Case studies
Using SDM to Determine Prescribed Burn Sites
A prescribed fire options assessment exercise was undertaken in a workshop setting by the Mount Robson Ecosystem Working Group. The focus of the workshop was the specific management challenges that exist within the lower elevation valley extending through the Park (the Prescription Zone). The purpose of the exercise was to identify, evaluate, and prioritize sites that are suitable for prescribed burning. SDM was used by decision makers in the workshop setting to develop alternatives (options identification), clarify the consequences of the alternatives and necessary tradeoffs, and collectively determine a site for a burn.
Fire management has always played a central role as the primary
tool for controlling the long term processes that underlie the Park's
ecosystem management challenges. The extensive Natural Zone established
to allow fire (and other disturbance) to proceed unencumbered is a key
part of the overall fire management strategy for the Park. The process
of preliminary risk assessment and developing refined management
objectives identified the Prescription Zone where
options for prescribed burns should be actively evaluated. Prescribed
burning has been identified as the primary management tool to address
the legacy of past management in the travel corridor and the current
expanding MPB issues. It also supports the management of long term
climate change risks.
Prescribed fire is viewed as the primary tool available for addressing
inter-related risks and offering the following benefits (Blackwell,
2003):
- Disruption of even age class forests that dominate the lower elevation landscape, contributing to overall wildfire management;
- Enhancement of natural barriers that reduce the horizontal continuity of fuel loads;
- Reduction in the area of lodgepole pine forests susceptible to MPB attack; and
- Regeneration of younger forest age classes that contribute
to biodiversity, regional ecosystem health, and improved wildlife
habitat.