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Satellite assessment of post-fire forest cover loss in Siberia and its relationship with fire characteristics
1  The Institute of Forest of the Siberian Division of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Akademgorodok St, 50/28, Krasnoyarsk, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, 660036
Academic Editor: Giorgos Mallinis

Published: 19 September 2024 by MDPI in The 4th International Electronic Conference on Forests session Forest Wildfires
Abstract:

The impact of fires on forests is determined by a number of factors, including fire type and intensity, forest stand species composition and age structure, soils and other conditions. This paper examines the relationship between fire intensity, assessed using fire radiative power (FRP), and the degree of forest disturbance, assessed through the proportion of tree cover loss. The objectives of this study included the following: 1) analysis of the dynamics of FRP and the proportion of stand-replacement fires in Siberia; 2) assessment of the relationships between FRP and predominant tree species as well as the seasonality and duration of fires and the proportion of stand-replacement fires. MODIS thematic products for 2002–2022 were used to obtain data on the locations and areas of wildfires as well as FRP estimates. These products included MODIS burned area product and MODIS thermal anomalies product containing FRP estimates. The global forest cover change product was used to detect areas where forest loss had occurred. Increasing trends in both the total burned area and the area of stand-replacement fires were observed in the region. A significant increase in stand-replacement fires occurred after the year 2012. The highest proportion of stand-replacement fires was observed in dark coniferous stands (61%) and in larch-dominant stands (52%). Significant increasing trends in FRP were observed in dark coniferous stands (r2=0.6, p < 0.01), larch stands (r2=0.5, p<0.01) and pine stands (r2=0.4, p<0.05). Stand-replacement fires were also characterized by ~14% higher mean FRP values compared to non-stand-replacement fires (~30 vs. ~26 MW/km2). Stand-replacement fires were mainly observed during the second half of summer and were characterized by a longer duration compared to non-stand-replacement fires (3.8 vs. 4.9 days). The results showed that the proportion of stand-replacement fires in Siberia is largely determined by the fire radiative power, fire duration, seasonality, and prevailing forest stands.

Keywords: Siberia; remote sensing; stand-replacement fires; FRP

 
 
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