Geomorphology, Topography, Soils, and Climate of the Eastern US
Chapter 3. Barton D. Clinton, James M. Vose, Erika C. Cohen Geographic Considerations for Fire Management: Geomorphology, Topography, Soils, and Climate of the Eastern U.S. Introduction Across the eastern US, there is on average an estimated 36 Mg ha1 of dead woody fuel (Chojnacky et al. 2004). Variation in fuel type, size, and flammability across the region makes selection of treatment options critical for effective fuels management. The eastern U.S. is a complex landscape characterized by highly fragmented forests, large areas of wildland urban interface, and vast differences in geomorphology, topography, soils, and climate. For example, the coastal plain region is generally flat, has large areas of wetlands, and is derived from sedimentary parent material. By contrast, the Piedmont and Appalachian Mountain regions are derived primarily from igneous and metamorphosed igneous parent materials, have complex topography, and little or no wetlands. Thus, it is important to understand interactions among fuel management treatments and geographic regions, and matching treatment prescriptions with physical conditions is critical. Fire and fuel management options are constrained by complex interactions among physical, biological, and social parameters. Biological and social parameters can be altered to some degree by management activities, new technologies, and policies, whereas physical parameters are generally not easily altered. Except where major changes in physical parameters have been possible (e.g., drainage of hydric ecosystems in the costal plain), variation in physical parameters across geographic regions constrains fuel and fire management options among and within regions. The purpose of this chapter is to describe, compare, and contrast the geomorphology, climate, and soils of major physiographic regions in the eastern U.S.
[Show full text]