“Changes in Forest Structure Following
Dormant Season Prescribed Burns in the Southern Appalachians”
Anais Seychelles2, Craig Breedlove1,
Gabriella Hovis2, Luke Mattson1, Peter Bates1
1 Department
of Geosciences and Natural Resources, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee,
NC
2 Forest Stewards, Inc.
From the
poster:
The past two decades have seen a significant
increase in the use of dormant-season prescribed burning in the southern Appalachians.
The primary goals for burning include fuel reduction and restoring fire-adapted
plant communities that have been altered by nearly a century of fire suppression.
The Southern Blue Ridge Fire Learning Network (SBR FLN) has been monitoring prescribed
fire effects since 2006. If prescribed fire is going to restore desired forest conditions,
it must lead to changes in forest structure. The objectives of this study were to
evaluate how prescribed burning altered forest structure in southern Appalachian
forests.
Support
for this project was provided by the U.S. Forest Service Southern Research
Station and the Southern Blue Ridge Fire Learning Network. In addition, we
acknowledge the assistance and support of all SBR FLN partners, including the
NC Wildlife Resources Commission; The Nature Conservancy; Chattahoochee,
Cherokee, Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests; NC State Parks and SC Dept. of
Natural Resources.