Spatial science supports strategic fire planning in the Southern Region
New strategic planning information is crucial for confronting the ongoing wildfire crisis. Prescribed fire, when planned and executed carefully, is a key management tool in this effort. A collaborative initiative between Forest Service scientists, the National Forest System, and partners in the Southern Region will give planners and practitioners landscape-level information to plan new investments in prescribed fire programs when and where they can do the most good.
Changes in land use, forest characteristics, climate, and other factors make mitigating wildfire risks more complex than ever. To meet the challenges of the ongoing wildfire crisis, the Forest Service and its partners have stressed the need for timely information about complex landscapes. Prescribed fire is a principal tool for reducing wildfire risks while improving conditions in forests across the Southern US. Knowing where it can do the most good, with the fewest trade-offs among various goals and costs, helps to ensure the efficient use of historic new investments to safely reduce wildfire risks.
Forest Service scientists are collaborating with the National Forest System, the Southern Group of State Foresters, and the Southeastern Regional Cohesive Fire Strategy to develop transparent, evidence-based tools for prescribed fire planning and decision-making at the regional scale. Researchers are combining the expert knowledge of partners with a large collection of spatial data across all forest lands in the Southeastern US based on assessments of fire behavior, forest conditions, climate, socioeconomic vulnerabilities, population densities, infrastructure, and important watersheds. Synthesizing the factors that collectively drive risk will help planners to know where prescribed fire can be most effective to reduce risks and support fire-resilient communities, while minimizing trade-offs. The collaborative, integrated nature of this ongoing effort with partners ensures the timely delivery of planning-ready information products.
