Keywords
simulation modelling, fire management, fire regime, burn probability
Start Date
1-7-2010 12:00 AM
Abstract
Forest fire size distribution describes the quantitative relationship between fire size and its correspondingnumber of occurrences in a forest landscape or region over a certain period. The knowledge of it has beenused in forest fire management planning and assessment. However, there are still limitations in theempirical study of forest fire size distribution because the poor availability and low quality of fire data. Inthis study we explored the stochastic and spatio-temporal variability of forest fire size distribution ofnatural fires in a boreal forest landscape by way of simulation modelling and comparing it to empiricaldata. We found that fire size distribution is stochastic and has significant spatio-temporal variability whichis decided by the causal factors that are stochastic and have spatial and temporal dimensions such asclimate and weather, spatial composition of fuel types, topography, soil types, and water bodies. The burnprobability near water body is much smaller that far from it by fires whose fires of larger size classes whileburn probability by fires of smaller size classes seems more random in space. This findings has importantimplications for forest management planning such as deciding where to put harvest blocks.
Modelling spatiotemporal variability of natural forest fire size class distribution in a boreal forest
Forest fire size distribution describes the quantitative relationship between fire size and its correspondingnumber of occurrences in a forest landscape or region over a certain period. The knowledge of it has beenused in forest fire management planning and assessment. However, there are still limitations in theempirical study of forest fire size distribution because the poor availability and low quality of fire data. Inthis study we explored the stochastic and spatio-temporal variability of forest fire size distribution ofnatural fires in a boreal forest landscape by way of simulation modelling and comparing it to empiricaldata. We found that fire size distribution is stochastic and has significant spatio-temporal variability whichis decided by the causal factors that are stochastic and have spatial and temporal dimensions such asclimate and weather, spatial composition of fuel types, topography, soil types, and water bodies. The burnprobability near water body is much smaller that far from it by fires whose fires of larger size classes whileburn probability by fires of smaller size classes seems more random in space. This findings has importantimplications for forest management planning such as deciding where to put harvest blocks.
