Abstract
Across the Boreal, there is an expansive wildland–society interface (WSI), where communities, infrastructure, and industry border natural ecosystems, exposing them to the impacts of natural disturbances, such as wildfire. Treed peatlands have previously received little attention with regard to wildfire management; however, their role in fire spread, and the contribution of peat smouldering to dangerous air pollution, have recently been highlighted. To help develop effective wildfire management techniques in treed peatlands, we use seismic line disturbance as an analog for peatland fuel modification treatments. To delineate below-ground hydrocarbon resources using seismic waves, seismic lines are created by removing above-ground (canopy) fuels using heavy machinery, forming linear disturbances through some treed peatlands. We found significant differences in moisture content and peat bulk density with depth between seismic line and undisturbed plots, where smouldering combustion potential was lower in seismic lines. Sphagnum mosses dominated seismic lines and canopy fuel load was reduced for up to 55 years compared to undisturbed peatlands. Sphagnum mosses had significantly lower smouldering potential than feather mosses (that dominate mature, undisturbed peatlands) in a laboratory drying experiment, suggesting that fuel modification treatments following a strategy based on seismic line analogs would be effective at reducing smouldering potential at the WSI, especially under increasing fire weather.
Highlights
Peatlands, which are wetlands that have accumulated at least 0.4 m of organic soil [1], occupy approximately 21% of the land area in continental western Canada [2]
Sphagnum percent cover was significantly greater in seismic lines relative to the adjacent peatland transects (p < 0.01; Table S1)
Feather moss was typically the dominant ground cover in adjacent peatland transects with mean cover of up to 87%, whereas feather moss was never present in seismic line transects (Figure 1)
Summary
Peatlands, which are wetlands that have accumulated at least 0.4 m of organic soil (peat) [1], occupy approximately 21% of the land area in continental western Canada [2]. In the Boreal Plains (BP) ecozone, peatland carbon dynamics are intrinsically tied to the wildfire regime through the combustion of peat [3] and post-fire ecosystem recovery [4,5]. Under the sub-humid climate of the BP, treed peatlands accumulate similar above-ground fuel loads to upland forests [6] and can influence fire spread and total area burned [7]. With treed peatlands covering ~36% of the BP [14], and the abundance of communities, infrastructure, and industry in the region, a substantial wildland–society interface (WSI) with these ecosystems has developed. Wildfire management is required to protect valuable assets at the WSI [15]; very few studies have examined fuel modification treatment approaches in boreal peatlands for wildfire management [16].
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