Constraints on Mechanized Treatment Significantly Limit Mechanical Fuels Reduction Extent in the Sierra Nevada

• DOI: 10.5849/jof.14-058
• Publication Date: 2014-12-20T05:07:02Z
• Authors: Malcolm North; April Brough; Jonathan Long; Brandon Collins; Phil Bowden; Don Yasuda; Jay Miller; Neil Sugihara
• Keywords: Prescribed burn; Arable land

With air quality, liability, and safety concerns, prescribed burning managed wildfire are often considered impractical treatments for extensive fuels reduction in western US forests. For California's Sierra Nevada forests, we evaluated the alternative analyzed amount distribution of constraints on mechanical USDA Forest Service land. use current standards guides, feedback from practicing silviculturists, GIS databases, developed a hierarchy biological (i.e., nonproductive forest), legal wilderness), operational equipment access), administrative sensitive species riparian areas) constraints. Of Bioregion's 10.7 million acres ownership, 58% contains productive forest 25% is available to treatment. National forests southern have higher levels constraint due more wilderness steeper, remote terrain. We different found that increasing road building operating steeper slopes had less effect access than removing economic considerations accessing sites regardless timber volume). Constraints habitat areas only reduced by 8%. divided Bioregion into 710 subwatersheds (mean size 22,800 acres) with >25% ownership as an approximation relevant management planning unit fire or "fireshed." Only 20% these enough unconstrained acreage effectively contain suppress treatment alone. Analysis suggests most could be effective if it established fuel-reduced "anchor" which strategically expanded. potential future increases severity, policy restoration might benefit thinning widely used leverage complement fire.