Difference between revisions of "Fire issues in California's Central Coast Region"

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== Ecological Benefits of Fire==
 
== Ecological Benefits of Fire==
 
Ecological benefits of wildfire on the Central Coast abound. The following list is a snapshot of some of the many benefits fire brings to the ecosystems of the region:
 
Ecological benefits of wildfire on the Central Coast abound. The following list is a snapshot of some of the many benefits fire brings to the ecosystems of the region:
*'''Growth stimulation of native plants:''' The [[California Chaparral|chaparral]], [[Oak Woodlands of California's Central Coast Region|oak woodland]], [[Coast Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens)|redwood forest]], and grassland ecosystems, characteristic of the region, are well-adapted to fire. Many plants in these ecosystems depend on fire for germination cues, clearing space for growth, protection against disease, and making nutrients available for uptake.
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*'''Growth stimulation of native plants:''' The [[California Chaparral|chaparral]], [[Oak Woodlands of California's Central Coast Region|oak woodland]], [[Coast Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens)|redwood forest]], and grassland ecosystems, characteristic of the region, are well-adapted to fire. Many plants in these ecosystems depend on wildfire for germination cues, restarting the succession cycle, protection against disease, and making nutrients available for uptake.<ref>[http://www.jstor.org/stable/1942434?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents Hanes TL. 1971. Succession after Fire in the Chaparral of Southern California. Ecological Monographs, 41(1)): 27-52. doi:10.2307/1942434.]</ref]
  
 
== Resources at Stake ==
 
== Resources at Stake ==

Revision as of 14:41, 5 April 2017

Note: This page is currently under construction (4/4/17)

A watershed-related topic examined by the ENVS 560/L Watershed Systems class at CSUMB. This page gives a brief history of the major wildfires that have affected the Central Coast since 1950, and strives to portray the benefits and challenges wildfire presents to the people and ecosystems of the region.

Summary

The various ecosystems that comprise the central California landscape have adapted to fire over time.[1][2] As California's population grows, urban expansion into natural areas is becoming more commonplace, creating a higher risk to human life and infrastructure in the event of wildfire. Historically, lightning fires and purposeful ignitions by indigenous tribes ensured rather frequent fires of low to moderate severity.[3] Years of fire suppression, coupled with prolonged drought conditions, however, have changed the fire regime on the Central Coast,[4] yielding a greater challenge when it comes to mitigating fire damage to both ecosystems and man-made infrastructure.

Location and Management

Image 1. Public land distribution in Central Coastal California. Copyright Interactive Outdoors, Inc.[1]

Wildfires in the Central Coast Region occur on both private and public land on the Central Coast (Image 1). Due to the close proximity of different land jurisdictions in the area, fire management often involves multiple agencies including but not limited to: the Forest Service, CalFire, California State Parks, Bureau of Land Management, individual counties, volunteer fire brigades, and other entities that manage open space or rural areas.


In the early part of the 20th Century, United States land managers generally believed that fire exclusion promoted ecological stability. It wasn't until the mid 1960's that fire was scientifically proven to provide ecological benefits, resulting in gradual shifts in fire management policy to allow more fires to take their natural course.[5] As a result of changing policies and shifts in climatic patterns in the western United States, large wildfire frequency and duration have increased and wildfire seasons have lengthened since 1970.[6] Most recently, federal fire management policy has emphasized fuels management treatments such as prescribed burns and mechanical thinning to prevent catastrophic wildfires.[5]

Ecological Benefits of Fire

Ecological benefits of wildfire on the Central Coast abound. The following list is a snapshot of some of the many benefits fire brings to the ecosystems of the region:

  • Growth stimulation of native plants: The chaparral, oak woodland, redwood forest, and grassland ecosystems, characteristic of the region, are well-adapted to fire. Many plants in these ecosystems depend on wildfire for germination cues, restarting the succession cycle, protection against disease, and making nutrients available for uptake.Cite error: Closing </ref> missing for <ref> tag This combination of high temperatures and warm winds contributes to increasing flammability of dead and live fuel sources and exacerbates drought conditions.[6]

Potentially Negative Ecological Impacts of Fire

-Ecosystem type conversion -Difficulty of regeneration after crown fires -increases in turbidity in post-fire flows make it hard for fish to survive.

Ecosystem conversion

http://www.annualreviews.org/doi/pdf/10.1146/annurev.es.23.110192.000431 D'Antonio CM, Vitousek PM. Biological invasions by exotic grasses, the grass/fire cycle, and global change. Annual review of ecology and systematics. 1992 Nov;23(1):63-87.

Negative Impacts for Humans in the Wake of Fire

-Cost to taxpayers for management -loss in tourism, tourism brings in how much revenue per year -mudslides, erosion, impeded access -home and life loss -increased flood risk post fire -decrease in air quality for duration of fire

Past Fires and their Impacts on the Region

Laws, policies, & regulations

Aid from county budgets. State of emergency funding from State of Federal sources.

...What laws, policies, and/or regulations are involved?...

Future research

...What scientific studies are or would be relevant / already completed?.. ...What analytical (e.g. modeling) tools were or could be used?.. ...What knowledge gaps remain?...

...Suggest a CWSP MS thesis topic that could contribute to the issue...

...Suggest a topic for a hypothetical study that had unlimited resources...

References

  1. Stephens SL, Fry DL. 2005. Fire history in coast redwood stands in the northeastern Santa Cruz Mountains, California. Fire Ecology,1(1):2-19.
  2. (USFS)Fried JS, Bollinger CL, Beardsley D. 2004. Chaparral in southern and central coastal California in the mid-1990s: area, ownership, condition, and change. PNW-RB-240. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 86 p.
  3. Keeley JE. 2002. Native American impacts on fire regimes of the California coastal ranges. Journal of Biogeography, 29(3):303-320.
  4. Greenlee JM, Langenheim JH. 1990. Historic fire regimes and their relation to vegetation patterns in the Monterey Bay Area of California. The American Midland Naturalist 124(2):239-53. doi:10.2307/2426173.
  5. 5.0 5.1 (NPS & USFS) National Park Service and United States Forest Service. 2001. Review and Update of the 1995 Federal Wildland Fire Management Policy. (Internet). (cited 2017 April 05).
  6. 6.0 6.1 Westerling AL, Hidalgo HG, Cayan DR, Swetnam TW. 2006. Warming and earlier spring increase western US forest wildfire activity. Science, 313(5789):940-943.

Disclaimer

This page contains student work completed as part of assigned coursework. It may not be accurate. It does not necessary reflect the opinion or policy of CSUMB, its staff, or students.