This dissertation studies the microeconomics of forest fire suppression programs. It starts with an inquiry into the causes of increasing shares of public land management budgets devoted to wildland fire suppression in lieu of hazardous fuel reduction or other pre-fire risk mitigation programs. The first two chapters consider competing economic...
We compared the potential fire behavior and smoke production of historical and current time periods based on vegetative conditions in forty-nine 5100- to 13 500-hectare watersheds in six river basins in eastern Oregon and Washington. Vegetation composition, structure, and patterns were attributed and mapped from aerial photographs taken from 1932...
In presenting this thesis it will probably be necessary
for me to qualify the usefulness of the paper I am writing.school of
At first glance it would seem to be just a mere recording of
the progress of forest fire protection in recent years and,
as such, to have no...
In this dissertation, I combined a scenario-based, standard-response optimization model with a stochastic simulation model to improve the efficiency of the deployment of initial attack firefighting resources on wildland fires in California and the Republic of Korea. The optimization model minimizes the expected number of fires that do not receive...
Wildfire impacts have increased in recent years. The management response outlined by recent policy initiatives (e.g., the National Fire Plan, Healthy Forests Restoration Act) emphasizes the use of prescribed fire and mechanized thinning to reduce the risk of future fire events. These policies also call for an unprecedented level of...
In the study of rebuilding and recovery after natural disasters in the United States, little attention is paid to understanding how and why people rebuild following recurring, small-scale events, like wildfire. Hazard and risk literature, instead, is focused on understanding how larger communities with greater resources, economics, and social capital,...
This publication provides an overview of how various silvicultural treatments affect fuel and fire behavior, and how to create fire-resistant forests. In properly treated, fire-resistant forests, fire intensity is reduced and overstory trees are more likely survive than in untreated forests. Fire-resistant forests are not “fireproof” – under the right...
The degree of wildfire risk depends on both the probability of an ignition and the potential for damage or harm (such as loss of trees, homes, or even lives). Recognizing that you may have a high wildfire risk is the first step in doing something about it. Whether you own...
Current frameworks for analyzing forest carbon offset projects in disturbance-prone western forests often fail to address the dynamic nature of carbon pathways through time. They do not account for the probability of loss due to wildfire, which can influence the prediction of carbon storage at the end of a planning...
Fire, other disturbances, physical setting, weather, and climate shape the structure and function of forests throughout the Western United States. More than 80 years of fire research have shown that physical setting, fuels, and weather combine to determine wildfire intensity (the rate at which it consumes fuel) and severity (the...
Wildland firefighting is environmentally and socially a risky and complex occupation. Although much attention has been given to understanding the physical components in fighting wildland fire, much less time has been devoted to understanding and developing the capacity of wildland firefighters to handle the dynamic pressures of the physical and...
Forests in the Blue Mountains region of eastern Oregon and Washington are facing a large-scale forest health crisis. Poor forest conditions have greatly increased the risk of catastrophic wildfire. Resource managers in the Wallowa-Whitman, Umatilla, and Malheur National Forests are utilizing prescribed fire and mechanized thinning treatments to reduce hazardous...
Wildfire in dry, frequent-fire forests is a pressing issue for natural resource managers, communities and politicians in the western United States. Area affected by wildfire has climbed steadily over the last twenty years and is expected to increase in the future. Recognition of the importance of both social and biophysical...
Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) technology has grown out of traditional research and military applications and has captivated the commercial and consumer markets, showing the ability to perform a spectrum of autonomous functions. This technology has the capability of saving lives in search and rescue, fighting wildfires in environmental monitoring, and...
Managers and policy-makers across broad disciplines and organizations are calling for a better understanding of public opinion on natural resource issues. One such issue is that of fire and its role in the management of our forests and rangelands. Public perceptions of fuel reduction techniques, with a particular emphasis on...
Within the U.S. there is a growing interest in the case of female adolescents being coerced into the sex industry (Bernstein, 2010; Estes & Weiner, 2001; Soderlund, 2010; Williams and Frederick, 2009). This interest, which emerged due to U.S. involvement in the international trafficking phenomena and grassroots organizing, has resulted...
Fuel reduction treatments are being applied to public lands, affecting significant acreage at considerable expense. This study compares the short term effects on a chaparral plant community of two different fuel reduction methods, brush mastication and "hand piling and burning" (HPB). Ceanothus cuneatus dominated the southwestern Oregon study sites where...
The purpose of this study was to describe Iranian immigrant
women's knowledge, beliefs and attitudes towards breast cancer,
and their breast cancer screening behaviors. Specifically, this
research examined the predictors of age-specific breast cancer
screening participation among this population. The participants in
this study consisted (n=34 1) of self-identified first...
The Pacific Northwest has become one of the nation’s premier sweet cherry,
Prunus avium, production areas. As production of sweet cherries has flourished in
Oregon and Washington, so has powdery mildew, caused by the fungus
Podosphaera clandestina, which infects both foliage and fruit causing severe
economic damage to growers. Sweet...
Climate exerts considerable control on wildfire regimes, and climate and wildfire are both major drivers of forest growth and succession in interior Northwest forests. Estimating potential response of these landscapes to anticipated changes in climate helps researchers and land managers understand and mitigate impacts of climate change on important ecological...
Wildland fires are an increasingly extensive, expensive, and frequent occurrence in dry forests of the western United States. Fuel reduction treatments are designed to reduce extreme fire behavior, promote resilient forest structure, and facilitate fire control efforts. Although there is widespread recognition that repeated treatments are needed to maintain desired...
The purpose of the workshop was to exchange information on sampling procedures, research methodologies, preparation and
interpretation of specimen material, terminology, and the application
and significance of findings, emphasizing the relationship of dendrochronology procedures to fire history interpretations.
The decisions in Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County v. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 531 U.S. 159 (2001) (SWANCC) and Rapanos v. United States, 547 U.S. ___(2006), deviated from the more broad interpretations of congressional intent granted by the court in past assessments of the constitutionality of environmental...
Many non-native weed pests of food, fiber, and nursery crops pose threats to U.S. environment and agriculture. Noxious weed regulations play an important role in preventing the introduction and spread of non-native plants, thereby protecting the local biodiversity, environment and economic activities. However, these regulations could also hamper agricultural trade....
A granular controlled release formulation of 2 percent MCH was applied at 4.48 kg/ha to 76.9 ha of uninfested, windthrown Douglas-fir by helicopter with a modified aerial spreader of 1.12 m capacity in May 1982. Douglas-fir beetle population reduction was 96.4 percent by late June. With one exception, treated plots...
Eradication of Ribes spp. to control white pine blister rust in Yellowstone National Park was started in 1947. In 1968 this study was initiated to evaluate the previous control effort. Ribes eradication was suspended in 1968 in 18 white pine stands and Ribes and rust were allowed to increase within...
Residual lodgepole pine in older clearcuts are dwarf mistletoe-infected and pose a threat to regeneration present. Removal of these residuals coupled with planned or completed precommercial thinnings will effectively reduce dwarf mistletoe to an insignificant level and increase future volume yields. The benefit/ cost ratios based on timber values alone...
Benomyl and chlorothalonil were tested on 2-0 bareroot ponderosa pine seedlings as a means to reduce impact of Diplodia tip blight at the Fantasy Farms Nursery, Peck, Idaho. Infection levels were not adequate to assess effectiveness of the fungicides. However, techniques were developed which can be used to assess efficacy...
During 1984, a demonstration project was established on the Crow and Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservations to determine the effectiveness of basal area cutting in second-growth ponderosa pine stands to reduce losses to the mountain pine beetle. This project will help develop management strategies for susceptible stands in eastern Montana. Four...
Two blends (Natural and Phillips) of the western pine shoot borer pheromone, formulated as Hercon Luretape, were applied to six ponderosa pine plantations in northern Idaho and western Montana in 1984. The treatment was approximately 21.6 grams of pheromone per hectare. Significant reductions in damage have occurred in all treated...
Residual Douglas-fir left after harvesting are dwarf mistletoe-infected and pose a threat to regeneration. Felling of residuals, coupled with planned slash disposal and thinning, will effectively reduce dwarf mistletoe intensity and increase future volume yields. The benefit/cost ratio based on timber values only, for the current rotation, is 0.041/1 at...
Residual Douglas-fir in older clearcuts are dwarf mistletoe-infected and pose a threat to regeneration present. Removal of these residuals coupled with planned or completed precommercial thinnings will effectively reduce dwarf mistletoe to an insignificant level and increase future volume yields. The benefit/cost ratio based on timber values alone is negative,...
The cranberry girdler, Chrysoteuchia toparia Zeller, has caused increasing damage to tree seedlings in the Coeur d'Alene Nursery since 1980. Heaviest feeding has occurred on the tap roots of 2+0 Douglas-fir stock. By 1983, 8.2 percent of the seedlings examined in seedbeds were injured by this moth. A spray program...
Residual Douglas-fir are dwarf mistletoe-infested and pose a threat to regeneration. Felling of these residuals will reduce dwarf mistletoe intensity and increase future volume yields. The benefit/cost ratio at 4 percent for the current rotation is 0.51/1 on the Sula RD and 0.45/1 on the Darby RD (both negative ratios)....
This evaluation showed that Bt provided measurable foliage protection 1 year after treatment, but no differences were evident after 2 years. We recommend future Bt tests include postspray population measurements in the pupal and/or adult, and/or egg stage, and that foliage protection be measured the following year. The effects of...
A pilot project to evaluate trichlorfon and acephate for suppressing western spruce budworm populations was conducted on the Helena National Forest, Montana. Both insecticides were applied at 1 pound active ingredient per acre. Application was made with a Bell 205A helicopter using eight Beecomist Model 350 spray heads. Treatments and...
Trees in a Douglas-fir stand infested with western spruce budworm were treated with a systemic insecticide to protect cone and seed production at three locations in Montana during 1983. Treatments applied were (1) acephate as an Acecap implant, (2) acephate as an Inject-A-Cide injection, and (3) control. Potential cone-bearing trees...
1. Defoliation by cankerworms in 1979 was significantly less in 1978 treated shelterbelts than in untreated shelterbelts. 2. Most shelterbelts treated in 1978 retained enough foliage by late June 1979 so that adjacent crops were protected from wind. 3. Aerially applied Bt at a rate of 1/2 lb./acre provided shelterbelt...
Residual Douglas-fir left after harvesting are dwarf mistletoe infected and pose a threat' to regeneration in some units. Removal of residuals, coupled with planned or completed site preparation and thinnings, will effectively reduce dwarf mistletoe incidence and increase future volume yields. The benefit/cost ratio based on timber values alone is...
Residual lodgepole pine in older clearcuts are dwarf mistletoe-infected and pose a threat to regeneration present. Removal of these residuals coupled with planned or completed precommercial thinnings will effectively reduce dwarf mistletoe to an insignificant level and increase future volume yields. The benefit/cost ratio based on timber values alone is...
An evaluation during the summer of 1985 showed that parasites were still exerting control on the larch casebearer on the Flathead NF. Parasitism ranged from 4 to 60 percent and averaged 25.2 percent in the 12 areas surveyed. Four species of parasites were involved. The most abundant was Agathis pumila...
Five seedlots of Colorado blue spruce and three seedlots of Black Hills spruce were sampled for Fusarium contamination. All seedlots contained some seed and/or debris with Fusarium. Levels of contamination were greatly reduced by treating seed with running water rinses for 48 hours or with chemical sterilants such as sodium...
The larch casebearer, Coleophora laricella (Hubner) was first reported attacking western larch, Larix occidentalis, in Idaho in 1957 (Denton, 1958), 71 years after its introduction into Massachusetts from Europe. The apparent successful regulation of this insect in the eastern U.S. by introduced parasites prompted biological control attempts in the West....
This study explores how environmental governance mechanisms affect state management of forest roads to address the chronic delivery of sediment to streams in Oregon, Washington, and California on private and state forestlands. Forest roads can degrade water quality and harm aquatic life when runoff mobilizes fine sediments from the road...
American Indians and Alaska Natives (AIAN) have more negative sexual and reproductive health outcomes than non-Hispanic whites. Little is known, however, about the factors that lead to sexual and reproductive health disparities for AIANs, including the role of sexual and reproductive health services (SRHS).
Logistic regression analyses were performed on...