The Aesthetics of Fire

Longleaf Pine Savanna Following a
Growing Season Prescribed Burn

Prescribed and wildland fires have the power to change a landscape in ways that cause people to enjoy, dislike, or feel ambivalent about nature, depending on their personal tastes and cultural background. Aesthetics has the potential to influence fire management. Public perceptions impact land management plans and influence national regulations, so it is necessary for managers to consider the visual quality of the landscape.

A person’s aesthetic preferences influence whether he or she will approve of the way a landscape is managed. People tend to believe that beautiful landscapes are also healthy landscapes, regardless of their attitudes about environmental protection (Ribe 2002). Environmental attitudes do influence whether people believe the visual appeal of the landscape is related to ecosystem health and the appropriateness of management decisions (Ribe 2002). The public is more likely to accept management activities if they perceive the landscape in positive terms, but managers cannot assume that everyone who rates the visual appeal of a landscape as high will also accept management activities. If a landscape is not visually pleasing, people may believe that it is not being managed properly (Sheppard, Achiam, D’Eon 2004).

The effect of fires and prescribed burns on the aesthetic quality of a forest are not always clear. They may be positive or negative; but in most cases, forest aesthetics are enhanced by fire. For example, one of the many benefits of prescribed fire is that it can create an open park-like setting with large trees that can be easily viewed by the public (DeBano and others 1998; Van Lear 1985). Forest settings with long views and colorful plants are usually found to be more aesthetically pleasing to the public than less open views (Brush 1979). Burning may also increase the flowering of some species (Wade 1989) adding to the aesthetic quality of the site.

Longeaf Pine Island in Ocala National Forest

This section of the encyclopedia includes information about:

• the meaning of aesthetics
• national legislation related to the aesthetics of American landscapes
• planning tools for managing landscape aesthetics
• using fire to manage aesthetics
• fire, aesthetics, and recreation