Evaluation of Litter Flammability from Dominated Artificial Forests in Southwestern China

Abstract

Southwestern China has a large area of artificial forests and has experienced massive environmental and social losses due to forest fires. Evaluating the flammability of fuels from dominated forests in this region can help assess the fire risk and predict potential fire behaviors in these forests, thus guiding forest fire management. However, such studies have been scarcely reported in this region. In this study, the flammability of litter from nine forest types, which are common in southwestern China, was evaluated by measuring organic matter content, ignition point, and calorific value. All these flammability characteristics of fuels varied significantly across forest types. By using principal component analysis and K-means clustering, litters were classified into three groups: highly susceptible to ignition with low fire intensity (Pinus densata, Pinus densata-Populus simonii, Pinus yunnanensis, Larix gmelini, Pinus armandii), less susceptible to ignition with high fire intensity (Abies fabri-Populus simonii), and median ignitibility and fire intensity (Abies fabri, Abies fabri-Picea asperata, Platycladus orientalis). Our study can help predict the risk and intensity of fires in the studied forests and serve as a source of information for fire management in southwestern China.

Comprehensive Overview of <i>Populus</i> <i>simonii</i> Research in the Recent Years

“…In terms of improving the environment, although P. simonii can be used for vegetation restoration [72], P. simonii is not the best choice compared to black locust and larch [73]. Among fire prevention strategies, mixed planting of poplar and fir (Abies fabri) can reduce fire risk because this mixed forest is relatively challenging to burn [74]. In terms of wood production, Wu Xinhua [75] explored the longitudinal distribution of wood quality changes in artificially planted P. simonii.…”

Characterizing Forest Fuel Properties and Potential Wildfire Dynamics in Xiuwu, Henan, China

“…As discerned from Figure 5f, there is a negative correlation between the ignition temperature and calorific value, suggesting that as the ignition point increases, the calorific value decreases. An analysis based on calorific values and ignition temperatures suggests that the ignition temperatures of forest humus and litter are influenced not only by primary tree species characteristics, such as their wood density, fiber, and lipid contents, but also by the forest structure, species diversity, topographical factors, and fuel load [42].…”