Using 3D data and fire modeling to examine future wildfire risk following understory fuels management in a mixed hardwood forest

Student: Monica Delmartini

Faculty Mentor: Lisa Bentley

Biology

College of Science, Technology, and Business

In the western U.S., fire suppression, logging, and cessation of Indigenous burning have altered forest conditions and shifted species composition. Concerned by threats to forest health, property owners in Sonoma County are undertaking understory thinning to protect biodiversity, reduce hazard fuels, and lay the groundwork for intentional burning. Most thinning projects follow a prescription of removing material <10 in. DBH. This basic prescription is assumed to provide a protective benefit to ecosystems and is based in part on financial and logistical considerations. Data that quantify the effectiveness of this prescription, particularly in hardwood forest types, are currently scarce. Integrating 3D data derived from aerial and terrestrial laser scanning (ALS and TLS) into the physics-based fire modeling platform BurnPro 3D, I will investigate the following questions: Does understory thinning in mixed hardwood vegetation communities typical of eastern Sonoma County lead to decreased future fire intensity in both wildfire and prescribed fire scenarios? And, would hypothetical alternative thinning prescriptions that removed either fewer or more trees provide a significant reduction in forest canopy damage?