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International Journal of Wildland Fire International Journal of Wildland Fire Society
Journal of the International Association of Wildland Fire
International Journal of Wildland Fire

International Journal of Wildland Fire

Volume 33 Number 11 2024

WF23199Before the fire: predicting burn severity and potential post-fire debris-flow hazards to conservation populations of the Colorado River Cutthroat Trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii pleuriticus)

Adam G. Wells 0000-0001-9675-4963, Charles B. Yackulic, Jaime Kostelnik, Andy Bock, Robert E. Zuellig, Daren M. Carlisle, James J. Roberts, Kevin B. Rogers and Seth M. Munson

Predictions of burn severity and potential post-fire debris-flow from potential wildland fire showed moderate to high hazard classifications for most Colorado River Cutthroat Trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii pleuriticus) conservation populations in the Green and Yampa Rivers of the Upper Colorado River Basin.

WF24067Pixels to pyrometrics: UAS-derived infrared imagery to evaluate and monitor prescribed fire behaviour and effects

Leo O’Neill 0000-0001-5734-0979, Peter Z Fulé, Adam Watts, Chris Moran, Bryce Hopkins, Eric Rowell, Andrea Thode and Fatemeh Afghah

Uncrewed aircraft systems coupled with infrared cameras offer notable potential to monitor and measure wildland fire, such as prescribed fires. Here, we test the capabilities of a low-cost UAS to measure fire behaviour and effects. We find that estimates of fire consumption (how much fuel is burned) are notably accurate using this approach.

Integrated landscape management policies have recently been implemented in Portugal, aiming to introduce new practices to improve resilience to fires under climate change. This work co-created with relevant stakeholders presents the evaluation of landscape management scenarios with respect to relative fire hazard reduction under future climate conditions.

WF23131Experimental and numerical fire behaviour analysis in Eucalyptus globulus trees

MohammadReza Modarres 0000-0003-4201-0875, Miguel Almeida and Domingos X. Viegas

This research delves into the flammability properties of Eucalyptus globulus trees during different stages of growth, using experimental and numerical modelling for data validation and prediction purposes. The physical and chemical characteristics of the plants are used in reliable numerical studies to discern the interplay between plant age and flammability.

WF24014Avoid getting burned: lessons from the McKinley wildfire in rural Alaska, USA

Jennifer I. Schmidt 0000-0002-0945-3204, Matthew Berman and Christine F. Waigl

We use social, economic, and ecological (SES) factors to model building survivorship within the Alaska boreal forest. Buildings close together (<30 m) and high wildfire exposure values were associated with loss, while more higher value buildings on larger lots survived. A comprehensive SES approach is most effective to reduce wildfire risk.

We used 10 different ready-made land cover products to conduct a wildfire exposure assessment for five communities in Alberta, Canada. We compared the results and found differences between datasets and between communities. We discuss the importance of ensuring spatial information is suitable for the application it will be used for.

WF24038Plant morphological traits and leaf nutrient concentration are associated with flammability and phylogenetic relationships in sub-alpine vegetation, New Zealand

Shanta Budha-Magar 0000-0003-2599-063X, Nicola J. Day 0000-0002-3135-7585, Hannah L. Buckley, Olivia R. Burge, Sarah J. Richardson, Dylan W. Schwilk, Ruby R. Ross and Timothy J. Curran

We measured shoot/whole plant flammability, shoot/leaf morphological traits and leaf nutrient concentrations for 29 vascular plant taxa. While nutrient traits (Mg, K, S, Ca, but not P) were negatively correlated with flammability, these were not as informative as morphological traits (twig dry matter content, retained dead material, moisture content).

WF23079GAMBUT field measurement of emissions from a tropical peatland fire experiment: from ignition to spread to suppression

Yuqi Hu, Thomas E. L. Smith, Muhammad A. Santoso, Hafiz M. F. Amin, Eirik Christensen, Wuquan Cui, Dwi M. J. Purnomo, Yulianto S. Nugroho 0000-0003-3007-9816 and Guillermo Rein 0000-0001-7207-2685

This research aims to understand how wildfires on degraded peatlands contribute to greenhouse gas emissions and haze in the atmosphere. The emissions were found to depend on the stage of the fire (from ignition to spread to suppression), the weather conditions and the properties of the peatland.

A wildfire smoke image generation algorithm based on a generative adversarial network (GAN) was designed. A variety of advanced object detection algorithms were trained using the generated data. The experimental results demonstrated that the addition of generated data to real datasets can effectively improve model performance for wildfire smoke detection.

WF24105Archetypes and change in wildfire risk perceptions, behaviours and intentions among adults in Tasmania, Australia

Sharon L. Campbell 0000-0002-9788-5372, Grant J. Williamson 0000-0002-3469-7550, Fay H. Johnston and David M. J. S. Bowman 0000-0001-8075-124X

Using a representative survey of Tasmanians’ risk perception and likely behaviour to wildfire threat, we identified four archetypes reflecting a spectrum of responses broadly aligning with gender, age, and income. A longitudinal study (2016–2023) showed increased leave intention, with rural men least likely and urban women most likely to leave.

The Hot-Dry-Windy Index (HDWI) was selected to examine atmospheric conditions aloft, instead of just surface weather. HDWI showed significant differences between spread days and non-spread days on 80 large wildland fires in Alberta, Canada. We also identified a minimum forecast timeframe of 16:00–19:00 hours MDT for its application, and three climatologies for context.

Grassland wildfire severity peaked in areas with high fuel content and on steep slopes facing into the wind. Plant production recovery increased with higher fire severity and recovery was generally higher on sites with lower potential productivity.

Tragedy incidents and land management agency initiatives have influenced the creation and evolution of wildland firefighter safety policies and practices. External factors including sociodemographic, material, political, and socio-environmental factors also matter a great deal. Understanding these external factors is essential for improving safety outcomes for firefighters.

Multiple factors have been found to have an influence on the response time of helitack teams on new wildfire starts in Quebec, Canada. Findings highlight the potential for policy adjustments to improve response efficiency, both for getaway time and travel time.

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