Restoration of Fire-adapted Ecosystems in the Central and Southern Appalachians

Transcription

1 Restoration of Fire-adapted Ecosystems in the Central and Southern Appalachians Marek Smith The Nature Conservancy A Courthouse Hill Road Warm Springs, VA Sam Lindblom The Nature Conservancy 490 Westfield Road Charlottesville, VA Steve Croy US Forest Service George Washington & Jefferson National Forests 5162 Valleypointe Parkway Roanoke, VA Margit Bucher The Nature Conservancy 4705 University Drive, Suite 290 Durham, NC Beth Buchanan US Forest Service, Southern Region 422 Forestry Road Hot Springs, VA

2 Landscape by Landscape The Fire Learning Network is a model for collaborative, landscape-scale restoration, facilitated by The Nature Conservancy in partnership with the US Department of the Interior Agencies, USDA Forest Service and others. We work with people in places to restore a culturally and ecologically acceptable role for fire. Ultimate outcome is on the ground biodiversity conservation at scale.

3 The U.S. Fire Learning Network

4 Some Features of the Network Purpose is to: Build capacity for conservation action; Create and/or share know-how within and between landscapes and Networks; Conceive, initiate and adaptively manage a landscape conservation strategy; Navigate barriers to implementation; and Accelerate conservation efforts on participating landscapes

5 The Collaborative Network Process Workshop 1 Collaborative vision and goals landscape-scale ecological models Workshop 2 Spatially-explicit desired conditions, restoration priorities and strategies learning before, learning during, learning after Workshop 4 Implementation capacity, monitoring, being adaptive Workshop 3 Identify top barriers, collaborative priorities, responsibilities and schedules; make tangible progress in one or more priority actions

6 Products of FLN Landscapes Conceptual ecological models Landscape-scale fire management goals Current and Desired Future Conditions across landscape Monitoring and adaptive management plan Identification of community values to help choose desired future condition Alternative fire regime and restoration strategies Evaluation of ecological and social outcomes of alternative strategies Identification of primary barriers and solutions to short-term implementation Short-term (2- to 3-year) priorities for taking action Three-year implementation plan

7 Understanding the Historic Fire Regime Soil Charcoal Peat Bog Deposits Historical & Archeological Accounts Lightning Records Dendrochronology

8 Understanding the Historic Fire Regime Historical & Archeological Accounts

9 Understanding the Historic Fire Regime Dendrochronology Trees and shrubs Harmon 1982 Sutherland et al Sutherland 1997 Shumway et al Armbrister 2002 Schuler and McClain 2003 DeWesse 2007 Lafon and Grissino-Mayer 2007 McEwan et al Hoss et al Aldrich et al. 2010

10 Understanding the Historic Fire Regime Pitch Pine Cross Section Kelly Mountain/Big Levels Fire Return Interval ~ 7 years

11 Understanding the Historic Fire Regime Aldrich, S.R., C.W. Lafon, H.D. Grissin-Mayer, G.G. DeWeese, and J.A. Hoss Three Centuries of fire in montane pine-oak stands on a temperate forest landscape. Applied Vegetation Science 13:36-46

12 Understanding the Historic Fire Regime Soil Charcoal Dr. Lisa Kennedy, Virginia Tech, Department of Geography

13 Fire-adapted Ecological Systems Dry Oak Woodland High Elevation Red Oak Dry-Mesic Oak Hickory Pine-Oak Heath

14 Ecological Models

15 Ecological Models Pine-Oak-Heath Woodlands Spur Ridges, Acidic Sites, Knobs, etc. Conceptual Ecological Model Dec, 2007 Mid-Seral Pine/ Oak/Heath Woodland w/ Open Canopy Frequent, low severity fire No fire Catastrophic event Catastrophic Event Mid-Seral Maple/ Oak/Heath Forest Closed Canopy Frequent, Low to moderate severity fire Catastrophic Event Early Successional Species No fire No fire Frequent, moderate severity fire Late-Seral Pine/Oak/ Heath Woodlands Open Canopy Catastrophic Event Frequent, moderate to high severity fire No fire Frequent, Low to moderate severity fire Catastrophic Event Frequent, Low to moderate severity fire Late-Seral, Maple/Oak/ Heath Forest- Closed Canopy No fire

16 Ecological Zones Modeling and Mapping Units of land delineating the environment that can support a specific plant community or plant community group under historical disturbance regimes; they may or may not represent current vegetation.

17 Ecological Zones Modeling and Mapping

18 Prescribed Burn Implementation 30,000 acres in Southern Blue Ridge FLN 15,000 acres in Appalachian FLN

19 Fire Effects and Habitat Composition Monitoring

20 Fire Effects and Habitat Composition Monitoring What is in the understory now is likely the future canopy The babies don t look like their parents Stems > 10cm DBH Stems <10cm DBH 24% 12% 13% Pine Pine 64% Oak Other 87% Oak Other

21 Fire Effects and Habitat Composition Monitoring

22 Fire Effects and Habitat Composition Monitoring Second Mountain pre-burn August 7, Note shrub height and density. Fuel Model 5 grading into Fuel Model 9. Second Mountain post-burn June 29, Note re-growth 3-months post-burn and effects from higher intensity fire. George Washington National Forest Pre- and Post-fire Photo Monitoring

23 Fire Effects and Habitat Composition Monitoring 3-months post-burn; Vaccinium replacing Kalmia Castanea pumila and Castanea dentata dominate regeneration Grass-dominated groundcover after 2 burns: 2001 & 2009

24 FLN Outcomes FLN Survey Results: What did the FLN do for you? 72% Improved group process and collaboration 59% MOUs/Agreements signed to create efficiencies for action 52% Appropriate fire restored to landscape 48% Significant cost savings resulted 41% Public acceptance of fire and restoration improved 34% Fire management practices changed for the better 14% Policy change resulted

25 FLN Outcomes

26 Questions? Marek Smith The Nature Conservancy A Courthouse Hill Road Warm Springs, VA Sam Lindblom The Nature Conservancy 490 Westfield Road Charlottesville, VA Steve Croy US Forest Service George Washington & Jefferson National Forests 5162 Valleypointe Parkway Roanoke, VA Margit Bucher The Nature Conservancy 4705 University Drive, Suite 290 Durham, NC Beth Buchanan US Forest Service, Southern Region 422 Forestry Road Hot Springs, VA