Wildland Fire Effects

Wildfire and Prescribed Fire Effects on Soils

Background

The heat released during wildfires and prescribed fires can modify most of the soil physical, chemical and biological properties. The extent of these changes will depend on soil characteristics and the intensity and duration of the temperatures.

In the context of wildfires, it is of importance to study the effects of fire on soil not only to assess their severity, but also to evaluate the ecosystem recovery capacity.

On the other hand, studying the effects of prescribed fires on soils allows identifying the most suitable conditions under which these techniques should be applied to minimize their effects on ecosystems.

Funding

2016-2019 | FUEGONEO - Effects of thorny shrub prescribed burning for pasture reclamation on soil C dynamics and biodiversity in the Pyrenees (CGL2016-76620-R). Programa Estatal de Investigación, Desarrollo e Innovación Orientada a los Retos de la Sociedad 2016. Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (Spanish Government). Funding: 60,500€. Position: work team. Principal investigator: David-Badía-Villas, PhD. Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Department, EPSH, University of Zaragoza (Spain).

2014-2016 | FUEGOSOL - Restoration of forest areas affected by wildfires (CGL2013-43440-R). Programa Estatal de Investigación, Desarrollo e Innovación Orientada a los Retos de la Sociedad 2013. Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (Spanish Government). Funding: 51,000€. Position: recipient of a PhD contract within the project. Principal investigator: David Badía-Villas, PhD. Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Department, EPSH, University of Zaragoza (Spain).

Publications

Girona-García, A.; Ortiz-Perpiñá, O.; Badía-Villas, D. 2019. Dynamics of topsoil carbon stocks after prescribed burning for pasture restoration in shrublands of the Central Pyrenees (NE-Spain). Journal of Environmental Management 233: 695-705. DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2018.12.057.

Girona-García, A.; Ortiz-Perpiñá, O.; Badía-Villas, D.; Martí-Dalmau, C. 2018. Effects of prescribed burning on soil organic C, aggregate stability and water repellency in a subalpine shrubland: variations among sieve fractions and depth. Catena 166: 68-77. DOI: 10.1016/j.catena.2018.03.018.

Girona-García, A.; Zufiaurre Galarza, R.; Mora, J.L.; Armas-Herrera, C.M.; Martí, C.; Ortiz-Perpiñá, O.; Badía-Villas, D. 2018. Effects of prescribed fire for pasture reclamation on soil chemical properties in subalpine shrublands of the Central Pyrenees (NE-Spain). Science of the Total Environment 644: 583-593. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.06.363.

Girona-García, A.; Badía-Villas, D.; Martí-Dalmau, C.; Ortiz-Perpiñá, O.; Mora, J.L.; Armas-Herrera, C.M. 2018. Effects of prescribed fire for pasture management on soil organic matter and biological properties: a 1-year study case in the Central Pyrenees. Science of the Total Environment 618: 1079-1087. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.09.127.

Mora, J.L.; Girona-García, A.; Martí-Dalmau, C.; Ortiz-Perpiñá, O.; Armas-Herrera, C.; Badía-Villas, D. 2021. Changes in pools of organic matter and major elements in the soil following prescribed pastoral burning in the Central Pyrenees. Geoderma 402: 115169. DOI: 10.1016/j.geoderma.2021.115169.

Francos, M.; Sánchez-García, C.; Girona-García, A.; Fernández-García, V. 2021. Influence of topography on sediment dynamics and soil chemical properties in a Mediterranean forest historically affected by wildfires. NE Iberian Peninsula. Environmental Earth Sciences 80: 436. DOI: 10.1007/s12665-021-09731-2.

Badía-Villas, D.; Esteban-Piñeiro, J.; Girona-García, A.; Ortiz-Perpiñá, O.; Poch, R.M. 2020. Topsoil microstructure changes after a shrubland prescribed burn (Central Pyrenees, NE Spain). Science of the total Environment 748: 141253. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141253.

Armas-Herrera, C.M.; Martí, C.; Badía, D.; Ortiz-Perpiñá, O.; Girona-García, A.; Mora, J.L. 2018. Short-term and midterm evolution of topsoil organic matter and biological properties after prescribed burning for pasture recovery (Tella, Central Pyrenees, Spain). Land Degradation and Development 29: 1545-1554. DOI: 10.1002/ldr.2937.

Badía, D.; López-García, S.; Martí, C.; Ortiz-Perpiñá, O.; Girona-García, A.; Casanova-Gascón, J. 2017. Burn effects on soil properties associated to heat transfer under contrasting moisture content. Science of the Total Environment 601-602: 1119-1128. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.05.254.

Books & Chapters

Fernández, C.; Fernández-Alonso, J.M.; Keizer, J.; Girona-García, A. 2022. Guía para la evaluación de campo de la severidad del fuego en el suelo. Xunta de Galicia. ISBN: 978-84-124269-3-9.

Girona-García, A. 2019. Changes in soil properties after prescribed burning for pasture restoration in shrublands of the Central Pyrenees (NE-Spain). Tesis de la Universidad de Zaragoza 2019-88. ISSN: 2254-7606.

Badía-Villas, D.; Martí-Dalmau, C.; Girona-García, A.; Ortiz-Perpiñá, O.; Casanova Gascón, J. 2017. Chapter 12: Soil thickness affected by fire: changes in organic C content and related properties. In: Bento Gonçalves, A.J.; Batista Vieira, A.A.; Melo Costa, M.R.; Marques Aranha, J.T. (Eds.). Wildfires: Perspectives, Issues and Challenges of the 21st Century. Nova Science Publishers, Inc. Hauppauge NY, USA. ISBN: 978-1-53612-890-1.

Theses

2019 | BSc thesis | Juan Esteban. Short term effects of the prescribed fire of erizón (Echinospartum horridum) on physical soil properties in Yebra de Basa. Final thesis for the degree in Environmental Sciences. University of Zaragoza. Co-supervisor: David Badía Villas, PhD. Grade: 9/10.

2019 | BSc thesis | Héctor Martín. Effects of prescribed burning on soil organic carbon fractions. Final thesis for the degree in Environmental Sciences. University of Zaragoza. Co-supervisor: Oriol Ortiz-Perpiñá, PhD. Grade: 9/10.

2018 | BSc thesis | Inés Paja. Immediate and short-term changes of soil chemical properties after shrubs prescribed burning for pasture recovery in the Central Pyrenees. Final thesis for the degree in Environmental Sciences. University of Zaragoza. Co-supervisor: Raquel Zufiaurre Galarza, PhD. Grade: 9/10.

2017 | BSc thesis | Alejandro Gracia. Post Fire Interrill Erosion in Fornillos de Apiés: Estimated Risk Versus Real Erosion. Final thesis for the degree in Environmental Sciences. University of Zaragoza. Co-supervisor: Oriol Ortiz-Perpiñá, PhD. Grade: 9/10.

Google Sites

Report abuse