2007 Selkirk Burn Monitoring for WBP Restoration
Project: Selkirk Whitebark Pine Restoration Project- Prescribed Burn Monitoring of Natural Regeneration
Agency/Forest or Park/District: Selkirk Mountains, Bonners Ferry Ranger District, Idaho-Panhandle National Forests, USFS, Idaho
Project coordinator: Don Gunter (retired); new contact Pat Behrens
Contact: Pat Behrens – USFS. 6286 Main St. Bonners Ferry ID, 83805. 208-267-6743 pbehrens@fs.fed.us
Cooperators:
Source of funding /amount: FHP: $20,000
Supplemental funding: $18,000 from RAC for mapping and assessment in spring 2007
Dates of restoration efforts: Summer 2007
Objectives
Design and install permanent plots in all 6 burned areas, representing three fire intensity categories. Collect appropriate data from permanent plots to monitor existing trees and regeneration. Determine the success of WBP natural regeneration under differing fire intensities.
Acres/ha treated
1500 acres treated through burning with 120 permanent plots Installed for monitoring of regeneration establishment.
Methods
Provide access to burn areas with helicopter. Forest Service crews will install permanent plot centers. Each of six burned areas will have 10 plots established in each of three fire intensity categories: 6 areas x 3 burn categories x 10 plots = 180 permanent plots. Fire intensity categories will be: hot, cool and none. GPS plot centers and map. Collect data on exiting trees, regeneration and site parameters following typical stand exam procedures.
Planting? If so, source of seedlings? Resistance? No
Outcome
Installation of permanent plots completed in summer of 2007. Monitoring in the future will tell the success of our treatments as far as natural regeneration success by location and burn intensity.
Monitoring since completion of the project
Dates: 2011 was the first year plots were monitored
Plans for future monitoring? Monitoring is scheduled every five years
Will outcome meet goals?
To be determined
Future actions/follow up?
Planting; release of competing vegetation; additional RX burning; verbonone applications to protect mature WBP
Miscellaneous comments
Project went well after design of plots were negotiated with FHP Personnel, Forest Ecologist and District Personnel. Installation and monitoring are complicated by access and TES (grizzly bear and caribou) timing for entry by helicopter. Travel to plots by foot would be extremely time consuming.