Pacific Southwest Research Station

Evaluating Alternative Fuel Treatments in the South Shore Wildland Urban Interface Area

Full title: Evaluating alternative fuel treatments in the South Shore wildland urban interface area

Lead Researchers: Morris C. Johnson and Roger Ottmar, Pacific Northwest Research Station

Abstract

We will develop the fuels data and management alternatives needed to reduce fire hazard in the South Shore Project of the Lake Tahoe Management Unit, Tahoe National Forest. Using an integrated approach that links two commonly used tools-the Fire and Fuels Extension to the Forest Vegetation Simulator (FFE-FVS) and the Fuel Characteristic Classification System (FCCS)-we will develop a range of management alternatives appropriate for application in the wildland-urban interface. Alternatives will include various combinations of forest thinning and surface fuel treatments, including the effect of treatments over time. This project builds on the TSC-funded project "Developing FCCS Fuelbeds for the Angora Fire Region" (PIs: R. Ottmar, H. Safford) for which fuelbeds are already developed, many of which will be directly applicable to the South Shore Project. Reducing fire hazard in the WUI is a high priority in the Lake Tahoe basin. By developing a comprehensive fuels map and documenting effective alternatives for reducing fuels, we will provide the scientific basis for hazardous fuels reduction, vegetation management, and restoration in the WUI. Our approach will also provide a clear, visual means of communicating WUI management alternatives to resource managers, local residents, and decision makers. This approach will be applicable for other planning areas in the Lake Tahoe basin WUI areas such as the Incline Hazardous Fuels Reduction and Forest Health Restoration Project.