Biophysical Fire Risk Systems
Authored By: D. A. Weinstein, P. B. Woodbury
Biophysical fire risk models traditionally use regional characteristics of weather patterns (temperature, humidity, wind), vegetation (fuel type, moisture level), and topography (elevation, slope) to produce a prediction index of fire risk based on historical correlations among these variables and fire. More recently, models are being developed that substitute spatial simulations for some of these correlations.
Subsections found in Biophysical Fire Risk Systems
- LANDFIRE : In response to a need for a national evaluation of the spatial distribution of fire risk, the USDA Forest Service developed a partnership with 4 other agencies to develop LANDFIRE to identify areas at risk due to accumulation of hazardous fuel.
- Wildfire Alternatives (WALTER) (FCS model) : The Wildfire Alternatives (WALTER; http://walter.arizona.edu/index.asp) system for estimating fire risk is being developed at the University of Arizona.
- Expected Net Value Change : A model has been developed for calculating the expected net value change (ENVC) as the product of the probability of a fire at a specific location and the resulting change in financial or ecological value.
Encyclopedia ID: p3212
