Climate Change and Fire in Glacier National Park, Montana, USA
Bob Keane, Fire Sciences Laboratory, Rocky Mountain Research Station, USDA Forest Service, Missoula MT
Fire and Climate Change
Summary of past research
FUELS Greater loadings Greater accumulation rates Higher contagion Continuous crown fuels More crown layers More fine fuels FIRES Larger More intense More severe More crown fires Greater smoke Longer fire season
Primary Cause: Warmer, wetter climates increase vegetation productivity
Fire and Climate Change
Summary of past research
VEGETATION Larger patch sizes Less old growth Decline of alpine More early seral communities Less snags Homogeneous landscapes Fire colonizers dominant
Fire and Climate Change
Implications of past research
LAND MANAGEMENT Atypical patch dynamics Loss of protected species Severe site restoration Increased erosion Changes in hydrology FIRE MANAGEMENT Difficult to control Increased loss of property or life Greater use of prescribed burning Unknown fuel complexes
Fire and Climate Change
Summary of other research studies
Earlier and later fire seasons More severe fire danger Intensified summer drought Increased lightning activity Higher number escaped fires Increase in area burned Greater intensities and flame lengths Change in fire seasonality Greater variability in winds
Fire and Climate Change
Closing Comments
Climate effects on fire regimes Pronounced during transition phase Exacerbated by other processes Fire exclusion Exotics Harvesting Insects/Disease Many climate change effects are unknown