Conifer Encroachment: Effects on Wildfire
Conifer encroachment left unchecked results in high-severity wildfires, depleting perennial grasses and shrubs, increasing bare ground and erosion, and making conversion to weed dominance more likely.
Key Science
- Volatile woody fuel loads can be 6 times higher in Phase 3 woodlands than sagebrush grasslands (Stebleton and Bunting 2009)
- Tree dominance at the time of fire can have a significant impact on understory plant composition and fire severity (Roundy et al. 2014, Williams et al. 2017)
- Conifer management reduces canopy fuels and increases desirable shrub and herbaceous vegetation. It may increase surface fire behavior as a result of a post-treatment increase in cheatgrass and other invasive annual grasses, so trade-offs must be considered when managing for wildfire mitigation goals (Williams et al. 2023).
Additional Resources
- Pinyon-Juniper Encroachment: Effects on Wildfire
-
Guide for Quantifying Fuels in the Sagebrush Steppe and Juniper Woodlands of the Great Basin
