Doctoral Dissertation Research: A Multiscale Analysis of Natural and Human Influences on the Variability of Subalpine Forest Fire History in Rocky Mountain National Park

University Of Colorado At Boulder, Boulder CO

Investigators

Abstract

Fire is a major ecological agent in the forests of the western United States, and as a result, it important for forest ecosystem preservation and management. Knowledge of forest fire characteristics of frequency, size, and severity, collectively referred to as the fire regime, is essential to understand and manage western forest landscapes. Researchers conduct fire history research by reconstructring past fires in order to identify fire regime specifics for a particular forest type or zone. Whereas detailed knowledge of the fire regime exists for some forest types and zones of the western United States, in the subalpine (higher elevation) forests of the Southern Rocky Mountains ranging from southern Wyoming to northern New Mexico, relatively little is know about the fire regime and the impact of human activities on the fire regime. The objectives of this doctoral dissertation research project are to address the following questions for subalpine forests: (1) What is the natural frequency, size and severity of fire events? (2) What are the influences on the fire regime at different scales, and what are the resulting spatial variations in the fire regime? (3) How and where have human fire suppression practices altered the natural fire regime? To address these questions, the student will combine dendroecological (tree-ring) and geographic information system-based methods to reconstruct the last approximately 400 years of fire history for six subalpine forest drainage basins in Rocky Mountain National Park. Spatial and temporal variations in this fire history record will be examined to determine variations at different scales as a result of influences from local topography, regional climate, and human land-use practices. These multi-scale analyses will help define the natural range of variability of fire in subalpine forests, the relative importance of influences at different scales, and human impacts on this forest ecosytem. The results of this study will advance knowledge about subalpine forest ecosystem dynamics, which is central to forest ecosystem management. Concern over excessive forest fuel accumulation as a result of fire suppression activities combined with the extensive, severe burning of the 2002 fire season and a recent dramatic increase in human population in the forested areas of the region has resulted in demand for forest management action to achieve goals of forest restoration and fire hazard mitigation. To accurately identify forest areas in need of various management actions and in order to focus limited forest management resources, detailed fire history information is needed. In the context of planning forest fire restoration and mitigation projects, this project will provide important information for decision making for both Rocky Mountain National Park and the surrounding Arapaho-Roosevelt National Forest. This project will provide an opportunity for the scientific development of two undergraduate students who will work on the project as research assistants. As a Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement award, this award also will provide support to enable a promising student to establish a strong independent research career.