associated projects. The first project, called
Fire
Regimes for Fuels Management and Fire Use, began in 1997 through
an agreement with
USDA Forest Service,
Fire and Aviation Management, State and Private Forestry. This project
involved mapping and characterization of historic natural fire regimes
and current vegetation conditions, and development of an index of departure
for use in national-level fire management planning. Development of the
initial map of Historical Natural Fire Regimes for the conterminous United
States was done under this agreement. Under the fire regime project, the
concept of risk was defined as the
'risk of losing key components that
define a system' or specifically, losses attributed to the occurrence
or introduction of fire,either wildland or prescribed fire. Within that
framework, we classify current conditions as a function of departure from
historical natural conditions. The second project, now called
Ecosystems
at Risk, was undertaken to add a fire-related component to the
USDA Forest Service's
Forests at Risk project. The
Joint
Fire Sciences Program (JFSP) subsequently funded completion of these
two efforts for interagency use in 1998, with specifications for development
of several additional spatial data layers.
These data integrate biophysical information and
pre-existing remotely sensed products. We have incorporated disturbance
and successional processes, including development of stylized successional
pathways for unique combinations of historical fire regime and potential
natural vegetation. We organized and facilitated seven regional panels
of expert ecologists, silviculturists, and fire managers to review and
refine the spatial data layers, develop the pathway diagrams, and assign
fire management condition classes. These data are intended for national,
programmatic and strategic planning, and will be used by federal land managers,
states, and other non-governmental organizations in fire and fuel management
planning, assessments of ecosystem health, and risk assessments.
Note: These coarse-scale data were developed for
national-level planning. Summaries of the data were restricted to state or Forest
Service regional scales. The data were not intended to be used at finer spatial
scales.
Click theme below to download data products and
documentation (metadata).
For information and questions, please contact
the
Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences
Laboratory
(406) 329-4810, (406) 329-4958
Download data tables of Historical Fire Regimes by
Current Condition Class acreages.
Website Reference:
Course-scale Spatial Data for Wildland Fire and Fuel Management
[Online] (1999, November). Prescribed Fire and Fire Effects Research Work
Unit, Rocky Mountain Research Station (producer). Available: www.fs.fed.us/fire/fuelman
[1999, December]
Hann, Wendel J.; Bunnell, David C. In press (2001). Fire and
land management planning and implementation across multiple scales. Int.
J. Wildland Fire. 27 p.
Return to FS Home Page
Title:
Wildland Fire and Fuel Management
Contacts:
USDA Forest Service, Jim Menakis (406) 329-4958
Phone:
As Listed
Email:
jmenakis@fs.fed.us
Publish_Date:
12/16/99
Expires:
None
Changes were made to this page 09/27/05.