Pacific Southwest Research Station

Pacific Southwest Research Station
800 Buchanan Street
West Annex Building
Albany, CA 94710-0011

(510) 559-6300

The Fire Effects research group is an administrative unit of six scientists and technical staff pursuing diverse interests in wildland fire dynamics and fire ecology. Major projects employ interagency partnerships that are focused on California, the Southwest US, and tropical forests and savanna of Brazil.

These include:

• a strategic assessment of the continental-scale impacts of fire and fire emissions on climate, ecosystem productivity, and human health in tropical forests and savanna of Brazil;
• development and application of remote sensing technology for fire measurement and monitoring of tropical forest harvesting, forest health, and the impacts of fire on the environment;
• an assessment of the long-term impacts of fuel management in Southwestern coniferous forests; and
• an examination of the consequences and effectiveness of fire management and emergency watershed rehabilitation after fire in southern California.

Treatment Effectiveness Monitoring for Southern California Wildfires: 2003 to 2004 (3.3 mb) Wildfire burned over 750,000 acres in southern California in the fall of 2003 causing extensive damage. Various burned area emergency rehabilitation (BAER) treatments were applied to reuce risk of additional post-fire damage from significant erosion and flodding and from spread of noxious weeds and invasive species. This report, commissioned by USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Region, presents results of monitoring of the effectiveness of the various BAER treatments for the 1st year.

Research Links

• Brazilian Fire Research Project
• Thermal imaging
• Fire imaging Resources
• Quicklook, ExtractImage, etc.

Assets

• Airborne imaging Infrared Spectrometer
• Piper Navajo Research Aircraft
• Image Processing Facilities
• San Dimas Experimental Forest
• Combustion Facilities