There is a common belief that prescribed burning, thinning trees, and clearing underbrush reduce risks of the severity of future fires.
There is a common belief that prescribed burning, thinning trees, and clearing underbrush reduce risks of the severity of future fires. But is that true? Sometimes anecdotal evidence or limited observations can create doubt. Researchers from the USDA Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station, The Nature Conservancy, and the University of Montana dug deep into the scientific literature for a closer look. Spoiler alert: the answer is “yes” – proactive ecological forest management can change how fires behave and reduce wildfire severity, under a wide range of conditions and forest types.
Researchers found overwhelming evidence that in seasonally dry mixed conifer forests in the western U.S., reducing surface and ladder fuels and tree density through thinning, coupled with prescribed burning or pile burning, could reduce future wildfire severity by more than 60% relative to untreated areas. The study results were recently published in Forest Ecology and Management. You can download this Science You Can Use in 5 minutes for an overview of the research methods, key findings, management considerations, and links to related publications.
Fire is an essential component of many western forests. Yet historic fire suppression and climate change are contributing to increased fire activity and more severe wildfires, where overstory trees are killed. Treatments prepare a landscape, priming the next wildfire to burn at lower intensity, burning underbrush and smaller trees. This preserves more mature trees and helps foster a fire level that is more in balance with the landscape.
Read more at USDA Forest Service - Rocky Mountain Research Station
Photo Credit: fish96 via Pixabay
