Fire Services By Carol G Wells

• Excerpt from Effects of Fire on Soil: A State-of-Knowledge Review, Prepared for the Forest Service, National Fire Effects Workshop, Denver, Colo., April 10-14, 1978
• It is important to understand the effects of fire on forest-and range soils. This knowl edge provides a basis for developing guides to the effective use of prescribed fire and for determining the situations where wildfires can be minimized or prevented by using prescribed fires.
• The catastrophic effects of uncontrolled fires on the soil have been observed fre quently following wildfires. There is a need for evaluating those burning situations where fire effects are less. Dramatic than during wildfires so the tradeoffs between prescribed burning and/or other means of vegetation manipulation can be compared. For example, burning volatilizes nitrogen, an essential element for plant growth; how ever, the loss of some nitrogen by burning might become a more acceptable alternative than large soil losses occurring after the use of heavy mechanical equipment. Likewise, several light or moderately controlled burns possibly have less impact on the soil than a single severe wildfire that may result from a large fuel accumulation.