National database for calculating fuel available to wildfires

Abstract

In recent years, wildfires have emerged as an important part of the global environment. Carbon released from fires during combustion alters the global carbon balance. Smoke emissions are a health hazard to nearby communities [Wegesser et al., 2009], can impair air quality and visibility for hundreds of kilometers downwind (Interagency Modeling of Protected Visual Environments; http://vista.cira.colostate.edu/improve/Data/IMPROVE/improve_data.htm , 2004), and contribute substantially to the global aerosol budget [van der Werf et al., 2006]. As understanding about fire as a global ecosystem process improves [Bowman et al., 2009] and as more and more global fire databases are being built [Giglio et al., 2009], wildfires are increasingly emerging as an important component of Earth system models, particularly those that involve emissions from fires and their effects on climate.