Chapter 5 Effects of Wildland Fire on Regional and Global Carbon Stocks in a Changing Environment

摘要: Abstract Every year tens of millions hectares forests, woodlands, and grasslands burn globally. Some are burned intentionally for land conversion, pasture renewal or hazard reduction, wildlife habitat improvement, but most by uncontrolled wildfire. Estimates area available in the literature vary widely, satellite-based remote sensing data increasing accuracy monitoring active fire estimating areas. Recent suggest that global wildfire emissions substantially from to year. Nonetheless, average annual carbon 20–40% those fossil fuel combustion cement production. Results field studies modelling efforts indicate changing climate is likely increase extent frequency wildfires, highlighting importance accurately quantifying regional effects on stocks atmospheric compounds. The nature strength feedbacks between will depend not only changes annually, perhaps more importantly, how fires ecosystems respond recover. Changes severity can result large differences amount consumed, atmosphere, capacity recover after a fire. work also indicates even low-severity surface may cause significant soil respiration, these either decrease net carbon. Postfire recovery different vegetation type—which occur response climate, unusually high severities, other factors—also has potential affect rate storage landscape. Past future management activities play role ecosystem condition storage, although magnitude impacts greatly among regions ecosystems. Improved understanding fire, regimes all aspects cycle needed before we fully predict magnitude, direction, effect balance chemistry.