Project Overview

Wildfires are increasing in both size and frequency in sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) shrublands in the Great Basin, USA, threatening valued property and native vegetation that contribute to regional economies, and provide habitat for wildlife including many sagebrush obligate species such as the greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus). Federal, state, and private landowners in Great Basin rangelands commonly utilize fuel breaks to stop or slow the spread of wildfire across the landscape and to protect assets at risk, including homes, infrastructure, high-quality native habitat areas, and farmland. Different types of fuel breaks are utilized either singularly or as part of a system. However, little information is available about the effectiveness of fuel breaks in controlling fire, and what their impacts (either positive or negative) are to natural resources where the breaks are installed. This project evaluates the ecological and economic trade-offs created by fuel breaks commonly implemented in Great Basin rangelands (Figure 1). Our study design builds on strong collaboration with stakeholders, including BLM Twin Falls District and Field Offices, local ranches, Rangeland Fire Protection Associations (RFPA), the University of Idaho Rangeland Center, and the Great Basin Fire Science Exchange (GBFSE). Deliverables include scientific research and models presented at conferences, webinars, graduate student theses, and refereed scientific journal articles.

Objectives 

We propose to evaluate fire, ecological, and economic metrics and outcomes for fuel breaks in sagebrush steppe using existing fuel breaks on BLM-managed land in southern Idaho’s Twin Falls District. Specifically, we propose to: 1. Evaluate the effectiveness of fuel breaks at limiting fire size and fire behavior. We will develop metrics describing the probability of a fuel break controlling fire and measures of fire 7 behavior based on fuels in and near the fuel breaks. We will evaluate the effectiveness of the fuelbreak system for reducing area burned and protecting natural habitat using landscape scale models. 2. Assess the effects of fuel breaks on adjacent plant communities. We will develop metrics for evaluating the plant community composition, and potential resistance to invasion and resilience to fire within and adjacent to existing fuel breaks. 3. Evaluate the net economic benefits fuel breaks create for rural economies. We apply results from objectives 1 and 2 to develop metrics for evaluating the economic benefits of fuel breaks to rural communities.