Utah Parks Group Fire Ecology Annual Report: Calendar Year 2018

Brannfors L and Marascio K. 2019. Utah Parks Group Fire Ecology Annual Report: Calendar Year 2018. National Park Service. Zion National Park, Utah

A summary of fire ecology activities and program information for the Utah Parks Group including fire effects plot workload, staffing, management objectives and monitoring results, and planning, fire monitoring, communications, and research. Also included are staff accomplishments/areas of focus, future program direction and other optional information (e.g. data analysis graphics or presentations, annual highlights, publications, program challenges, unique solutions to problems, collaboration, photographs of monitoring/fire activities, and suggestions on FFI). The Utah Parks Group Fire Ecology Program served Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks during the 2018 season. All scheduled and unscheduled plots were read, consisting of both Fire Monitoring Handbook (FMH) and Rapid Assessment Protocol (RAP) plots. Monitoring accomplishments in Zion totaled 19 FMH plots, while monitoring accomplishments in Bryce Canyon totaled 16 FMH and 10 RAP plots. All 2018 data were entered, error checked, and quality control queried. This year the full-season Fire Effects field staff consisted of only returning crewmember Katie Marascio. After many years of dedicated seasonal service to the program, Lead Monitor Liz Dodson moved on to a permanent job with the BLM. To help combat the loss of leadership prior to the field season, a temporary promotion for a Fire Ecologist was approved, filled by Grand Canyon National Park Lead Monitor Li Brannfors. However, due to workloads in the local Human Resources office and multiple re-classifications of the Ecologist position description at the regional Human Resources office, the position was not able be filled at even the temporary level until mid-August. This combination of a paucity of dedicated staff and the heaviest permanent plot workload since 2014 resulted in reaching out to 23 different personnel from 5 different National Parks and multiple work divisions to accomplish the task at hand, with the field season running well into October.

Type
Unpublished Report
Authors
Brannfors, Li; Marascio, Katie
Date of Issue
2019-03-30
Publisher
National Park Service
Units
BRCA , FIEC , ZION
Keywords
Biota, Bryce Canyon, Burn Severity, CBI, Dixie National Forest, Ecology, Environment, FFI, Fire, Fire Ecology, Fire Effects, FMH, Fuels, I&M, Inventory And Monitoring, Monitoring, Northern Colorado Plateau Network, Prescribed Fire, RAP, rapid assessment, Severity, Southern Colorado Plateau Network, Utah, Vegetation, Wildfire, Zion
Subjects
Ecological Framework: Landscapes | Fire and Fuel Dynamics | Fire and Fuel Dynamics

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