Monitoring Prescribed fires

1. Louisa Evers – State/Regional Fire Ecologist Monitoring Prescribed fires

2. Objectives are Hierarchical • Resource Objectives • Fire Effects Objectives • Fire Behavior Objectives • Burning Prescription

3. Objectives must be: • S – specific • M – measureable • A – attainable • R – relevant • T – trackable

4. Element 20 • Fuels information required and procedures • Weather monitoring required and procedures • Fire behavior monitoring required and procedures • Smoke dispersal monitoring required and procedures • Monitoring required to ensure prescribed fire objectives are met

5. Monitoring Methods • Brown’s down woody inventory • Step counts • Photo guides • Photo points • Monitoring forms • Fuels • Weather • Behavior • Smoke

6. Monitoring Tips • Use standard protocols – FFI, monitoring manuals • Use standardized forms • Store the data for later retrieval and analysis

7. Reasons Monitoring Fails • Never completed • Information/data collected but not analyzed • Information/data analyzed but results inconclusive • Information/data analyzed, interesting, but never presented or used • Information/data presented but not used due to internal or external factors • Data/analyses filed but can’t be found • Data/analyses filed on media that become obsolete and not transferred

8. Interagency Monitoring Strategy Key Features • Three intensity levels • Level 1 – GIS maps of treatment areas • Level 2 – qualitative assessment of treatment success on 10% of treatment units • Level 3 – quantitative assessment of treatment success on 1-2 projects per year • Conduct assessments before and after treatment

9. Key Features Continued • Standard protocols and database – FFI • Minimum data standards • Monitor only what is relevant • Additional monitoring paid by other resource programs

10. Goals of Monitoring Strategy • Alter Fire Regime Condition Class • Alter expected wildfire behavior • Alter expected wildfire effects