The impact of antecedent fire area on burned area in southern California coastal ecosystems

Science.gov (United States)

Price, Owen F.; Bradstock, Ross A.; Keeley, Jon E.; Syphard, Alexandra D.

2012-01-01

Frequent wildfire disasters in southern California highlight the need for risk reduction strategies for the region, of which fuel reduction via prescribed burning is one option. However, there is no consensus about the effectiveness of prescribed fire in reducing the area of wildfire. Here, we use 29 years of historical fire mapping to quantify the relationship between annual wildfire area and antecedent fire area in predominantly shrub and grassland fuels in seven southern California counties, controlling for annual variation in weather patterns. This method has been used elsewhere to measure leverage: the reduction in wildfire area resulting from one unit of prescribed fire treatment. We found little evidence for a leverage effect (leverage = zero). Specifically our results showed no evidence that wildfire area was negatively influenced by previous fires, and only weak relationships with weather variables rainfall and Santa Ana wind occurrences, which were variables included to control for inter-annual variation. We conclude that this is because only 2% of the vegetation burns each year and so wildfires rarely encounter burned patches and chaparral shrublands can carry a fire within 1 or 2 years after previous fire. Prescribed burning is unlikely to have much influence on fire regimes in this area, though targeted treatment at the urban interface may be effective at providing defensible space for protecting assets. These results fit an emerging global model of fire leverage which position California at the bottom end of a continuum, with tropical savannas at the top (leverage = 1: direct replacement of wildfire by prescribed fire) and Australian eucalypt forests in the middle (leverage ∼ 0.25).

The sodium fire tests performed in the FAUNA facility on up to 12m2 fire areas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cherdron, W.; Jordan, S.

1983-08-01

The FAUNA test facility started operation in 1979. It serves to investigate large area sodium fires in closed containments and to study the generation, behaviour and removal of sodium fire aerosols. In this report, the experimental results of the 6 sodium pool fires are described which were performed with up to 500 kg of sodium in fire pans of 2 m 2 , 5 m 2 and 12 m 2 surface area, respectively. Both, the thermodynamic data and the data of the reaction kinetics of the fires were determined. In addition, the behaviour of the released aerosols during and after the fire was studied. On the basis of measurements of the temperature profiles at various levels above the fire areas it was shown that the convective flows above fire areas of different sizes in closed containments differ markedly and, obviously, exert an influence on the development of the fire and the release of particles. Whilst in rather small fires the gas above the pan rises as in a chimney and flows back on the walls, no chimney effect can be observed in a large pool fire. In rather large fires higher burning rates and aerosol release rates were observed. Some meters above the fire area temperatures around 300-400 0 C, temporarily even up to 700 0 C, were measured. The tests F5 and F6 were performed above all to observe the fire behaviour in terms of thermodynamics and reaction kinetics in a fully closed containment. (orig./RW) [de

Factors Controlling Vegetation Fires in Protected and Non-Protected Areas of Myanmar

Science.gov (United States)

Biswas, Sumalika; Vadrevu, Krishna Prasad; Lwin, Zin Mar; Lasko, Kristofer; Justice, Christopher O.

2015-01-01

Fire is an important disturbance agent in Myanmar impacting several ecosystems. In this study, we quantify the factors impacting vegetation fires in protected and non-protected areas of Myanmar. Satellite datasets in conjunction with biophysical and anthropogenic factors were used in a spatial framework to map the causative factors of fires. Specifically, we used the frequency ratio method to assess the contribution of each causative factor to overall fire susceptibility at a 1km scale. Results suggested the mean fire density in non-protected areas was two times higher than the protected areas. Fire-land cover partition analysis suggested dominant fire occurrences in the savannas (protected areas) and woody savannas (non-protected areas). The five major fire causative factors in protected areas in descending order include population density, land cover, tree cover percent, travel time from nearest city and temperature. In contrast, the causative factors in non-protected areas were population density, tree cover percent, travel time from nearest city, temperature and elevation. The fire susceptibility analysis showed distinct spatial patterns with central Myanmar as a hot spot of vegetation fires. Results from propensity score matching suggested that forests within protected areas have 11% less fires than non-protected areas. Overall, our results identify important causative factors of fire useful to address broad scale fire risk concerns at a landscape scale in Myanmar. PMID:25909632

Factors controlling vegetation fires in protected and non-protected areas of myanmar.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sumalika Biswas

Full Text Available Fire is an important disturbance agent in Myanmar impacting several ecosystems. In this study, we quantify the factors impacting vegetation fires in protected and non-protected areas of Myanmar. Satellite datasets in conjunction with biophysical and anthropogenic factors were used in a spatial framework to map the causative factors of fires. Specifically, we used the frequency ratio method to assess the contribution of each causative factor to overall fire susceptibility at a 1km scale. Results suggested the mean fire density in non-protected areas was two times higher than the protected areas. Fire-land cover partition analysis suggested dominant fire occurrences in the savannas (protected areas and woody savannas (non-protected areas. The five major fire causative factors in protected areas in descending order include population density, land cover, tree cover percent, travel time from nearest city and temperature. In contrast, the causative factors in non-protected areas were population density, tree cover percent, travel time from nearest city, temperature and elevation. The fire susceptibility analysis showed distinct spatial patterns with central Myanmar as a hot spot of vegetation fires. Results from propensity score matching suggested that forests within protected areas have 11% less fires than non-protected areas. Overall, our results identify important causative factors of fire useful to address broad scale fire risk concerns at a landscape scale in Myanmar.

Factors controlling vegetation fires in protected and non-protected areas of myanmar.

Science.gov (United States)

Biswas, Sumalika; Vadrevu, Krishna Prasad; Lwin, Zin Mar; Lasko, Kristofer; Justice, Christopher O

2015-01-01

Fire is an important disturbance agent in Myanmar impacting several ecosystems. In this study, we quantify the factors impacting vegetation fires in protected and non-protected areas of Myanmar. Satellite datasets in conjunction with biophysical and anthropogenic factors were used in a spatial framework to map the causative factors of fires. Specifically, we used the frequency ratio method to assess the contribution of each causative factor to overall fire susceptibility at a 1km scale. Results suggested the mean fire density in non-protected areas was two times higher than the protected areas. Fire-land cover partition analysis suggested dominant fire occurrences in the savannas (protected areas) and woody savannas (non-protected areas). The five major fire causative factors in protected areas in descending order include population density, land cover, tree cover percent, travel time from nearest city and temperature. In contrast, the causative factors in non-protected areas were population density, tree cover percent, travel time from nearest city, temperature and elevation. The fire susceptibility analysis showed distinct spatial patterns with central Myanmar as a hot spot of vegetation fires. Results from propensity score matching suggested that forests within protected areas have 11% less fires than non-protected areas. Overall, our results identify important causative factors of fire useful to address broad scale fire risk concerns at a landscape scale in Myanmar.

Modelling of real area of contact between tool and workpiece in metal forming processes including the influence of subsurface deformation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Chris Valentin; Martins, Paulo A. F.; Bay, Niels Oluf

2016-01-01

New equipment for testing asperity deformation at various normal loads and subsurface elongations is presented. Resulting real contact area ratios increase heavily with increasing subsurface expansion due to lowered yield pressure on the asperities when imposing subsurface normal stress parallel ...... for estimating friction in the numerical modelling of metal forming processes.......New equipment for testing asperity deformation at various normal loads and subsurface elongations is presented. Resulting real contact area ratios increase heavily with increasing subsurface expansion due to lowered yield pressure on the asperities when imposing subsurface normal stress parallel...... to the surface. Finite element modelling supports the presentation and contributes by extrapolation of results to complete the mapping of contact area as function of normal pressure and one-directional subsurface strain parallel to the surface. Improved modelling of the real contact area is the basis...

Prediction of forest fires occurrences with area-level Poisson mixed models.

Science.gov (United States)

Boubeta, Miguel; Lombardía, María José; Marey-Pérez, Manuel Francisco; Morales, Domingo

2015-05-01

The number of fires in forest areas of Galicia (north-west of Spain) during the summer period is quite high. Local authorities are interested in analyzing the factors that explain this phenomenon. Poisson regression models are good tools for describing and predicting the number of fires per forest areas. This work employs area-level Poisson mixed models for treating real data about fires in forest areas. A parametric bootstrap method is applied for estimating the mean squared errors of fires predictors. The developed methodology and software are applied to a real data set of fires in forest areas of Galicia. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fire safety assessment for the fire areas of the nuclear power plant using fire model CFAST

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Yoon Hwan; Yang, Joon Eon; Kim, Jong Hoon

2005-03-01

Now the deterministic analysis results for the cable integrity is not given in case of performing the fire PSA. So it is necessary to develop the assessment methodology for the fire growth and propagation. This document is intended to analyze the peak temperature of the upper gas layer using the fire modeling code, CFAST, to evaluate the integrity of the cable located on the dominant pump rooms, and to assess the CCDP(Conditional Core Damage Probability) using the results of the cable integrity. According to the analysis results, the cable integrity of the pump rooms is maintained and CCDP is reduced about two times than the old one. Accordingly, the fire safety assessment for the dominant fire areas using the fire modeling code will capable to reduce the uncertainty and to develop a more realistic model

Fire-climate interactions in the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness area

Science.gov (United States)

Kurt F. Kipfmueller; Thomas W. Swetnam

2000-01-01

Tree-ring reconstructed summer drought was examined in relation to the occurrence of 15 fires in the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness Area (SBW). The ten largest fire years between 1880 and 1995 were selected from historical fire atlas data; five additional fire years were selected from a fire history completed in a subalpine forest within the SBW. Results of the analysis...

The largest forest fires in Portugal: the constraints of burned area size on the comprehension of fire severity.

Science.gov (United States)

Tedim, Fantina; Remelgado, Ruben; Martins, João; Carvalho, Salete

2015-01-01

Portugal is a European country with highest forest fires density and burned area. Since beginning of official forest fires database in 1980, an increase in number of fires and burned area as well as appearance of large and catastrophic fires have characterized fire activity in Portugal. In 1980s, the largest fires were just a little bit over 10,000 ha. However, in the beginning of 21st century several fires occurred with a burned area over 20,000 ha. Some of these events can be classified as mega-fires due to their ecological and socioeconomic severity. The present study aimed to discuss the characterization of large forest fires trend, in order to understand if the largest fires that occurred in Portugal were exceptional events or evidences of a new trend, and the constraints of fire size to characterize fire effects because, usually, it is assumed that larger the fire higher the damages. Using Portuguese forest fire database and satellite imagery, the present study showed that the largest fires could be seen at the same time as exceptional events and as evidence of a new fire regime. It highlighted the importance of size and patterns of unburned patches within fire perimeter as well as heterogeneity of fire ecological severity, usually not included in fire regime description, which are critical to fire management and research. The findings of this research can be used in forest risk reduction and suppression planning.

Management impacts on fire occurrence: A comparison of fire regimes of African and South American tropical savannas in different protected areas.

Science.gov (United States)

Alvarado, Swanni T; Silva, Thiago Sanna Freire; Archibald, Sally

2018-07-15

Humans can alter fire dynamics in grassland systems by changing fire frequency, fire seasonality and fuel conditions. These changes have effects on vegetation structure and recovery, species composition, and ecosystem function. Understanding how human management can affect fire regimes is vital to detect potential changes in the resilience of plant communities, and to predict vegetation responses to human interventions. We evaluated the fire regimes of two recently protected areas in Madagascar (Ibity and Itremo NPA) and one in Brazil (Serra do Cipó NP) before and after livestock exclusion and fire suppression policies. We compare the pre- and post-management fire history in these areas and analyze differences in terms of total annual burned area, density of ignitions, burn scar size distribution, fire return period and seasonal fire distribution. More than 90% of total park areas were burned at least once during the studied period, for all parks. We observed a significant reduction in the number of ignitions for Ibity NPA and Serra do Cipó NP after livestock exclusion and active fire suppression, but no significant change in total burned area for each protected area. We also observed a seasonal shift in burning, with fires happening later in the fire season (October-November) after management intervention. However, the protected areas in Madagascar had shorter fire return intervals (3.23 and 1.82 years) than those in Brazil (7.91 years). Our results demonstrate that fire exclusion is unattainable, and probably unwarranted in tropical grassland conservation areas, but show how human intervention in fire and vegetation patterns can alter various aspects of the fire regimes. This information can help with formulating realistic and effective fire management policies in these valuable conservation areas. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Impact of the buildings areas on the fire incidence.

Science.gov (United States)

Srekl, Jože; Golob, Janvit

2010-03-01

A survey of statistical studies shows that probability of fires is expressed by the equation P(A) = KAα, where A = total floor area of the building and K and  are constants for an individual group, or risk category. This equation, which is based on the statistical data on fires in Great Britain, does not include the impact factors such as the number of employees and the activities carried out in these buildings. In order to find out possible correlations between the activities carried out in buildings, the characteristics of buildings and number of fires, we used a random sample which included 134 buildings as industrial objects, hotels, restaurants, warehouses and shopping malls. Our study shows that the floor area of buildings has low impact on the incidence of fires. After analysing the sample of buildings by using multivariate analysis we proved a correlation between the number of fires, floor area of objects, work operation period (per day) and the number of employees in objects.

300 Area Integrated Field-Scale Subsurface Research Challenge (IFRC) Field Site Management Plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Freshley, Mark D.

2008-12-31

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) has established the 300 Area Integrated Field-Scale Subsurface Research Challenge (300 Area IFRC) on the Hanford Site in southeastern Washington State for the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Biological and Environmental Research (BER) within the Office of Science. The project is funded by the Environmental Remediation Sciences Division (ERSD). The purpose of the project is to conduct research at the 300 IFRC to investigate multi-scale mass transfer processes associated with a subsurface uranium plume impacting both the vadose zone and groundwater. The management approach for the 300 Area IFRC requires that a Field Site Management Plan be developed. This is an update of the plan to reflect the installation of the well network and other changes.

Previous fires moderate burn severity of subsequent wildland fires in two large western US wilderness areas

Science.gov (United States)

Sean A. Parks; Carol Miller; Cara R. Nelson; Zachary A. Holden

2014-01-01

Wildland fire is an important natural process in many ecosystems. However, fire exclusion has reduced frequency of fire and area burned in many dry forest types, which may affect vegetation structure and composition, and potential fire behavior. In forests of the western U.S., these effects pose a challenge for fire and land managers who seek to restore the ecological...

Identifying individual fires from satellite-derived burned area data

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Archibald, S

2009-07-01

Full Text Available An algorithm for identifying individual fires from the Modis burned area data product is introduced for southern Africa. This algorithm gives the date of burning, size of fire, and location of the centroid for all fires identified over 8 years...

Remote sensing techniques in monitoring areas affected by forest fire

Science.gov (United States)

Karagianni, Aikaterini Ch.; Lazaridou, Maria A.

2017-09-01

Forest fire is a part of nature playing a key role in shaping ecosystems. However, fire's environmental impacts can be significant, affecting wildlife habitat and timber, human settlements, man-made technical constructions and various networks (road, power networks) and polluting the air with emissions harmful to human health. Furthermore, fire's effect on the landscape may be long-lasting. Monitoring the development of a fire occurs as an important aspect at the management of natural hazards in general. Among the used methods for monitoring, satellite data and remote sensing techniques can be proven of particular importance. Satellite remote sensing offers a useful tool for forest fire detection, monitoring, management and damage assessment. Especially for fire scars detection and monitoring, satellite data derived from Landsat 8 can be a useful research tool. This paper includes critical considerations of the above and concerns in particular an example of the Greek area (Thasos Island). This specific area was hit by fires several times in the past and recently as well (September 2016). Landsat 8 satellite data are being used (pre and post fire imagery) and digital image processing techniques are applied (enhancement techniques, calculation of various indices) for fire scars detection. Visual interpretation of the example area affected by the fires is also being done, contributing to the overall study.

Mine-fire diagnostics applied to the Carbondale, Pennsylvania mine-fire site. Rept. of Investigations/1992

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, A.G.; Justin, T.R.; Miller, J.F.

1992-01-01

The U.S. Bureau of Mines applied its mine fire diagnostic method to an abandoned anthracite mine fire site in Carbondale, Lackawanna County, PA. The technique to locate fires in abandoned coal mines and coal refuse piles includes the determination of hydrocarbon concentrations in mine gases, the imposition of an underground gas flow direction, and use of a surface mapping method, to define heated and cold zones in underground coal strata. The heated zones at Carbondale were characterized by elevated methane concentrations. The results of 25 communication tests were analyzed to define 2 large (approximately 100 by 250 ft) and 5 small, isolated heated zones. An approximate correlation existed between the location of the heated zones and areas of anomalous snow melt. The correlation between the results of the diagnostic test and subsurface temperatures was not significant

Nitrate and nitrite contamination of sub-surface water in some areas of North West Frontier Province (N.W.F.P.) Pakistan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khan, M.; Khawaja, M.A.; Imdadullah

1998-01-01

Over the past few years, nitrate and nitrite contamination of sub-surface water samples from Peshawar, Charsada, Mardan and Nowshera districts of NWFP has been studied. In all the areas under study, nitrate concentration of sub-surface water was found to be below WHO approved limit of 45 mg/l. Whereas city area after 1987 showed a decreasing level of nitrate contamination of sub-surface water, it appeared to be on the increase in water samples from the outskirts of Peshawar-Charsada road. No uniform increasing or decreasing patterns of nitrate contamination were observed for water samples from cantonment, University and Hayatabad, areas of Mardan, Charsada and Nowshera under study. The nitrate contamination of sub-surface water appeared to be due to both the agricultural activities as well as human and animal wastes. A few sub-surface water samples from Peshawar city, Mardan and Nowshera areas indicated high concentration of nitrite, which is alarming in view of the earlier reports showing absence of nitrite in water samples from these areas. However, since 1993, nitrite presence has not been detected in sub-surface water samples from all the areas under present investigation. (author)

Management of fire affected areas. Beyond the environmental question

Science.gov (United States)

Pereira, Paulo

2016-04-01

Fire is considered a natural element of the ecosystems. With exception of the polar areas, fire visited with more or less frequency all the earth biomes, determining the ecosystems characteristics, to the point that several species are fire-dependent to survive and are very resilient to their impact. Fire was a fundamental element for human evolution, which allowed us to cook, manipulation of metals, hunt, protect from predators and clear fields for agriculture. In some extension, we are only humans because of fire. In the last millennium fire was used to shape the landscape as we know today. One good example of this is the Mediterranean environment, a landscape where the ecology is not understood without the presence of fire. Until the end of the first half of the last century, fire was used frequently by farmers to landscape management. However, due to rural abandonment, change of life styles, disconnection with rural environment and lack of understanding of fire role in the ecosystems. The perception of fire changed and nowadays is understood by the population as a threat to the ecosystems, rather than a tool that helped to manage the landscape and help us in our evolution. This change of vision promoted the idea that fire has negative impacts in the ecosystems and should be banned from the nature. Something that is impossible. All these perceptions facilitated the implementation of fire-suppression policies, which today are recognized by science as one of the causes of the occurrence of frequent high-severity wildfires, with important impacts on the ecosystems, economy and society. However, most of the ecosystems can regenerate sooner or later, depending of the fire severity and the ecosystem affected. Thus, fire is not an ecological, but social and economic problem, due to lives loss and the temporary destruction of ecosystems, which local communities depend on. In this context, when we are managing fire affected areas, it goes much beyond environmental

Application of Paste Backfill in Underground Coal Fires

Science.gov (United States)

Masniyom, M.; Drebenstedt, C.

2009-04-01

Coal fires are known from different coalfields worldwide. China, India, USA, Australia, Indonesia and South Africa are the main countries affected by coal fires. The fires is thermally intensive and cause numerous sinkholes, large-scale subsidence, air pollution, global warming, loss of mining productivity and increasing safety risk. The Wuda Inner Mongolia coalfield has been selected as a possible test area for paste backfill. The traditional methods, executed by fire fighting teams, by covering the coalfire areas with soil, blasting burning coal outcrops and injecting water in the subsurface fire pockets are continuously improved and extended. Initiatives to introduce modern techniques, such as backfill placement at fracture and borehole, to cool down the burning coal and cut off the air supply. This study is to investigate backfill materials and techniques suited for underground coal fires. Laboratory tests were carried out on physical, chemical and mechanical properties of different backfill materials and mixtures thereof. Special attention was paid to materials generated as by-products and other cheaply available materials e.g. fly ash from power plants. There is a good chance that one of the different material mixtures investigated can be used as a technically and economically viable backfill for underground coal fires.

The study of remote sensing dynamic monitoring for coalfield fire area in Shuixigou, Xinjiang

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xia, Jun; Tashpolat-Tiyip

2014-01-01

The dynamic monitoring of fire area is particularly important in the controlling of underground coalfield fire. This paper took the Xinjiang Shuixigou coalfield fire area as an example, through the normalized processing of the multi-temporal thermal infrared images a generalized single-channel algorithm was used to retrieval the surface temperature. Combined with the method of single band optimal density split Sec-segmentation followed by dividing the fire area into the background region, serious combust region and more serious combust region. Thermal anomaly information in the coalfield fire area and analyse the spatial and temporal dynamics change of underground coalfield were calculated as follows:(1)fire area increased 2.03 times between 1990 and 2011, the annual average degree of dynamic changes was 1.28 in the first ten years and increased to 4.57 in the last ten years;(2)the gravity of the little serious area of the coalfield fire integrally moved north to northwest from 1990 to 2001, then northeast from 2001 to 2011;(3)there were three original independent child fire area A, B and C, but A and B merged between 1990 to 2001, C also trended close A and B until 2011. Remote sensing technology provides a feasible method for the dynamic monitoring of coalfield fire area and provides theory basis and scientific guidance for the prevention of coalfield fire disaster and implementation of coalfield fires fighting engineering

Forest fire effects on transpiration: process modeling of sapwood area reduction

Science.gov (United States)

Michaletz, Sean; Johnson, Edward

2010-05-01

Transpiration is a hydrological process that is strongly affected by forest fires. In crown fires, canopy fine fuels (foliage, buds, and small branches) combust, which kills individual trees and stops transpiration of the entire stand. In surface fires (intensities ≤ 2500 kW m-1), however, effects on transpiration are less predictable becuase heat transfer from the passing fireline can injure or kill fine roots, leaves, and sapwood; post-fire transpiration of forest stands is thus governed by fire effects on individual tree water budgets. Here, we consider fire effects on cross-sectional sapwood area. A two-dimensional model of transient bole heating is used to estimate radial isotherms for a range of fireline intensities typical of surface fires. Isotherms are then used to drive three processes by which heat may reduce sapwood area: 1) necrosis of living cells in contact with xylem conduits, which prevents repair of natural embolism; 2) relaxation of viscoelastic conduit wall polymers (cellulose, hemicelloluse, and lignin), which reduces cross-sectional conduit area; and 3) boiling of metastable water under tension, which causes conduit embolism. Results show that these processes operate on different time scales, suggesting that fire effects on transpiration vary with time since fire. The model can be linked with a three-dimensional physical fire spread model to predict size-dependent effects on individual trees, which can be used to estimate scaling of individual tree and stand-level transpiration.

Exposure doses received from a large scale fire in the restricted area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kawakami, Hiroto; Yamada, Norikazu; Shimomura, Masanori; Ichiki, Takahiko; Kajimoto, Mitsuhiro; Kasahara, Fumio; Tanemura, Munenori; Tsuchino, Susumu; Okubo, Atsushi

2012-02-01

At the request of the Local Nuclear Emergency Response Headquarters established in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan Nuclear Energy Safety Organization (JNES) has estimated exposure doses of a fireman and the public during a large scale fire in the restricted area. Data on the contamination of the area were compiled and contaminants deposited on combustible materials in forests were investigated. Estimated doses during a fire vary widely due to the uncertainties and variations in assessment methods, location of the fire (radioactivity in the area, amounts of combustible substance and so on), the scale of the fire (the area of fire spreading), weather conditions (wind direction, wind speed, turbulence type and so on), and the distances of the fireman and the public from the fire. In this reports, effects of these factors were integrated as fire-effect indexes. One can easily obtain exposure doses by multiplying these indexes to the results in each of the assessing conditions. In the severer conditions such as 20 hs of fire spreading area, a contaminant concentration of 6 MBq/m"2 in the area, external dose of a fireman working in the highest air contaminated zone in the vicinity of the fire for 1 hour is estimated to be 50 μSv. If he does not wear a front mask, the internal committed dose is estimated to be 430 μSv. Sum of these doses can rise up to 480 μSv. External and internal doses of the public at the severest location in the distance of 2 km from the fire for 1 hour is estimated to be 5 μSv and 45 μSv respectively, and the sum of these doses is 50 μSv. In the stable conditions where a plume of fire can reach to a longer distance without dispersion, external and internal doses of the public at the 20 km distance from the fire for 1 hour are estimated to be 0.5 μSv and 4.5 μSv respectively, and the sum of them is less than 5 μSv. Though the total exposure dose will not exceed 1 mSv even if the fire lingers for some days, monitoring of radiation is important in

Modelling fire frequency and area burned across phytoclimatic regions in Spain using reanalysis data and the Canadian Fire Weather Index System

Science.gov (United States)

Bedia, J.; Herrera, S.; Gutiérrez, J. M.

2013-09-01

We develop fire occurrence and burned area models in peninsular Spain, an area of high variability in climate and fuel types, for the period 1990-2008. We based the analysis on a phytoclimatic classification aiming to the stratification of the territory into homogeneous units in terms of climatic and fuel type characteristics, allowing to test model performance under different climatic and fuel conditions. We used generalized linear models (GLM) and multivariate adaptive regression splines (MARS) as modelling algorithms and temperature, relative humidity, precipitation and wind speed, taken from the ERA-Interim reanalysis, as well as the components of the Canadian Forest Fire Weather Index (FWI) System as predictors. We also computed the standardized precipitation-evapotranspiration index (SPEI) as an additional predictor for the models of burned area. We found two contrasting fire regimes in terms of area burned and number of fires: one characterized by a bimodal annual pattern, characterizing the Nemoral and Oro-boreal phytoclimatic types, and another one exhibiting an unimodal annual cycle, with the fire season concentrated in the summer months in the Mediterranean and Arid regions. The fire occurrence models attained good skill in most of the phytoclimatic zones considered, yielding in some zones notably high correlation coefficients between the observed and modelled inter-annual fire frequencies. Total area burned also exhibited a high dependence on the meteorological drivers, although their ability to reproduce the observed annual burned area time series was poor in most cases. We identified temperature and some FWI system components as the most important explanatory variables, and also SPEI in some of the burned area models, highlighting the adequacy of the FWI system for fire modelling applications and leaving the door opened to the development a more complex modelling framework based on these predictors. Furthermore, we demonstrate the potential usefulness

Site Recommendation Subsurface Layout

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

C.L. Linden

2000-01-01

The purpose of this analysis is to develop a Subsurface Facility layout that is capable of accommodating the statutory capacity of 70,000 metric tons of uranium (MTU), as well as an option to expand the inventory capacity, if authorized, to 97,000 MTU. The layout configuration also requires a degree of flexibility to accommodate potential changes in site conditions or program requirements. The objective of this analysis is to provide a conceptual design of the Subsurface Facility sufficient to support the development of the Subsurface Facility System Description Document (CRWMS M andO 2000e) and the ''Emplacement Drift System Description Document'' (CRWMS M andO 2000i). As well, this analysis provides input to the Site Recommendation Consideration Report. The scope of this analysis includes: (1) Evaluation of the existing facilities and their integration into the Subsurface Facility design. (2) Identification and incorporation of factors influencing Subsurface Facility design, such as geological constraints, thermal loading, constructibility, subsurface ventilation, drainage control, radiological considerations, and the Test and Evaluation Facilities. (3) Development of a layout showing an available area in the primary area sufficient to support both the waste inventories and individual layouts showing the emplacement area required for 70,000 MTU and, if authorized, 97,000 MTU

Autonomous long-range open area fire detection and reporting

Science.gov (United States)

Engelhaupt, Darell E.; Reardon, Patrick J.; Blackwell, Lisa; Warden, Lance; Ramsey, Brian D.

2005-03-01

Approximately 5 billion dollars in US revenue was lost in 2003 due to open area fires. In addition many lives are lost annually. Early detection of open area fires is typically performed by manned observatories, random reporting and aerial surveillance. Optical IR flame detectors have been developed previously. They typically have experienced high false alarms and low flame detection sensitivity due to interference from solar and other causes. Recently a combination of IR detectors has been used in a two or three color mode to reduce false alarms from solar, or background sources. A combination of ultra-violet C (UVC) and near infra-red (NIR) detectors has also been developed recently for flame discrimination. Relatively solar-blind basic detectors are now available but typically detect at only a few tens of meters at ~ 1 square meter fuel flame. We quantify the range and solar issues for IR and visible detectors and qualitatively define UV sensor requirements in terms of the mode of operation, collection area issues and flame signal output by combustion photochemistry. We describe innovative flame signal collection optics for multiple wavelengths using UV and IR as low false alarm detection of open area fires at long range (8-10 km/m2) in daylight (or darkness). A circular array detector and UV-IR reflective and refractive devices including cylindrical or toroidal lens elements for the IR are described. The dispersion in a refractive cylindrical IR lens characterizes the fire and allows a stationary line or circle generator to locate the direction and different flame IR "colors" from a wide FOV. The line generator will produce spots along the line corresponding to the fire which can be discriminated with a linear detector. We demonstrate prototype autonomous sensors with RF digital reporting from various sites.

GIS applied to location of fires detection towers in domain area of tropical forest.

Science.gov (United States)

Eugenio, Fernando Coelho; Rosa Dos Santos, Alexandre; Fiedler, Nilton Cesar; Ribeiro, Guido Assunção; da Silva, Aderbal Gomes; Juvanhol, Ronie Silva; Schettino, Vitor Roberto; Marcatti, Gustavo Eduardo; Domingues, Getúlio Fonseca; Alves Dos Santos, Gleissy Mary Amaral Dino; Pezzopane, José Eduardo Macedo; Pedra, Beatriz Duguy; Banhos, Aureo; Martins, Lima Deleon

2016-08-15

In most countries, the loss of biodiversity caused by the fires is worrying. In this sense, the fires detection towers are crucial for rapid identification of fire outbreaks and can also be used in environmental inspection, biodiversity monitoring, telecommunications mechanisms, telemetry and others. Currently the methodologies for allocating fire detection towers over large areas are numerous, complex and non-standardized by government supervisory agencies. Therefore, this study proposes and evaluates different methodologies to best location of points to install fire detection towers considering the topography, risk areas, conservation units and heat spots. Were used Geographic Information Systems (GIS) techniques and unaligned stratified systematic sampling for implementing and evaluating 9 methods for allocating fire detection towers. Among the methods evaluated, the C3 method was chosen, represented by 140 fire detection towers, with coverage of: a) 67% of the study area, b) 73.97% of the areas with high risk, c) 70.41% of the areas with very high risk, d) 70.42% of the conservation units and e) 84.95% of the heat spots in 2014. The proposed methodology can be adapted to areas of other countries. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Global burned area and biomass burning emissions from small fires

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Randerson, J.T; Chen, Y.; van der Werf, G.R.; Rogers, B.M.; Morton, D.C.

2012-01-01

In several biomes, including croplands, wooded savannas, and tropical forests, many small fires occur each year that are well below the detection limit of the current generation of global burned area products derived from moderate resolution surface reflectance imagery. Although these fires often

Fire Process Research Natural Areas: Managing research and restoration of dynamic ecosystem processes

Science.gov (United States)

Timothy Ingalsbee

2001-01-01

Since 1992 a collaborative group of fire scientists, forest conservationists, and Federal resource specialists have been developing proposals for a Research Natural Area (RNA) in the Warner Creek Fire area on the Willamette National Forest in Oregon. Inspired by these proposals, the Oregon Natural Heritage Plan created the new category of "Fire Process RNAs"...

SUBSURFACE EMPLACEMENT TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wilson, T.; Novotny, R.

1999-01-01

The objective of this analysis is to identify issues and criteria that apply to the design of the Subsurface Emplacement Transportation System (SET). The SET consists of the track used by the waste package handling equipment, the conductors and related equipment used to supply electrical power to that equipment, and the instrumentation and controls used to monitor and operate those track and power supply systems. Major considerations of this analysis include: (1) Operational life of the SET; (2) Geometric constraints on the track layout; (3) Operating loads on the track; (4) Environmentally induced loads on the track; (5) Power supply (electrification) requirements; and (6) Instrumentation and control requirements. This analysis will provide the basis for development of the system description document (SDD) for the SET. This analysis also defines the interfaces that need to be considered in the design of the SET. These interfaces include, but are not limited to, the following: (1) Waste handling building; (2) Monitored Geologic Repository (MGR) surface site layout; (3) Waste Emplacement System (WES); (4) Waste Retrieval System (WRS); (5) Ground Control System (GCS); (6) Ex-Container System (XCS); (7) Subsurface Electrical Distribution System (SED); (8) MGR Operations Monitoring and Control System (OMC); (9) Subsurface Facility System (SFS); (10) Subsurface Fire Protection System (SFR); (11) Performance Confirmation Emplacement Drift Monitoring System (PCM); and (12) Backfill Emplacement System (BES)

Culture of fire and environmental education in wildfire-prone areas: current situation in Spain

Science.gov (United States)

Clara Quesada-Fernández; Daniel Quesada-Fernández

2013-01-01

The culture of fire in the context of climate change has become a complicated relationship between people and natural areas. The interaction between people and fire is not a new issue. The use of fire by humans in most aspects of life, especially in rural areas, together with rapid and haphazard growth of structures in wildfire-prone areas, has led...

CCDP evaluation of the fire areas of KSNP using CFAST

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Yoon Hwan; Yang, Joon Eon; Kim, Jong Hoon

2005-01-01

During the past decade, the nuclear power industry has been moving away from prescriptive rules and practices toward risk-informed and performance-based engineering analysis to support the decision making for plant fire protection programs. For example, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) prepared NFPA 805, Performance-Based Standard for Fire Protection for Light Water Reactor Electric Generating Plants 2001 Edition. One crucial element in supporting the risk-informed fire protection is availability of simple and reliable methods and tools for evaluating the likelihood and consequences of fire scenarios. These tools directly benefit risk-informed and performance-based fire protection and application of risk information to resolve fire protection issues. Now the deterministic analysis results for the cable integrity is not given in case of performing the fire PSA. So it is necessary to apply the results for the fire modeling to the fire PSA model to develop the more realistic model. This document is intended to analyze the peak temperature of the upper gas layer using the fire modeling code, CFAST , to evaluate the integrity of the cable located on the dominant pump rooms, and to assess the CCDP(Conditional Core Damage Probability) using the results of the cable integrity. Accordingly, the fire safety assessment for the dominant fire areas using the fire modeling code will be capable of evaluating the consequences of the fire scenario, of reducing the the uncertainty, and to develop a more realistic model

Fire Risk Assessment: A Systematic Review of the Methodology and Functional Areas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Parisa Moshashaei

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Fire is a physical and social phenomenon that affects both individuals and the environment. Fire risk assessment is a critical part of a fire prevention program. In this process, the fire risk associated with the possibility of occurrence and severity of damage resulting from the fire is estimated and calculated. In this paper, a classification scheme and a systematic literature review are presented in order to classify and interpret the current researches on fire risk assessment methodologies and applications. Based on the scheme, 93 scholarly papers from 13 journals are categorized into application areas and other categories. The application areas include the papers on the topics of environmental impact, production and industry, transportation, buildings, power industry, oil and gas industry, urban fires and other topics. Scholarly papers are also classified by (1 year of publication, (2 journal of publication, (3 year of publication and application areas and (4 authors’ nationality. The survey results show that the largest number of papers was published during the period 2010-2012 with 31 (33.33%, the most of the studies have been carried out on environmental impact (47.31%, the journal of Forest Ecology and Management had the highest percentage of articles with 26.88%. It is hoped that the paper can meet the needs of researchers for easy references of fire risk assessment methodologies and applications. Therefore, this work would be able to provide useful insights into the anatomy of the fire-risk assessment methods, and suggest academic researchers and experts a framework for future attempts and researches.

Recent coal-fire and land-use status of Jharia Coalfield, India from satellite data

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Martha, T.R.; Guha, A.; Kumar, K.V.; Kamaraju, M.V.V.; Raju, E.V.R. [NRSC, Hyderabad (India). Geoscience Division

2010-07-01

The Jharia Coalfield (JCF) in India is known for its high grade coal and associated coal fires. Before it can be exploited, valuable coal reserves are destroyed in the sub-surface due to fire. The combined act of fire and subsidence has endangered the environmental safety of the JCF, although several methods have been adopted to control the coal fires. Coal fire is a dynamic phenomenon, hence, its location and extent changes with time. To control the coal fires effectively, the status of the fires and the landscape must be assessed periodically. In this study, the thermal band in Landsat-7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) data (daytime) of 29 March 2003 and Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) data (night-time) of 9 October 2006 are used to delineate the coal-fire areas. The kinetic temperature of the coal fire-affected areas is calculated from Landsat-7 ETM+ data using a Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI)-derived emissivity model, and from band 13 of ASTER data with a fixed emissivity value. The study showed that the eastern part of the JCF is more affected by coal fires than the western part. The affected collieries in the eastern part are Kusunda, Lodna, Bararee, Gonudih and Ena. Among all collieries, Kusunda is the most affected by coal fires (29% of the area) and showed a 0.56 km2 increase in fire area from the year 2003 to 2006. During this period, a total increase in coal-fire area of 0.51 km{sup 2} occurs in the JCF. The land-use map prepared from Indian Remote Sensing (IRS) Satellite-P6 Linear Imaging Self-scanning Sensor (LISS)-III data showed that 6.9% of the area in the JCF is occupied by mining-related activities, which indicates its vulnerability to environmental degradation.

Potentials and limitations of remote fire monitoring in protected areas.

Science.gov (United States)

Dos Santos, João Flávio Costa; Romeiro, Joyce Machado Nunes; de Assis, José Batuíra; Torres, Fillipe Tamiozzo Pereira; Gleriani, José Marinaldo

2018-03-01

Protected areas (PAs) play an important role in maintaining the biodiversity and ecological processes of the site. One of the greatest challenges for the PA management in several biomes in the world is wildfires. The objective of this work was to evaluate the potentialities and limitations of the use of data obtained by orbital remote sensing in the monitoring fire occurrence in PAs. Fire Occurrence Records (FORs) were analyzed in Serra do Brigadeiro State Park, Minas Gerais, Brazil, from 2007 to 2015, using photo interpreted data from TM, ETM + and OLI sensors of the Landsat series and the Hot Spot Database (HSD) from the Brazilian Institute of Space Research - INPE. It was also observed the time of permanence of the scar left by fire on the landscape, through the multitemporal analysis of the behavior of NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) and NBR (Normalized Burn Ratio) indexes, before and after the occurrence. The greatest limitation found for the orbital remote monitoring was the presence of clouds in the passage of the sensor in dates close to the occurrence of the fires. The burned area identified by photo interpretation was 54.9% less than the area contained in the FOR. Although the HSD reported fire occurrences in the buffer zone (up to 10km from the Park), no FORs were found at a distance greater than 1100m from the boundaries of the PA. As the main potential of remote sensing, the possibility of identifying burned areas throughout the park and surroundings is highlighted, with low costs and greater accuracy. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Climate change impact on fire probability and severity in Mediterranean areas

Science.gov (United States)

Bachisio Arca; Grazia Pellizzaro; Pierpaolo Duce; Michele Salis; Valentina Bacciu; Donatella Spano; Alan Ager; Mark Finney

2010-01-01

Fire is one of the most significant threats for the Mediterranean forested areas. Global change may increase the wildland fire risk due to the combined effect of air temperature and humidity on fuel status, and the effect of wind speed on fire behaviour. This paper investigated the potential effect of the climate changes predicted for the Mediterranean basin by a...

Analysis on ventilation pressure of fire area in longitudinal ventilation of underground tunnel

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Jiaxin; Li, Yanfeng; Feng, Xiao; Li, Junmei

2018-03-01

In order to solve the problem of ventilation pressure loss in the fire area under the fire condition, the wind pressure loss model of the fire area is established based on the thermodynamic equilibrium relation. The semi-empirical calculation formula is obtained by using the model experiment and CFD simulation. The validity of the formula is verified. The results show that the ventilation pressure loss in the fire zone is proportional to the convective heat release rate at the critical velocity, which is inversely proportional to the upstream ventilation velocity and the tunnel cross-sectional area. The proposed formula is consistent with the law of the tunnel fire test fitting formula that results are close, in contrast, the advantage lies in a clear theoretical basis and ventilation velocity values. The resistance of road tunnel ventilation system is calculated accurately and reliably, and then an effective emergency ventilation operation program is developed. It is necessary to consider the fire zone ventilation pressure loss. The proposed ventilation pressure loss formula can be used for design calculation after thorough verification.

Hydrologic Effects of the 1988 Galena Fire, Black Hills Area, South Dakota

Science.gov (United States)

Driscoll, Daniel G.; Carter, Janet M.; Ohlen, Donald O.

2004-01-01

The Galena Fire burned about 16,788 acres of primarily ponderosa pine forest during July 5-8, 1988, in the Black Hills area of South Dakota. The fire burned primarily within the Grace Coolidge Creek drainage basin and almost entirely within the boundaries of Custer State Park. A U.S. Geological Survey gaging station with streamflow records dating back to 1977 was located along Grace Coolidge Creek within the burned area. About one-half of the gaging station's 26.8-square-mile drainage area was burned. The drainage basin for Bear Gulch, which is tributary to Grace Coolidge Creek, was burned particularly severely, with complete deforestation occurring in nearly the entirety of the area upstream from a gaging station that was installed in 1989. A study to evaluate effects of the Galena Fire on streamflow, geomorphology, and water quality was initiated in 1988. The geomorphologic and water-quality components of the study were completed by 1990 and are summarized in this report. A data-collection network consisting of streamflow- and precipitation-gaging stations was operated through water year 1998 for evaluation of effects on streamflow characteristics, including both annual-yield and peak-flow characteristics, which are the main focus of this report. Moderately burned areas did not experience a substantial increase in the rate of surface erosion; however, severely burned areas underwent surficial erosion nearly twice that of the unburned areas. The sediment production rate of Bear Gulch estimated 8 to 14 months after the fire was 870 ft3/acre (44 tons/acre). Substantial degradation of stream channels within the severely burned headwater areas of Bear Gulch was documented. Farther downstream, channel aggradation resulted from deposition of sediments transported from the headwater areas. The most notable water-quality effect was on concentrations of suspended sediment, which were orders of magnitude higher for Bear Gulch than for the unburned control area. Effects on

Improvement of geological subsurface structure models for Kanto area, Japan, based on records of microtremor array and earthquake observations

Science.gov (United States)

Wakai, A.; Senna, S.; Jin, K.; Cho, I.; Matsuyama, H.; Fujiwara, H.

2017-12-01

To estimate damage caused by strong ground motions from a large earthquake, it is important to accurately evaluate broadband ground-motion characteristics in wide area. For realizing that, it is one of the important issues to model detailed subsurface structure from top surface of seismic bedrock to ground surface.Here, we focus on Kanto area, including Tokyo, where there are thicker sedimentary layers. We, first, have ever collected deep bore-hole data, soil physical properties obtained by some geophysical explorations, geological information and existing models for deep ground from top surface of seismic bedrock to that of engineering bedrock, and have collected a great number of bore-hole data and surficial geological ones for shallow ground from top surface of engineering bedrock to ground surface. Using them, we modeled initial geological subsurface structure for each of deep ground and shallow one. By connecting them appropriately, we constructed initial geological subsurface structure models from top surface of seismic bedrock to ground surface.In this study, we first collected a lot of records obtained by dense microtremor observations and earthquake ones in the whole Kanto area. About microtremor observations, we conducted measurements from large array with the size of hundreds of meters to miniature array with the size of 60 centimeters to cover both of deep ground and shallow one. And then, using ground motion characteristics such as disperse curves and H/V(R/V) spectral ratios obtained from these records, the initial geological subsurface structure models were improved in terms of velocity structure from top surface of seismic bedrock to ground surface in the area.We will report outlines on microtremor array observations, analysis methods and improved subsurface structure models.

Corrective action investigation plan for Corrective Action Unit 342: Area 23 Mercury Fire Training Pit, Nevada Test Site, Nevada

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1998-03-01

This Corrective Action Investigation Plan (CAIP) has been developed in accordance with the Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order (FFACO) that was agreed to by the US Department of Energy, Nevada Operations Office (DOE/NV); the State of Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP); and the US Department of Defense (FFACO, 1996). The CAIP is a document that provides or references all of the specific information for investigation activities associated with Corrective Action Units (CAUs) or Corrective Action Sites (CASs). According to the FFACO, CASs are sites potentially requiring corrective action(s) and may include solid waste management units or individual disposal or release sites (FFACO, 1996). Corrective Action Units consist of one or more CASs grouped together based on geography, technical similarity, or agency responsibility for the purpose of determining corrective actions. This CAIP contains the environmental sample collection objectives and the criteria for conducting site investigation activities at CAU 342, the Area 23 Mercury Fire Training Pit (FTP), which is located in Area 23 at the Nevada Test Site (NTS). The NTS is approximately 88 km (55 mi) northwest of Las Vegas, Nevada. Corrective Action Unit 342 is comprised of CAS 23-56-01. The FTP is an area approximately 100 m by 140 m (350 ft by 450 ft) located west of the town of Mercury, Nevada, which was used between approximately 1965 and 1990 to train fire-fighting personnel (REECo, 1991; Jacobson, 1991). The surface and subsurface soils in the FTP have likely been impacted by hydrocarbons and other contaminants of potential concern (COPC) associated with burn activities and training exercises in the area.

Mapping fire probability and severity in a Mediterranean area using different weather and fuel moisture scenarios

Science.gov (United States)

Arca, B.; Salis, M.; Bacciu, V.; Duce, P.; Pellizzaro, G.; Ventura, A.; Spano, D.

2009-04-01

Although in many countries lightning is the main cause of ignition, in the Mediterranean Basin the forest fires are predominantly ignited by arson, or by human negligence. The fire season peaks coincide with extreme weather conditions (mainly strong winds, hot temperatures, low atmospheric water vapour content) and high tourist presence. Many works reported that in the Mediterranean Basin the projected impacts of climate change will cause greater weather variability and extreme weather conditions, with drier and hotter summers and heat waves. At long-term scale, climate changes could affect the fuel load and the dead/live fuel ratio, and therefore could change the vegetation flammability. At short-time scale, the increase of extreme weather events could directly affect fuel water status, and it could increase large fire occurrence. In this context, detecting the areas characterized by both high probability of large fire occurrence and high fire severity could represent an important component of the fire management planning. In this work we compared several fire probability and severity maps (fire occurrence, rate of spread, fireline intensity, flame length) obtained for a study area located in North Sardinia, Italy, using FlamMap simulator (USDA Forest Service, Missoula). FlamMap computes the potential fire behaviour characteristics over a defined landscape for given weather, wind and fuel moisture data. Different weather and fuel moisture scenarios were tested to predict the potential impact of climate changes on fire parameters. The study area, characterized by a mosaic of urban areas, protected areas, and other areas subject to anthropogenic disturbances, is mainly composed by fire-prone Mediterranean maquis. The input themes needed to run FlamMap were input as grid of 10 meters; the wind data, obtained using a computational fluid-dynamic model, were inserted as gridded file, with a resolution of 50 m. The analysis revealed high fire probability and severity in

Detection and control of fires and heatings in shallow, abandoned coal mines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sullivan, P.

1991-01-01

Heatings and fires in shallow, abandoned coal mines create an environmentally undesirable hazard in the Witbank area in South Africa, as well as locations in Europe and North America. A research program was set up in South Africa to detect and control the occurrence and extent of subsurface heatings and fires. Prior to any remedial action being taken to control or extinguish a heating or fire, it is essential to evaluate underground conditions in order to determine the most effective control method. Normally, such workings cannot physically be entered due to poor ground conditions and the presence of heat and toxic gases. Two novel detection methods have been developed by the Chamber of Mines Research Organization (COMRO) for the purpose of identifying the nature and extent of such heatings remotely, via surface boreholes. Temperature monitoring allows for the detection of heating intensity and location. To determine areas of uncontrolled air infiltration into the workings, tracer gas technology is used. In addition, a method for controlling a fire which has been successfully used in South Africa is described

Mapping regional patterns of large forest fires in Wildland-Urban Interface areas in Europe.

Science.gov (United States)

Modugno, Sirio; Balzter, Heiko; Cole, Beth; Borrelli, Pasquale

2016-05-01

Over recent decades, Land Use and Cover Change (LUCC) trends in many regions of Europe have reconfigured the landscape structures around many urban areas. In these areas, the proximity to landscape elements with high forest fuels has increased the fire risk to people and property. These Wildland-Urban Interface areas (WUI) can be defined as landscapes where anthropogenic urban land use and forest fuel mass come into contact. Mapping their extent is needed to prioritize fire risk control and inform local forest fire risk management strategies. This study proposes a method to map the extent and spatial patterns of the European WUI areas at continental scale. Using the European map of WUI areas, the hypothesis is tested that the distance from the nearest WUI area is related to the forest fire probability. Statistical relationships between the distance from the nearest WUI area, and large forest fire incidents from satellite remote sensing were subsequently modelled by logistic regression analysis. The first European scale map of the WUI extent and locations is presented. Country-specific positive and negative relationships of large fires and the proximity to the nearest WUI area are found. A regional-scale analysis shows a strong influence of the WUI zones on large fires in parts of the Mediterranean regions. Results indicate that the probability of large burned surfaces increases with diminishing WUI distance in touristic regions like Sardinia, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, or in regions with a strong peri-urban component as Catalunya, Comunidad de Madrid, Comunidad Valenciana. For the above regions, probability curves of large burned surfaces show statistical relationships (ROC value > 0.5) inside a 5000 m buffer of the nearest WUI. Wise land management can provide a valuable ecosystem service of fire risk reduction that is currently not explicitly included in ecosystem service valuations. The results re-emphasise the importance of including this ecosystem service

Subsurface Contaminants Focus Area (SCFA) Lead Laboratory Providing Technical Assistance to the DOE Weapons Complex in Subsurface Contamination

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wright, J. A. Jr.; Corey, J. C.

2002-01-01

The Subsurface Contaminants Focus Area (SCFA), a DOE-HQ EM-50 organization, is hosted and managed at the Savannah River Site in Aiken, South Carolina. SCFA is an integrated program chartered to find technology and scientific solutions to address DOE subsurface environmental restoration problems throughout the DOE Weapons Complex. Since its inception in 1989, the SCFA program has resulted in a total of 269 deployments of 83 innovative technologies. Until recently, the primary thrust of the program has been to develop, demonstrate, and deploy those remediation technology alternatives that are solutions to technology needs identified by the DOE Sites. Over the last several years, the DOE Sites began to express a need not only for innovative technologies, but also for technical assistance. In response to this need, DOE-HQ EM-50, in collaboration with and in support of a Strategic Lab Council recommendation directed each of its Focus Areas to implement a Lead Laboratory Concept to enhance their technical capabilities. Because each Focus Area is unique as defined by the contrast in either the type of contaminants involved or the environments in which they are found, the Focus Areas were given latitude in how they set up and implemented the Lead Lab Concept. The configuration of choice for the SCFA was a Lead-Partner Lab arrangement. Savannah River Technology Center (SRTC) teamed with the SCFA as the Focus Area's Lead Laboratory. SRTC then partnered with the DOE National Laboratories to create a virtual consulting function within DOE. The National Laboratories were established to help solve the Nation's most difficult problems, drawing from a resource pool of the most talented and gifted scientists and engineers. Following that logic, SRTC, through the Lead-Partner Lab arrangement, has that same resource base to draw from to provide assistance to any SCFA DOE customer throughout the Complex. This paper briefly describes how this particular arrangement is organized and

Tech assist/fire safety assessment of 100K area facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Johnson, B.H.

1994-01-01

This Tech Assist/Fire Safety Assessment provides a comprehensive assessment of the 100K Area Facilities at the U.S. Department of Energy's Hanford Site for fire protection upgrades that may be needed given the limited remaining service life of these facilities. This assessment considers the relative nature of observed fire risks and whether the installed fire protection systems adequately control this risk. The analysis is based on compliance with DOE Orders, NFPA Codes and Standards, and recognized industry practice. Limited remaining service life (i.e., 6 to 12 years), current value of each facility, comparison to the best protected class of industrial risk, and the potential for exemptions from DOE requirements are key factors for recommendations presented in this report

40-years of fires in a touristic area from South of Spain.

Science.gov (United States)

Martínez-Murillo, Juan F.; Aranda-Gómez, Francisco; Damián Ruiz-Sinoga, José

2014-05-01

Costa del Sol in the Province of Malaga is one of the major touristic region in Spain. Its develop started in the 1960s of the XXth century at the same time as other regions in Mediterranean Europe. Since then, this area has become a holiday touristic centre for different countries and regions from Europe (United Kingdom, Escandinavia, Germany, Netherlands, Russia, etc.). Likewise, Costa del Sol has been characterised by a constant grow of the residence tourism rendering in an extreme increment of urban areas, especially in those municipalities located in the coast. This expansión of urban áreas was carried out against rural and natural vegetated areas. The region is characterised by very montanious topography, predominant impermeable rocks (shales, schists and peridotites) and abundant rainfalls from October to May, especially, in the western area (where a climatic gradient is observed from humid to dry conditions). All of these features, joined a very spread and intense occupation by urban, infrastructures and touristic land uses, renders in a very high vulnerability to fires and their consequences. As fire removes vegetation cover and accelerate water erosion, local relief and climatic conditions induce to extreme high risk of soil loss and floodings. During the last 40 years, in the study area, the number of fires increased as weell as the affected area, following the similar trend for the rest of Spain and other Mediterranean countries. This situation increases the exposition to fire risk for more than one-million of people, which become at least two-millions during the summer months when fire conditions are expected.

What determines area burned in large landscapes? Insights from a decade of comparative landscape-fire modelling

Science.gov (United States)

Geoffrey J. Cary; Robert E. Keane; Mike D. Flannigan; Ian D. Davies; Russ A. Parsons

2015-01-01

Understanding what determines area burned in large landscapes is critical for informing wildland fire management in fire-prone environments and for representing fire activity in Dynamic Global Vegetation Models. For the past ten years, a group of landscape-fire modellers have been exploring the relative influence of key determinants of area burned in temperate and...

Metapopulation dynamics of the mistletoe and its host in savanna areas with different fire occurrence.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Grazielle Sales Teodoro

Full Text Available Mistletoes are aerial hemiparasitic plants which occupy patches of favorable habitat (host trees surrounded by unfavorable habitat and may be possibly modeled as a metapopulation. A metapopulation is defined as a subdivided population that persists due to the balance between colonization and extinction in discrete habitat patches. Our aim was to evaluate the dynamics of the mistletoe Psittacanthus robustus and its host Vochysia thyrsoidea in three Brazilian savanna areas using a metapopulation approach. We also evaluated how the differences in terms of fire occurrence affected the dynamic of those populations (two areas burned during the study and one was fire protected. We monitored the populations at six-month intervals. P. robustus population structure and dynamics met the expected criteria for a metapopulation: i the suitable habitats for the mistletoe occur in discrete patches; (ii local populations went extinct during the study and (iii colonization of previously non-occupied patches occurred. The ratio of occupied patches decreased in all areas with time. Local mistletoe populations went extinct due to two different causes: patch extinction in area with no fire and fire killing in the burned areas. In a burned area, the largest decrease of occupied patch ratios occurred due to a fire event that killed the parasites without, however, killing the host trees. The greatest mortality of V. thyrsoidea occurred in the area without fire. In this area, all the dead trees supported mistletoe individuals and no mortality was observed for parasite-free trees. Because P. robustus is a fire sensitive species and V. thyrsoidea is fire tolerant, P. robustus seems to increase host mortality, but its effect is lessened by periodic burning that reduces the parasite loads.

Some Ecological Mechanisms to Generate Habitability in Planetary Subsurface Areas by Chemolithotrophic Communities: The Ro Tinto Subsurface Ecosystem as a Model System

Science.gov (United States)

Fernández-Remolar, David C.; Gómez, Felipe; Prieto-Ballesteros, Olga; Schelble, Rachel T.; Rodríguez, Nuria; Amiols, Ricardo

2008-02-01

Chemolithotrophic communities that colonize subsurface habitats have great relevance for the astrobiological exploration of our Solar System. We hypothesize that the chemical and thermal stabilization of an environment through microbial activity could make a given planetary region habitable. The MARTE project ground-truth drilling campaigns that sampled cryptic subsurface microbial communities in the basement of the Ro Tinto headwaters have shown that acidic surficial habitats are the result of the microbial oxidation of pyritic ores. The oxidation process is exothermic and releases heat under both aerobic and anaerobic conditions. These microbial communities can maintain the subsurface habitat temperature through storage heat if the subsurface temperature does not exceed their maximum growth temperature. In the acidic solutions of the Ro Tinto, ferric iron acts as an effective buffer for controlling water pH. Under anaerobic conditions, ferric iron is the oxidant used by microbes to decompose pyrite through the production of sulfate, ferrous iron, and protons. The integration between the physical and chemical processes mediated by microorganisms with those driven by the local geology and hydrology have led us to hypothesize that thermal and chemical regulation mechanisms exist in this environment and that these homeostatic mechanisms could play an essential role in creating habitable areas for other types of microorganisms. Therefore, searching for the physicochemical expression of extinct and extant homeostatic mechanisms through physical and chemical anomalies in the Mars crust (i.e., local thermal gradient or high concentration of unusual products such as ferric sulfates precipitated out from acidic solutions produced by hypothetical microbial communities) could be a first step in the search for biological traces of a putative extant or extinct Mars biosphere.

Uranium Contamination in the Subsurface Beneath the 300 Area, Hanford Site, Washington

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Peterson, Robert E.; Rockhold, Mark L.; Serne, R. Jeffrey; Thorne, Paul D.; Williams, Mark D.

2008-02-29

This report provides a description of uranium contamination in the subsurface at the Hanford Site's 300 Area. The principal focus is a persistence plume in groundwater, which has not attenuated as predicted by earlier remedial investigations. Included in the report are chapters on current conditions, hydrogeologic framework, groundwater flow modeling, and geochemical considerations. The report is intended to describe what is known or inferred about the uranium contamination for the purpose of making remedial action decisions.

Optimization of investment economic in PCI using the methodology of benefits design in analysis of the spread of fires with FDS (Fire Dynamics Simulator) in areas of nuclear fire

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Salellas, J.

2015-01-01

Fire simulation analysis allows knowing the evolution and spread fire in areas of interest within a NPP such as control room, cable room and multi zone comportment among others. fires are a main concern regarding safety analysis of NPP. IDOM has the capability to carry out fire simulations, taken in to account smoke control, fire spread, toxicity levels, ventilation and all physical phenomena. As a result, appropriate fire protection measures can be assessed in each scenario. CFD tools applied to fire simulations can determine with higher resolution all damages caused during the fire. Furthermore, such tools can reduce costs due to a lower impact of design modifications. (Author)

Nitrogen patterns in subsurface waters of the Yzeron stream: effect of combined sewer overflows and subsurface-surface water mixing.

Science.gov (United States)

Aucour, A M; Bariac, T; Breil, P; Namour, P; Schmitt, L; Gnouma, R; Zuddas, P

2013-01-01

Urbanization subjects streams to increased nitrogen loads. Therefore studying nitrogen forms at the interface between urban stream and groundwater is important for water resource management. In this study we report results on water δ(18)O and nitrogen forms in subsurface waters of a stream (Yzeron, France). The sites studied were located upstream and downstream of combined sewer overflows (CSO) in a rural area and a periurban area, respectively. Water δ(18)O allowed us to follow the mixing of subsurface water with surface water. Dissolved organic nitrogen and organic carbon of fine sediment increased by 20-30% between rural and periurban subsurface waters in the cold season, under high flow. The highest nitrate levels were observed in rural subsurface waters in the cold season. The lowest nitrate levels were found in periurban subsurface waters in the warm season, under low flow. They corresponded to slow exchange of subsurface waters with channel water. Thus reduced exchange between surface and subsurface waters and organic-matter-rich input seemed to favor nitrate reduction in the downstream, periurban, subsurface waters impacted by CSO.

Design of Fire/Gas Penetration Seals and fire exposure tests for Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor experimental areas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cavalluzzo, S.

1983-01-01

A Fire/Gas Penetration Seal is required in every penetration through the walls and ceilings into the Test Cell housing the Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor (TFTR), as well as other adjacent areas to protect the TFTR from fire damage. The penetrations are used for field coil lead stems, diagnostics systems, utilities, cables, trays, mechanical devices, electrical conduits, vacuum liner, air conditioning ducts, water pipes, and gas pipes. The function of the Fire/Gas Penetration Seals is to prevent the passage of fire and products of combustion through penetrations for a period of time up to three hours and remain structurally intact during fire exposure. The Penetration Seal must withstand, without rupture, a fire hose water stream directed at the hot surface. There are over 3000 penetrations ranging in size from several square inches to 100 square feet, and classified into 90 different types. The material used to construct the Fire/Gas Penetration Seals consist of a single and a two-component room temperature vulcanizing (RTV) silicone rubber compound. Miscellaneous materials such as alumina silica refractory fibers in board, blanket and fiber forms are also used in the construction and assembly of the Seals. This paper describes some of the penetration seals and the test procedures used to perform the three-hour fire exposure tests to demonstrate the adequacy of the seals

Subsurface contamination focus area technical requirements. Volume II

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nickelson, D.; Nonte, J.; Richardson, J.

1996-10-01

This is our vision, a vision that replaces the ad hoc or open-quotes delphiclose quotes method which is to get a group of open-quotes expertsclose quotes together and make decisions based upon opinion. To fulfill our vision for the Subsurface Contaminants Focus Area (SCFA), it is necessary to generate technical requirements or performance measures which are quantitative or measurable. Decisions can be supported if they are based upon requirements or performance measures which can be traced to the origin (documented) and are verifiable, i.e., prove that requirements are satisfied by inspection (show me), demonstration, analysis, monitoring, or test. The data from which these requirements are derived must also reflect the characteristics of individual landfills or plumes so that technologies that meet these requirements will necessarily work at specific sites. Other subjective factors, such as stakeholder concerns, do influence decisions. Using the requirements as a basic approach, the SCFA can depend upon objective criteria to help influence the areas of subjectivity, like the stakeholders. In the past, traceable requirements were not generated, probably because it seemed too difficult to do so. There are risks that the requirements approach will not be accepted because it is new and represents a departure from the historical paradigm

Subsurface contamination focus area technical requirements. Volume II

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nickelson, D.; Nonte, J.; Richardson, J.

1996-10-01

This is our vision, a vision that replaces the ad hoc or {open_quotes}delphi{close_quotes} method which is to get a group of {open_quotes}experts{close_quotes} together and make decisions based upon opinion. To fulfill our vision for the Subsurface Contaminants Focus Area (SCFA), it is necessary to generate technical requirements or performance measures which are quantitative or measurable. Decisions can be supported if they are based upon requirements or performance measures which can be traced to the origin (documented) and are verifiable, i.e., prove that requirements are satisfied by inspection (show me), demonstration, analysis, monitoring, or test. The data from which these requirements are derived must also reflect the characteristics of individual landfills or plumes so that technologies that meet these requirements will necessarily work at specific sites. Other subjective factors, such as stakeholder concerns, do influence decisions. Using the requirements as a basic approach, the SCFA can depend upon objective criteria to help influence the areas of subjectivity, like the stakeholders. In the past, traceable requirements were not generated, probably because it seemed too difficult to do so. There are risks that the requirements approach will not be accepted because it is new and represents a departure from the historical paradigm.

SUBSURFACE REPOSITORY INTEGRATED CONTROL SYSTEM DESIGN

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Randle, D.C.

2000-01-01

The primary purpose of this document is to develop a preliminary high-level functional and physical control system architecture for the potential repository at Yucca Mountain. This document outlines an overall control system concept that encompasses and integrates the many diverse process and communication systems being developed for the subsurface repository design. This document presents integrated design concepts for monitoring and controlling the diverse set of subsurface operations. The Subsurface Repository Integrated Control System design will be composed of a series of diverse process systems and communication networks. The subsurface repository design contains many systems related to instrumentation and control (I andC) for both repository development and waste emplacement operations. These systems include waste emplacement, waste retrieval, ventilation, radiological and air monitoring, rail transportation, construction development, utility systems (electrical, lighting, water, compressed air, etc.), fire protection, backfill emplacement, and performance confirmation. Each of these systems involves some level of I andC and will typically be integrated over a data communications network throughout the subsurface facility. The subsurface I andC systems will also interface with multiple surface-based systems such as site operations, rail transportation, security and safeguards, and electrical/piped utilities. In addition to the I andC systems, the subsurface repository design also contains systems related to voice and video communications. The components for each of these systems will be distributed and linked over voice and video communication networks throughout the subsurface facility. The scope and primary objectives of this design analysis are to: (1) Identify preliminary system-level functions and interfaces (Section 6.2). (2) Examine the overall system complexity and determine how and on what levels the engineered process systems will be monitored

Literature survey of blast and fire effects of nuclear weapons on urban areas

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Reitter, T.A.; McCallen, D.B.; Kang, S.W.

1982-06-01

The American literature of the past 30 years on fire and blast effects of nuclear weapons on urban areas has been surveyed. The relevant work is briefly sketched and areas where information is apparently lacking are noted. This report is intended to provide the basis for suggesting research priorities in the fire and blast effects area for the Federal Emergency Management Agency. It is also intended to provide entry into the literature for researchers. over 850 references are given.

Literature survey of blast and fire effects of nuclear weapons on urban areas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reitter, T.A.; McCallen, D.B.; Kang, S.W.

1982-06-01

The American literature of the past 30 years on fire and blast effects of nuclear weapons on urban areas has been surveyed. The relevant work is briefly sketched and areas where information is apparently lacking are noted. This report is intended to provide the basis for suggesting research priorities in the fire and blast effects area for the Federal Emergency Management Agency. It is also intended to provide entry into the literature for researchers. over 850 references are given

Some ecological mechanisms to generate habitability in planetary subsurface areas by chemolithotrophic communities: the Río Tinto subsurface ecosystem as a model system.

Science.gov (United States)

Fernández-Remolar, David C; Gómez, Felipe; Prieto-Ballesteros, Olga; Schelble, Rachel T; Rodríguez, Nuria; Amils, Ricardo

2008-02-01

Chemolithotrophic communities that colonize subsurface habitats have great relevance for the astrobiological exploration of our Solar System. We hypothesize that the chemical and thermal stabilization of an environment through microbial activity could make a given planetary region habitable. The MARTE project ground-truth drilling campaigns that sampled cryptic subsurface microbial communities in the basement of the Río Tinto headwaters have shown that acidic surficial habitats are the result of the microbial oxidation of pyritic ores. The oxidation process is exothermic and releases heat under both aerobic and anaerobic conditions. These microbial communities can maintain the subsurface habitat temperature through storage heat if the subsurface temperature does not exceed their maximum growth temperature. In the acidic solutions of the Río Tinto, ferric iron acts as an effective buffer for controlling water pH. Under anaerobic conditions, ferric iron is the oxidant used by microbes to decompose pyrite through the production of sulfate, ferrous iron, and protons. The integration between the physical and chemical processes mediated by microorganisms with those driven by the local geology and hydrology have led us to hypothesize that thermal and chemical regulation mechanisms exist in this environment and that these homeostatic mechanisms could play an essential role in creating habitable areas for other types of microorganisms. Therefore, searching for the physicochemical expression of extinct and extant homeostatic mechanisms through physical and chemical anomalies in the Mars crust (i.e., local thermal gradient or high concentration of unusual products such as ferric sulfates precipitated out from acidic solutions produced by hypothetical microbial communities) could be a first step in the search for biological traces of a putative extant or extinct Mars biosphere.

Subsurface-controlled geological maps for the Y-12 plant and adjacent areas of Bear Creek Valley

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

King, H.L.; Haase, C.S.

1987-04-01

Bear Creek Valley in the vicinity of the US Department of Energy Y-12 Plant is underlain by Middle to Late Cambrian strata of the Conasauga Group. The group consists of interbedded limestones, shales, mudstones, and siltstones, and it can be divided into six discrete formations. Bear Creek Valley is bordered on the north by Pine Ridge, which is underlain by sandstones, siltstones, and shales of the Rome Formation, and on the south by Chestnut Ridge, which is underlain by dolostones of the Knox Group. Subsurface-controlled geological maps illustrating stratigraphic data and formational contacts for the formations within the Conasauga Group have been prepared for the Y-12 Plant vicinity and selected areas in Bear Creek Valley westward from the plant. The maps are consistent with all available surface and subsurface data for areas where sufficient data exist to make map construction feasible. 13 refs

SUBSURFACE REPOSITORY INTEGRATED CONTROL SYSTEM DESIGN

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

C.J. Fernado

1998-01-01

The purpose of this document is to develop preliminary high-level functional and physical control system architectures for the proposed subsurface repository at Yucca Mountain. This document outlines overall control system concepts that encompass and integrate the many diverse systems being considered for use within the subsurface repository. This document presents integrated design concepts for monitoring and controlling the diverse set of subsurface operations. The subsurface repository design will be composed of a series of diverse systems that will be integrated to accomplish a set of overall functions and objectives. The subsurface repository contains several Instrumentation and Control (I andC) related systems including: waste emplacement systems, ventilation systems, communication systems, radiation monitoring systems, rail transportation systems, ground control monitoring systems, utility monitoring systems (electrical, lighting, water, compressed air, etc.), fire detection and protection systems, retrieval systems, and performance confirmation systems. Each of these systems involve some level of I andC and will typically be integrated over a data communication network. The subsurface I andC systems will also integrate with multiple surface-based site-wide systems such as emergency response, health physics, security and safeguards, communications, utilities and others. The scope and primary objectives of this analysis are to: (1) Identify preliminary system level functions and interface needs (Presented in the functional diagrams in Section 7.2). (2) Examine the overall system complexity and determine how and on what levels these control systems will be controlled and integrated (Presented in Section 7.2). (3) Develop a preliminary subsurface facility-wide design for an overall control system architecture, and depict this design by a series of control system functional block diagrams (Presented in Section 7.2). (4) Develop a series of physical architectures

SUBSURFACE REPOSITORY INTEGRATED CONTROL SYSTEM DESIGN

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

C.J. Fernado

1998-09-17

The purpose of this document is to develop preliminary high-level functional and physical control system architectures for the proposed subsurface repository at Yucca Mountain. This document outlines overall control system concepts that encompass and integrate the many diverse systems being considered for use within the subsurface repository. This document presents integrated design concepts for monitoring and controlling the diverse set of subsurface operations. The subsurface repository design will be composed of a series of diverse systems that will be integrated to accomplish a set of overall functions and objectives. The subsurface repository contains several Instrumentation and Control (I&C) related systems including: waste emplacement systems, ventilation systems, communication systems, radiation monitoring systems, rail transportation systems, ground control monitoring systems, utility monitoring systems (electrical, lighting, water, compressed air, etc.), fire detection and protection systems, retrieval systems, and performance confirmation systems. Each of these systems involve some level of I&C and will typically be integrated over a data communication network. The subsurface I&C systems will also integrate with multiple surface-based site-wide systems such as emergency response, health physics, security and safeguards, communications, utilities and others. The scope and primary objectives of this analysis are to: (1) Identify preliminary system level functions and interface needs (Presented in the functional diagrams in Section 7.2). (2) Examine the overall system complexity and determine how and on what levels these control systems will be controlled and integrated (Presented in Section 7.2). (3) Develop a preliminary subsurface facility-wide design for an overall control system architecture, and depict this design by a series of control system functional block diagrams (Presented in Section 7.2). (4) Develop a series of physical architectures that

Subsurface thermal regime to delineate the paleo-groundwater flow system in an arid area, Al Kufra, Libya

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zenhom El-Said Salem

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to understand the groundwater flow system in Al Kufra basin, Libya, as a case study of arid areas using subsurface temperature. The temperature-depth profiles and water levels were measured in eight boreholes in the area. Well 6 is considered a recharge type profile with low geothermal gradient (0.0068 °C/m and an estimated paleo-temperature around 19.5 °C. The other profiles are of discharge type with higher geothermal gradient (0.0133 to 0.0166 °C/m. The constructed horizontal 2D distribution maps of the hydraulic heads and the subsurface temperature measurements reveal that the main recharge area is located to the south with low temperature while the main discharge area is located to the north with higher temperature. Vertical 2D distribution maps show that location of well 4 has low hydraulic heads and higher temperature indicating that the fault defined in the area may have affected the groundwater flow system. The estimated groundwater flux ranges from 0.001 to 0.1 mm/day for the recharge area and from −0.3 to −0.7 mm/day in average in the discharge area.

Historical Perspective on Subsurface Contaminants Focus Area (SCFA) Success: Counting the Things That Really Count

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wright, J. A. Jr.; Middleman, L. I.

2002-02-27

The Subsurface Contaminants Focus Area, (SCFA) is committed to, and has been accountable for, identifying and providing solutions for the most pressing subsurface contamination problems in the DOE Complex. The SCFA program is a DOE end user focused and problem driven organization that provides the best technical solutions for the highest priority problems. This paper will discuss in some detail specific examples of the most successful, innovative technical solutions and the DOE sites where they were deployed or demonstrated. These solutions exhibited outstanding performance in FY 2000/2001 and appear poised to achieve significant success in saving end users money and time. They also provide a reduction in risk to the environment, workers, and the public while expediting environmental clean up of the sites.

The simulation of surface fire spread based on Rothermel model in windthrow area of Changbai Mountain (Jilin, China)

Science.gov (United States)

Yin, Hang; Jin, Hui; Zhao, Ying; Fan, Yuguang; Qin, Liwu; Chen, Qinghong; Huang, Liya; Jia, Xiang; Liu, Lijie; Dai, Yuhong; Xiao, Ying

2018-03-01

The forest-fire not only brings great loss to natural resources, but also destructs the ecosystem and reduces the soil fertility, causing some natural disasters as soil erosion and debris flow. However, due to the lack of the prognosis for forest fire spreading trend in forest fire fighting, it is difficult to formulate rational and effective fire-fighting scheme. In the event of forest fire, achieving accurate judgment to the fire behavior would greatly improve the fire-fighting efficiency, and reduce heavy losses caused by fire. Researches on forest fire spread simulation can effectively reduce the loss of disasters. The present study focused on the simulation of "29 May 2012" wildfire in windthrow area of Changbai Mountain. Basic data were retrieved from the "29 May 2012" wildfire and field survey. A self-development forest fire behavior simulated program based on Rothermel Model was used in the simulation. Kappa coefficient and Sørensen index were employed to evaluate the simulation accuracy. The results showed that: The perimeter of simulated burned area was 4.66 km, the area was 56.47 hm2 and the overlapped burned area was 33.68 hm2, and the estimated rate of fire spread was 0.259 m/s. Between the simulated fire and actual fire, the Kappa coefficient was 0.7398 and the Sørensen co-efficient was 0.7419. This proved the application of Rothermel model to conduct fire behavior simulation in windthrow meadow was feasible. It can achieve the goal of forecasting for the spread behavior in windthrow area of Changbai Mountain. Thus, our self-development program based on the Rothermel model can provide a effective forecast of fire spread, which will facilitate the fire suppression work.

The Spatial and Temporal Analysis of Steppe Fires in Lake Elton’s Area Based on RSD

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shinkarenko Stanislav Sergeevich

2015-04-01

Full Text Available The study analyzed the satellite imagery for the period of 1985-2014 in order to identify the causes of wildfires in Lake Elton’s surroundings. It was found that in the early 21st century fires have the greatest impact on the landscape, which is caused by the decrease in the number of livestock grazing and reduced steppe loads in the late 1990s. The map of the fire frequency in the researched area, and t he map of areas recovering from fires in different years were developed on the basis of remote sensing data (RSD. The investigation of Landsat space imagery found that 54 % of the territory since 2004 has been subject to a prairie fire at least once. The maximum frequency of occurrence is marked for the southern area of Buluhta-Lake where eight fires were registered for the last decad. Most fires are caused by human factors: deliberate or spontaneous arson, military trials. The factors limiting the fires are: degraded pastures, roads, landforms and the elements of the hydrological network. The resulting materials allow to effectively organize further ground survey of these areas for a complete description and assessment of revegetation and their relation to the duration of pyrogenic successions.

Corrective action plan for corrective action Unit 342: Area 23 Mercury Fire Training Pit, Nevada Test Site, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nacht, S.

1999-01-01

The Mercury Fire Training Pit is a former fire training area located in Area 23 of the Nevada Test Site (NTS). The Mercury Fire Training Pit was used from approximately 1965 to the early 1990s to train fire-fighting personnel at the NTS, and encompasses an area approximately 107 meters (m) (350 feet [ft]) by 137 m (450 ft). The Mercury Fire Training Pit formerly included a bermed burn pit with four small burn tanks, four large above ground storage tanks an overturned bus, a telephone pole storage area, and areas for burning sheds, pallets, and cables. Closure activities will include excavation of the impacted soil in the aboveground storage tank and burn pit areas to a depth of 1.5 m (5 ft), and excavation of the impacted surface soil downgradient of the former ASTs and burnpit areas to a depth of 0.3 m (1 ft). Excavated soil will be disposed in the Area 6 Hydrocarbon Landfill at the NTS

Linking management effectiveness indicators to observed effects of protected areas on fire occurrence in the Amazon rainforest.

Science.gov (United States)

Nolte, Christoph; Agrawal, Arun

2013-02-01

Management-effectiveness scores are used widely by donors and implementers of conservation projects to prioritize, track, and evaluate investments in protected areas. However, there is little evidence that these scores actually reflect the capacity of protected areas to deliver conservation outcomes. We examined the relation between indicators of management effectiveness in protected areas and the effectiveness of protected areas in reducing fire occurrence in the Amazon rainforest. We used data collected with the Management Effectiveness Tracking Tool (METT) scorecard, adopted by some of the world's largest conservation organizations to track management characteristics believed to be crucial for protected-area effectiveness. We used the occurrence of forest fires from 2000 through 2010 as a measure of the effect of protected areas on undesired land-cover change in the Amazon basin. We used matching to compare the estimated effect of protected areas with low versus high METT scores on fire occurrence. We also estimated effects of individual protected areas on fire occurrence and explored the relation between these effects and METT scores. The relations between METT scores and effects of protected areas on fire occurrence were weak. Protected areas with higher METT scores in 2005 did not seem to have performed better than protected areas with lower METT scores at reducing fire occurrence over the last 10 years. Further research into the relations between management-effectiveness indicators and conservation outcomes in protected areas seems necessary, and our results show that the careful application of matching methods can be a suitable method for that purpose. ©2012 Society for Conservation Biology.

Differences in human versus lightning fires between urban and rural areas of the boreal forest in interior Alaska

Science.gov (United States)

Calef, Monika; Varvak, Anna; McGuire, A. David

2017-01-01

In western North America, the carbon-rich boreal forest is experiencing warmer temperatures, drier conditions and larger and more frequent wildfires. However, the fire regime is also affected by direct human activities through suppression, ignition, and land use changes. Models are important predictive tools for understanding future conditions but they are based on regional generalizations of wildfire behavior and weather that do not adequately account for the complexity of human–fire interactions. To achieve a better understanding of the intensity of human influence on fires in this sparsely populated area and to quantify differences between human and lightning fires, we analyzed fires by both ignition types in regard to human proximity in urban (the Fairbanks subregion) and rural areas of interior Alaska using spatial (Geographic Information Systems) and quantitative analysis methods. We found substantial differences in drivers of wildfire: while increases in fire ignitions and area burned were caused by lightning in rural interior Alaska, in the Fairbanks subregion these increases were due to human fires, especially in the wildland urban interface. Lightning fires are starting earlier and fires are burning longer, which is much more pronounced in the Fairbanks subregion than in rural areas. Human fires differed from lightning fires in several ways: they started closer to settlements and highways, burned for a shorter duration, were concentrated in the Fairbanks subregion, and often occurred outside the brief seasonal window for lightning fires. This study provides important insights that improve our understanding of the direct human influence on recently observed changes in wildfire regime with implications for both fire modeling and fire management.

Evidence of fuels management and fire weather influencing fire severity in an extreme fire event.

Science.gov (United States)

Lydersen, Jamie M; Collins, Brandon M; Brooks, Matthew L; Matchett, John R; Shive, Kristen L; Povak, Nicholas A; Kane, Van R; Smith, Douglas F

2017-10-01

Following changes in vegetation structure and pattern, along with a changing climate, large wildfire incidence has increased in forests throughout the western United States. Given this increase, there is great interest in whether fuels treatments and previous wildfire can alter fire severity patterns in large wildfires. We assessed the relative influence of previous fuels treatments (including wildfire), fire weather, vegetation, and water balance on fire-severity in the Rim Fire of 2013. We did this at three different spatial scales to investigate whether the influences on fire severity changed across scales. Both fuels treatments and previous low to moderate-severity wildfire reduced the prevalence of high-severity fire. In general, areas without recent fuels treatments and areas that previously burned at high severity tended to have a greater proportion of high-severity fire in the Rim Fire. Areas treated with prescribed fire, especially when combined with thinning, had the lowest proportions of high severity. The proportion of the landscape burned at high severity was most strongly influenced by fire weather and proportional area previously treated for fuels or burned by low to moderate severity wildfire. The proportion treated needed to effectively reduce the amount of high severity fire varied by spatial scale of analysis, with smaller spatial scales requiring a greater proportion treated to see an effect on fire severity. When moderate and high-severity fire encountered a previously treated area, fire severity was significantly reduced in the treated area relative to the adjacent untreated area. Our results show that fuels treatments and low to moderate-severity wildfire can reduce fire severity in a subsequent wildfire, even when burning under fire growth conditions. These results serve as further evidence that both fuels treatments and lower severity wildfire can increase forest resilience. © 2017 by the Ecological Society of America.

Shrub removal in reforested post-fire areas increases native plant species richness

Science.gov (United States)

Gabrielle N. Bohlman; Malcolm North; Hugh D. Safford

2016-01-01

Large, high severity fires are becoming more prevalent in Sierra Nevada mixed-conifer forests, largely due to heavy fuel loading and forest densification caused by past and current management practices. In post-fire areas distant from seed trees, conifers are often planted to re-establish a forest and to prevent a potential type-conversion to shrub fields. Typical...

Management adaptation to fires in the wildland-urban risk areas in Spain

Science.gov (United States)

Gema Herrero-Corral

2013-01-01

Forest fires not only cause damage to ecosystems but also result in major socio-economic losses and in the worst cases loss of human life. Specifically, the incidence of fires in the overlapping areas between building structures and forest vegetation (wildland-urban interface, WUI) generates highly-complex emergencies due to the presence of people and goods....

Fire Scars Area Estimation Using CHRIS PROBA Satellite Data

Science.gov (United States)

Filchev, Lachezar; Dimitrov, Petar

2013-12-01

The dawn of 21st century is marked by severe and unpredictable natural and man - made hazards and disasters linked as to climate change as to human impact on environment. To study their effects on natural landscapes and protected areas it is important to perform, in some restrict regime protected areas, a continuous monitoring. Earth observation by satellites is one of the most promising instruments for this as it has the necessary time, spatial, and spectral resolution for this as well as it provides for non-contact estimation of the overall condition of the environment. This study presents preliminary results of fire scars area estimation on the territory of Bistrishko Branishte UNESCO Man and Biosphere (MAB) reserve in Vitosha Mountain, Bulgaria using CHRIS/PROBA satellite data. During the summer and early autumn of 2012 CHRIS/PROBA instrument was tasked to perform a series of acquisitions with a view to study the vegetation structure. The study uses two CHRIS/PROBA scenes acquired subsequently on 22 June 2012 and on 28 September 2012. The wildfire, which effects are studied, took place during the first two weeks of July 2012. After it was settled the second acquisition of CHRIS/PROBA instrument made possible the analysis of the post fire situation. The methods used for the study are the standard methods for image change detection based on spectral data employed in ENVI software (Academic license). In order to perform the change detection, the CHRIS/PROBA source data was geometrically and atmospherically corrected as well as co-registered. The multi angle product of CHRIS/PROBA Mode 1, consisting of 5 images, was used to check to what extent the five viewing angles affect the area estimation of the fire scars in the mountainous area following same procedures. The results from the analysis shown that almost 60 hectares from the coniferous vegetation (dead and healthy tree stands) were devastated by the wildfire.

From leaves to landscape: A multiscale approach to assess fire hazard in wildland-urban interface areas.

Science.gov (United States)

Ghermandi, Luciana; Beletzky, Natacha A; de Torres Curth, Mónica I; Oddi, Facundo J

2016-12-01

The overlapping zone between urbanization and wildland vegetation, known as the wildland urban interface (WUI), is often at high risk of wildfire. Human activities increase the likelihood of wildfires, which can have disastrous consequences for property and land use, and can pose a serious threat to lives. Fire hazard assessments depend strongly on the spatial scale of analysis. We assessed the fire hazard in a WUI area of a Patagonian city by working at three scales: landscape, community and species. Fire is a complex phenomenon, so we used a large number of variables that correlate a priori with the fire hazard. Consequently, we analyzed environmental variables together with fuel load and leaf flammability variables and integrated all the information in a fire hazard map with four fire hazard categories. The Nothofagus dombeyi forest had the highest fire hazard while grasslands had the lowest. Our work highlights the vulnerability of the wildland-urban interface to fire in this region and our suggested methodology could be applied in other wildland-urban interface areas. Particularly in high hazard areas, our work could help in spatial delimitation policies, urban planning and development of plans for the protection of human lives and assets. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Differences in Human versus Lightning Fires between Urban and Rural Areas of the Boreal Forest in Interior Alaska

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Monika P. Calef

2017-11-01

Full Text Available In western North America, the carbon-rich boreal forest is experiencing warmer temperatures, drier conditions and larger and more frequent wildfires. However, the fire regime is also affected by direct human activities through suppression, ignition, and land use changes. Models are important predictive tools for understanding future conditions but they are based on regional generalizations of wildfire behavior and weather that do not adequately account for the complexity of human–fire interactions. To achieve a better understanding of the intensity of human influence on fires in this sparsely populated area and to quantify differences between human and lightning fires, we analyzed fires by both ignition types in regard to human proximity in urban (the Fairbanks subregion and rural areas of interior Alaska using spatial (Geographic Information Systems and quantitative analysis methods. We found substantial differences in drivers of wildfire: while increases in fire ignitions and area burned were caused by lightning in rural interior Alaska, in the Fairbanks subregion these increases were due to human fires, especially in the wildland urban interface. Lightning fires are starting earlier and fires are burning longer, which is much more pronounced in the Fairbanks subregion than in rural areas. Human fires differed from lightning fires in several ways: they started closer to settlements and highways, burned for a shorter duration, were concentrated in the Fairbanks subregion, and often occurred outside the brief seasonal window for lightning fires. This study provides important insights that improve our understanding of the direct human influence on recently observed changes in wildfire regime with implications for both fire modeling and fire management.

Assessing variability and long-term trends in burned area by merging multiple satellite fire products

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

L. Giglio

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Long term, high quality estimates of burned area are needed for improving both prognostic and diagnostic fire emissions models and for assessing feedbacks between fire and the climate system. We developed global, monthly burned area estimates aggregated to 0.5° spatial resolution for the time period July 1996 through mid-2009 using four satellite data sets. From 2001–2009, our primary data source was 500-m burned area maps produced using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS surface reflectance imagery; more than 90% of the global area burned during this time period was mapped in this fashion. During times when the 500-m MODIS data were not available, we used a combination of local regression and regional regression trees developed over periods when burned area and Terra MODIS active fire data were available to indirectly estimate burned area. Cross-calibration with fire observations from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM Visible and Infrared Scanner (VIRS and the Along-Track Scanning Radiometer (ATSR allowed the data set to be extended prior to the MODIS era. With our data set we estimated that the global annual area burned for the years 1997–2008 varied between 330 and 431 Mha, with the maximum occurring in 1998. We compared our data set to the recent GFED2, L3JRC, GLOBCARBON, and MODIS MCD45A1 global burned area products and found substantial differences in many regions. Lastly, we assessed the interannual variability and long-term trends in global burned area over the past 13 years. This burned area time series serves as the basis for the third version of the Global Fire Emissions Database (GFED3 estimates of trace gas and aerosol emissions.

A Fire Detector for Monitoring Inaccessible Areas in Aircrafts, Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — En'Urga Inc. will evaluate the feasibility of utilizing reflected, multi-wavelength, near infrared radiation for detecting fires in inaccessible areas within...

Satellite versus ground-based estimates of burned area: A comparison between MODIS based burned area and fire agency reports over North America in 2007

Science.gov (United States)

Stephane Mangeon; Robert Field; Michael Fromm; Charles McHugh; Apostolos Voulgarakis

2015-01-01

North American wildfire management teams routinely assess burned area on site during firefighting campaigns; meanwhile, satellite observations provide systematic and global burned-area data. Here we compare satellite and ground-based daily burned area for wildfire events for selected large fires across North America in 2007 on daily timescales. In a sample of 26 fires...

Effects of fires on the chemical and petrographic composition of peat in the Snuggedy Swamp, South Carolina

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rollins, M S; Cohen, A D; Durig, J R [South Carolina University, Columbia, SC (USA). Dept. of Chemistry

1993-04-01

Charcoal-rich zones in a peat core from the Snuggedy Swamp in South Carolina were investigated to determine the chemical and physical changes associated with fires. Petrographic analyses of microtome thin sections revealed that three charcoal zones were present in the core and that the fires causing such zones were severe enough to penetrate into the subsurface and burn some of the peat. Despite these severe fires, only minor changes in the botanical composition occurred throughout the history of the study site, suggesting that these fires were not extensive enough to retard recolonization of the site from nearby unburned areas. Pyrolysis gas chromatography/Fourier transform infrared/flame ionization detection and pyrolysis gas chromatography/mass spectrometry studies reveal distinct organic chemical changes in the peat that can be related to the fires. Decreases in aliphatic and cellulose compounds mirrored increases in charcoal abundance; while aromatic, lignin-related compounds increased as charcoal increased. 44 refs., 8 figs., 1 tab.

SUBSURFACE VISUAL ALARM SYSTEM ANALYSIS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

D.W. Markman

2001-01-01

The ''Subsurface Fire Hazard Analysis'' (CRWMS M andO 1998, page 61), and the document, ''Title III Evaluation Report for the Surface and Subsurface Communication System'', (CRWMS M andO 1999a, pages 21 and 23), both indicate the installed communication system is adequate to support Exploratory Studies Facility (ESF) activities with the exception of the mine phone system for emergency notification purposes. They recommend the installation of a visual alarm system to supplement the page/party phone system The purpose of this analysis is to identify data communication highway design approaches, and provide justification for the selected or recommended alternatives for the data communication of the subsurface visual alarm system. This analysis is being prepared to document a basis for the design selection of the data communication method. This analysis will briefly describe existing data or voice communication or monitoring systems within the ESF, and look at how these may be revised or adapted to support the needed data highway of the subsurface visual alarm. system. The existing PLC communication system installed in subsurface is providing data communication for alcove No.5 ventilation fans, south portal ventilation fans, bulkhead doors and generator monitoring system. It is given that the data communication of the subsurface visual alarm system will be a digital based system. It is also given that it is most feasible to take advantage of existing systems and equipment and not consider an entirely new data communication system design and installation. The scope and primary objectives of this analysis are to: (1) Briefly review and describe existing available data communication highways or systems within the ESF. (2) Examine technical characteristics of an existing system to disqualify a design alternative is paramount in minimizing the number of and depth of a system review. (3) Apply general engineering design practices or criteria such as relative cost, and degree

Fate of Brine Applied to Unpaved Roads at a Radioactive Waste Subsurface Disposal Area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Larry C. Hull; Carolyn W. Bishop

2004-01-01

Between 1984 and 1993, MgCl 2 brine was used to suppress dust on unpaved roads at a radioactive waste subsurface disposal area. Because Cl - might enhance corrosion of buried metals in the waste, we investigated the distribution and fate of Cl - in the vadose zone using pore water samples collected from suction lysimeters and soluble salt concentrations extracted from sediment samples. The Cl/Br mass ratio and the total dissolved Cl - concentration of pore water show that brine contamination occurs primarily within 13 m of treated roads, but can extend as much as 30 m laterally in near-surface sedimentary deposits. Within the deep vadose zone, which consists of interlayered basalt lava flows and sedimentary interbeds, brine has moved up to 110 m laterally. This lateral migration suggests formation of perched water and horizontal transport during periods of high recharge. In a few locations, brine migrated to depths of 67 m within 3 to 5 yr. Elevated Cl - concentrations were found to depths of 2 m in roadbed material. In drainage ditches along roads, where runoff accumulates and recharge of surface water is high, Cl - was flushed from the sediments in 3 to 4 yr. In areas of lower recharge, Cl - remained in the sediments after 5 yr. Vertical brine movement is directly related to surface recharge through sediments. The distribution of Cl - in pore water and sediments is consistent with estimates of vadose zone residence times and spatial distribution of surface water recharge from other investigations at the subsurface disposal area

Urban users of wildland areas as forest fire risks

Science.gov (United States)

William S. Folkman

1979-01-01

A telephone survey of 1500 households in metropolitan Los Angeles and San Francisco was made to (1) determine extent of wildland use by residents of the two metropolitan areas, reasons for non-use, and the characteristics of users; (2) describe and analyze activities, knowledge, and attitudes of users which may contribute to their fire risk; and (3) assess selected...

Remotely-sensed active fire data for protected area management: eight-year patterns in the Manas National Park, India.

Science.gov (United States)

Takahata, Chihiro; Amin, Rajan; Sarma, Pranjit; Banerjee, Gitanjali; Oliver, William; Fa, John E

2010-02-01

The Terai-Duar savanna and grasslands, which once extended along most of the Himalayan foothills, now only remain in a number of protected areas. Within these localities, grassland burning is a major issue, but data on frequency and distribution of fires are limited. Here, we analysed the incidence of active fires, which only occur during the dry season (Nov.-Mar.), within a significant area of Terai grasslands: the Manas National Park (MNP), India. We obtained locations of 781 fires during the 2000-2008 dry seasons, from the Fire Information for Resource Management System (FIRMS) that delivers global MODIS hotspot/fire locations using remote sensing and GIS technologies. Annual number of fires rose significantly from around 20 at the start of the study period to over 90 after 2002, with most (85%) detected between December and January. Over half of the fires occurred in tall grasslands, but fire density was highest in wetland and riverine vegetation, dry at the time. Most burning took place near rivers, roads and the park boundary, suggesting anthropogenic origins. A kernel density map of all recorded fires indicated three heavily burnt areas in the MNP, all within the tall grasslands. Our study demonstrates, despite some technical caveats linked to fire detection technology, which is improving, that remote fire data can be a practical tool in understanding fire concentration and burning temporal patterns in highly vulnerable habitats, useful in guiding management.

Risk analysis of the LHC underground area fire risk due to faulty electrical equipment

CERN Document Server

Harrison, A

2007-01-01

The European Organisation for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva, Switzerland, is currently building the latest generation of particle accelerators, the LHC (Large Hadron Collider). The machine is housed in a circular tunnel of 27 km of circumference and is situated approximately 100 metres beneath the surface astride the Franco-Swiss border. Electrically induced fires in the LHC are a major concern, since an incident could present a threat to CERN personnel as well as the public. Moreover, the loss of equipment would result in significant costs and downtime. However, the amount of electrical equipment in the underground area required for operation, supervision and control of the machine is essential. Thus the present thesis is assessing the risk of fire due to faulty electrical equipment in both a qualitative as well as quantitative way. The recommendations following the qualitative analysis suggest the introduction of fire protection zones for the areas with the highest risk of fire due to a combination of p...

Spatial and Temporal Patterns of Unburned Areas within Fire Perimeters in the Northwestern United States from 1984 to 2014

Science.gov (United States)

Meddens, A. J.; Kolden, C.; Lutz, J. A.; Abatzoglou, J. T.; Hudak, A. T.

2016-12-01

Recently, there has been concern about increasing extent and severity of wildfires across the globe given rapid climate change. Areas that do not burn within fire perimeters can act as fire refugia, providing (1) protection from the detrimental effects of the fire, (2) seed sources, and (3) post-fire habitat on the landscape. However, recent studies have mainly focused on the higher end of the burn severity spectrum whereas the lower end of the burn severity spectrum has been largely ignored. We developed a spatially explicit database for 2,200 fires across the inland northwestern USA, delineating unburned areas within fire perimeters from 1984 to 2014. We used 1,600 Landsat scenes with one or two scenes before and one or two scenes after the fires to capture the unburned proportion of the fire. Subsequently, we characterized the spatial and temporal patterns of unburned areas and related the unburned proportion to interannual climate variability. The overall classification accuracy detecting unburned locations was 89.2% using a 10-fold cross-validation classification tree approach in combination with 719 randomly located field plots. The unburned proportion ranged from 2% to 58% with an average of 19% for a select number of fires. We find that using both an immediate post-fire image and a one-year post fire image improves classification accuracy of unburned islands over using just a single post-fire image. The spatial characteristics of the unburned islands differ between forested and non-forested regions with a larger amount of unburned area within non-forest. In addition, we show trends of unburned proportion related primarily to concurrent climatic drought conditions across the entire region. This database is important for subsequent analyses of fire refugia prioritization, vegetation recovery studies, ecosystem resilience, and forest management to facilitate unburned islands through fuels breaks, prescribed burning, and fire suppression strategies.

GIS Fuzzy Expert System for the assessment of ecosystems vulnerability to fire in managing Mediterranean natural protected areas.

Science.gov (United States)

Semeraro, Teodoro; Mastroleo, Giovanni; Aretano, Roberta; Facchinetti, Gisella; Zurlini, Giovanni; Petrosillo, Irene

2016-03-01

A significant threat to the natural and cultural heritage of Mediterranean natural protected areas (NPAs) is related to uncontrolled fires that can cause potential damages related to the loss or a reduction of ecosystems. The assessment and mapping of the vulnerability to fire can be useful to reduce landscape damages and to establish priority areas where it is necessary to plan measures to reduce the fire vulnerability. To this aim, a methodology based on an interactive computer-based system has been proposed in order to support NPA's management authority for the identification of vulnerable hotspots to fire through the selection of suitable indicators that allow discriminating different levels of sensitivity (e.g. Habitat relevance, Fragmentation, Fire behavior, Ecosystem Services, Vegetation recovery after fire) and stresses (agriculture, tourism, urbanization). In particular, a multi-criteria analysis based on Fuzzy Expert System (FES) integrated in a GIS environment has been developed in order to identify and map potential "hotspots" of fire vulnerability, where fire protection measures can be undertaken in advance. In order to test the effectiveness of this approach, this approach has been applied to the NPA of Torre Guaceto (Apulia Region, southern Italy). The most fire vulnerable areas are the patch of century-old forest characterized by high sensitivity and stress, and the wetlands and century-old olive groves due to their high sensitivity. The GIS fuzzy expert system provides evidence of its potential usefulness for the effective management of natural protected areas and can help conservation managers to plan and intervene in order to mitigate the fire vulnerability in accordance with conservation goals. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Subsurface probing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lytle, R.J.

1978-01-01

Imaging techniques that can be used to translate seismic and electromagnetic wave signals into visual representation are briefly discussed. The application of these techniques is illustrated on the example of determining the subsurface structure of a proposed power plant. Imaging makes the wave signals intelligible to the non-geologists. R and D work needed in this area are tabulated

Joint simulation of regional areas burned in Canadian forest fires: A Markov Chain Monte Carlo approach

Science.gov (United States)

Steen Magnussen

2009-01-01

Areas burned annually in 29 Canadian forest fire regions show a patchy and irregular correlation structure that significantly influences the distribution of annual totals for Canada and for groups of regions. A binary Monte Carlo Markov Chain (MCMC) is constructed for the purpose of joint simulation of regional areas burned in forest fires. For each year the MCMC...

An analysis of wildfire frequency and burned area relationships with human pressure and climate gradients in the context of fire regime

Science.gov (United States)

Jiménez-Ruano, Adrián; Rodrigues Mimbrero, Marcos; de la Riva Fernández, Juan

2017-04-01

Understanding fire regime is a crucial step towards achieving a better knowledge of the wildfire phenomenon. This study proposes a method for the analysis of fire regime based on multidimensional scatterplots (MDS). MDS are a visual approach that allows direct comparison among several variables and fire regime features so that we are able to unravel spatial patterns and relationships within the region of analysis. Our analysis is conducted in Spain, one of the most fire-affected areas within the Mediterranean region. Specifically, the Spanish territory has been split into three regions - Northwest, Hinterland and Mediterranean - considered as representative fire regime zones according to MAGRAMA (Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Environment and Food). The main goal is to identify key relationships between fire frequency and burnt area, two of the most common fire regime features, with socioeconomic activity and climate. In this way we will be able to better characterize fire activity within each fire region. Fire data along the period 1974-2010 was retrieved from the General Statistics Forest Fires database (EGIF). Specifically, fire frequency and burnt area size was examined for each region and fire season (summer and winter). Socioeconomic activity was defined in terms of human pressure on wildlands, i.e. the presence and intensity of anthropogenic activity near wildland or forest areas. Human pressure was built from GIS spatial information about land use (wildland-agriculture and wildland-urban interface) and demographic potential. Climate variables (average maximum temperature and annual precipitation) were extracted from MOTEDAS (Monthly Temperature Dataset of Spain) and MOPREDAS (Monthly Precipitation Dataset of Spain) datasets and later reclassified into ten categories. All these data were resampled to fit the 10x10 Km grid used as spatial reference for fire data. Climate and socioeconomic variables were then explored by means of MDS to find the extent to

Combining hyperspectral imagery and legacy measured soil profiles to map subsurface soil properties in a Mediterranean area (Cap-Bon, Tunisia)

Science.gov (United States)

Lagacherie, Philippe; Sneep, Anne-Ruth; Gomez, Cécile

2013-04-01

Previous studies have demonstrated that Visible Near InfraRed (Vis-NIR) Hyperspectral imagery is a cost-efficient way for mapping soil properties at fine resolutions (~5m) over large areas. However, such mapping is only feasible for soil surface since the effective penetration depths of optical sensors do not exceed several millimetres. This study aimed to extend the use of Vis-NIR hyperspectral imagery to the mapping of subsurface properties at three intervals of depth (15-30 cm, 30-60 cm and 60-100 cm) as specified by the GlobalSoilMap project. To avoid additional data collection, our basic idea was to develop an original Digital Soil Mapping approach that combines the digital maps of surface soil properties obtained from Vis-NIR hyperspectral imagery with legacy soil profiles of the region and with easily available images of DEM-derived parameters. The study was conducted in a pedologically-contrasted 300km² cultivated area located in the Cap Bon region (Northern Tunisia). AISA-Dual Vis-NIR hyperspectral airborne data were acquired over the studied area with a fine spatial resolution (5 m) and fine spectral resolution (260 spectral bands from 450 to 2500nm). Vegetated surfaces were masked to conserve only bare soil surface which represented around 50% of the study area. Three soil surface properties (clay and sand contents, Cation Exchange Capacity) were successfully mapped over the bare soils, from these data using Partial Least Square Regression models (R2 > 0.7). We used as additional data a set of images of landscape covariates derived from a 30 meter DEM and a local database of 152 legacy soil profiles from which soil properties values at the required intervals of depths were computed using an equal-area-spline algorithm. Our Digital Soil Mapping approach followed two steps: i) the development of surface-subsurface functions - linear models and random forests - that estimates subsurface property values from surface ones and landscape covariates and that

Optimization of investment economic in PCI using the methodology of benefits design in analysis of the spread of fires with FDS (Fire Dynamics Simulator) in areas of nuclear fire; Optimizacion de la inversion economica en PCI mediante la metodologia de diseo prestaional en el analisis de la propagacion de incendios con FDS (Fire Dynnamics Simulator) en areas de fuego de centrales nucleares

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Salellas, J.

2015-07-01

Fire simulation analysis allows knowing the evolution and spread fire in areas of interest within a NPP such as control room, cable room and multi zone comportment among others. fires are a main concern regarding safety analysis of NPP. IDOM has the capability to carry out fire simulations, taken in to account smoke control, fire spread, toxicity levels, ventilation and all physical phenomena. As a result, appropriate fire protection measures can be assessed in each scenario. CFD tools applied to fire simulations can determine with higher resolution all damages caused during the fire. Furthermore, such tools can reduce costs due to a lower impact of design modifications. (Author)

MICROSCALE METABOLIC, REDOX AND ABIOTIC REACTIONS IN HANFORD 300 AREA SUBSURFACE SEDIMENTS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Beyenal, Haluk [WSU; McLEan, Jeff [JCVI; Majors, Paul [PNNL; Fredrickson, Jim [PNNL

2013-11-14

The Hanford 300 Area is a unique site due to periodic hydrologic influence of river water resulting in changes in groundwater elevation and flow direction. This area is also highly subject to uranium remobilization, the source of which is currently believed to be the region at the base of the vadose zone that is subject to period saturation due to the changes in the water levels in the Columbia River. We found that microbial processes and redox and abiotic reactions which operate at the microscale were critical to understanding factors controlling the macroscopic fate and transport of contaminants in the subsurface. The combined laboratory and field research showed how microscale conditions control uranium mobility and how biotic, abiotic and redox reactions relate to each other. Our findings extended the current knowledge to examine U(VI) reduction and immobilization using natural 300 Area communities as well as selected model organisms on redox-sensitive and redox-insensitive minerals. Using innovative techniques developed specifically to probe biogeochemical processes at the microscale, our research expanded our current understanding of the roles played by mineral surfaces, bacterial competition, and local biotic, abiotic and redox reaction rates on the reduction and immobilization of uranium.

Historical and current fire management practices in two wilderness areas in the southwestern United States: The Saguaro Wilderness Area and the Gila-Aldo Leopold Wilderness Complex

Science.gov (United States)

Molly E. Hunter; Jose M. Iniguez; Calvin A. Farris

2014-01-01

Fire suppression has been the dominant fire management strategy in the West over the last century. However, managers of the Gila and Aldo Leopold Wilderness Complex in New Mexico and the Saguaro Wilderness Area in Arizona have allowed fire to play a more natural role for decades. This report summarizes the effects of these fire management practices on key resources,...

UNSAT-H infiltration model calibration at the Subsurface Disposal Area, Idaho National Engineering Laboratory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martian, P.

1995-10-01

Soil moisture monitoring data from the expanded neutron probe monitoring network located at the Subsurface Disposal Area (SDA) of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) were used to calibrate numerical infiltration models for 15 locations within and near the SDA. These calibrated models were then used to simulate infiltration into the SDA surficial sediments and underlying basalts for the entire operational period of the SDA (1952--1995). The purpose of performing the simulations was to obtain a time variant infiltration source term for future subsurface pathway modeling efforts as part of baseline risk assessment or performance assessments. The simulation results also provided estimates of the average recharge rate for the simulation period and insight into infiltration patterns at the SDA. These results suggest that the average aquifer recharge rate below the SDA may be at least 8 cm/yr and may be as high as 12 cm/yr. These values represent 38 and 57% of the average annual precipitation occurring at the INEL, respectively. The simulation results also indicate that the maximum evaporative depth may vary between 28 and 148 cm and is highly dependent on localized lithology within the SDA

A synthesis of post-fire Burned Area Reports from 1972 to 2009 for western US Forest Service lands: Trends in wildfire characteristics and post-fire stabilisation treatments and expenditures

Science.gov (United States)

Peter R. Robichaud; Hakjun Rhee; Sarah A. Lewis

2014-01-01

Over 1200 post-fire assessment and treatment implementation reports from four decades (1970s-2000s) of western US forest fires have been examined to identify decadal patterns in fire characteristics and the justifications and expenditures for the post-fire treatments. The main trends found were: (1) the area burned by wildfire increased over time and the rate of...

Subsurface Science Program Bibliography, 1985--1992

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-08-01

The Subsurface Science Program sponsors long-term basic research on (1) the fundamental physical, chemical, and biological mechanisms that control the reactivity, mobilization, stability, and transport of chemical mixtures in subsoils and ground water; (2) hydrogeology, including the hydraulic, microbiological, and geochemical properties of the vadose and saturated zones that control contaminant mobility and stability, including predictive modeling of coupled hydraulic-geochemical-microbial processes; and (3) the microbiology of deep sediments and ground water. TWs research, focused as it is on the natural subsurface environments that are most significantly affected by the more than 40 years of waste generation and disposal at DOE sites, is making important contributions to cleanup of DOE sites. Past DOE waste-disposal practices have resulted in subsurface contamination at DOE sites by unique combinations of radioactive materials and organic and inorganic chemicals (including heavy metals), which make site cleanup particularly difficult. The long- term (10- to 30-year) goal of the Subsurface Science Program is to provide a foundation of fundamental knowledge that can be used to reduce environmental risks and to provide a sound scientific basis for cost-effective cleanup strategies. The Subsurface Science Program is organized into nine interdisciplinary subprograms, or areas of basic research emphasis. The subprograms currently cover the areas of Co-Contaminant Chemistry, Colloids/Biocolloids, Multiphase Fluid Flow, Biodegradation/ Microbial Physiology, Deep Microbiology, Coupled Processes, Field-Scale (Natural Heterogeneity and Scale), and Environmental Science Research Center

Increased neuronal firing in resting and sleep in areas of the macaque medial prefrontal cortex.

Science.gov (United States)

Gabbott, Paul L; Rolls, Edmund T

2013-06-01

The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) of humans and macaques is an integral part of the default mode network and is a brain region that shows increased activation in the resting state. A previous paper from our laboratory reported significantly increased firing rates of neurons in the macaque subgenual cingulate cortex, Brodmann area (BA) 25, during disengagement from a task and also during slow wave sleep [E.T. Rolls et al. (2003) J. Neurophysiology, 90, 134-142]. Here we report the finding that there are neurons in other areas of mPFC that also increase their firing rates during disengagement from a task, drowsiness and eye-closure. During the neurophysiological recording of single mPFC cells (n = 249) in BAs 9, 10, 13 m, 14c, 24b and especially pregenual area 32, populations of neurons were identified whose firing rates altered significantly with eye-closure compared with eye-opening. Three types of neuron were identified: Type 1 cells (28.1% of the total population) significantly increased (mean + 329%; P ≪ 0.01) their average firing rate with eye-closure, from 3.1 spikes/s when awake to 10.2 spikes/s when asleep; Type 2 cells (6.0%) significantly decreased (mean -68%; P areas of mPFC, implicated in the anterior default mode network, there is a substantial population of neurons that significantly increase their firing rates during periods of eye-closure. Such neurons may be part of an interconnected network of distributed brain regions that are more active during periods of relaxed wakefulness than during attention-demanding tasks. © 2013 Federation of European Neuroscience Societies and Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Detection and Characterization of Low Temperature Peat Fires during the 2015 Fire Catastrophe in Indonesia Using a New High-Sensitivity Fire Monitoring Satellite Sensor (FireBird).

Science.gov (United States)

Atwood, Elizabeth C; Englhart, Sandra; Lorenz, Eckehard; Halle, Winfried; Wiedemann, Werner; Siegert, Florian

2016-01-01

Vast and disastrous fires occurred on Borneo during the 2015 dry season, pushing Indonesia into the top five carbon emitting countries. The region was affected by a very strong El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) climate phenomenon, on par with the last severe event in 1997/98. Fire dynamics in Central Kalimantan were investigated using an innovative sensor offering higher sensitivity to a wider range of fire intensities at a finer spatial resolution (160 m) than heretofore available. The sensor is onboard the TET-1 satellite, part of the German Aerospace Center (DLR) FireBird mission. TET-1 images (acquired every 2-3 days) from the middle infrared were used to detect fires continuously burning for almost three weeks in the protected peatlands of Sebangau National Park as well as surrounding areas with active logging and oil palm concessions. TET-1 detection capabilities were compared with MODIS active fire detection and Landsat burned area algorithms. Fire dynamics, including fire front propagation speed and area burned, were investigated. We show that TET-1 has improved detection capabilities over MODIS in monitoring low-intensity peatland fire fronts through thick smoke and haze. Analysis of fire dynamics revealed that the largest burned areas resulted from fire front lines started from multiple locations, and the highest propagation speeds were in excess of 500 m/day (all over peat > 2m deep). Fires were found to occur most often in concessions that contained drainage infrastructure but were not cleared prior to the fire season. Benefits of implementing this sensor system to improve current fire management techniques are discussed. Near real-time fire detection together with enhanced fire behavior monitoring capabilities would not only improve firefighting efforts, but also benefit analysis of fire impact on tropical peatlands, greenhouse gas emission estimations as well as mitigation measures to reduce severe fire events in the future.

Program overview: Subsurface science program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-03-01

The OHER Subsurface Science Program is DOE's core basic research program concerned with subsoils and groundwater. These practices have resulted in contamination by mixtures of organic chemicals, inorganic chemicals, and radionuclides. A primary long-term goal is to provide a foundation of knowledge that will lead to the reduction of environmental risks and to cost-effective cleanup strategies. Since the Program was initiated in 1985, a substantial amount of research in hydrogeology, subsurface microbiology, and the geochemistry of organically complexed radionuclides has been completed, leading to a better understanding of contaminant transport in groundwater and to new insights into microbial distribution and function in the subsurface environments. The Subsurface Science Program focuses on achieving long-term scientific advances that will assist DOE in the following key areas: providing the scientific basis for innovative in situ remediation technologies that are based on a concept of decontamination through benign manipulation of natural systems; understanding the complex mechanisms and process interactions that occur in the subsurface; determining the influence of chemical and geochemical-microbial processes on co-contaminant mobility to reduce environmental risks; improving predictions of contaminant transport that draw on fundamental knowledge of contaminant behavior in the presence of physical and chemical heterogeneities to improve cleanup effectiveness and to predict environmental risks

Forest Understory Fire in the Brazilian Amazon in ENSO and Non-ENSO Years: Area Burned and Committed Carbon Emissions

Science.gov (United States)

Alencar, A.; Nepstad, D.; Ver-Diaz, M. Del. C.

2004-01-01

"Understory fires" that burn the floor of standing forests are one of the most important types of forest impoverishment in the Amazon, especially during the severe droughts of El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) episodes. However, we are aware of no estimates of the areal extent of these fires for the Brazilian Amazon and, hence, of their contribution to Amazon carbon fluxes to the atmosphere. We calculated the area of forest understory fires for the Brazilian Amazon region during an El Nino (1998) and a non El Nino (1995) year based on forest fire scars mapped with satellite images for three locations in eastern and southern Amazon, where deforestation is concentrated. The three study sites represented a gradient of both forest types and dry season severity. The burning scar maps were used to determine how the percentage of forest that burned varied with distance from agricultural clearings. These spatial functions were then applied to similar forest/climate combinations outside of the study sites to derive an initial estimate for the Brazilian Amazon. Ninety-one percent of the forest area that burned in the study sites was within the first kilometer of a clearing for the non ENSO year and within the first four kilometers for the ENSO year. The area of forest burned by understory forest fire during the severe drought (ENSO) year (3.9 millions of hectares) was 13 times greater than the area burned during the average rainfall year (0.2 million hectares), and twice the area of annual deforestation rate. Dense forest was, proportionally, the forest area most affected by understory fires during the El Nino year, while understory fires were concentrated in transitional forests during the year of average rainfall. Our estimate of aboveground tree biomass killed by fire ranged from 0.06 Pg to 0.38 Pg during the ENSO and from 0,004 Pg to 0,024 Pg during the non ENSO.

Fire propagation equation for the explicit identification of fire scenarios in a fire PSA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lim, Ho Gon; Han, Sang Hoon; Moon, Joo Hyun

2011-01-01

When performing fire PSA in a nuclear power plant, an event mapping method, using an internal event PSA model, is widely used to reduce the resources used by fire PSA model development. Feasible initiating events and component failure events due to fire are identified to transform the fault tree (FT) for an internal event PSA into one for a fire PSA using the event mapping method. A surrogate event or damage term method is used to condition the FT of the internal PSA. The surrogate event or the damage term plays the role of flagging whether the system/component in a fire compartment is damaged or not, depending on the fire being initiated from a specified compartment. These methods usually require explicit states of all compartments to be modeled in a fire area. Fire event scenarios, when using explicit identification, such as surrogate or damage terms, have two problems: there is no consideration of multiple fire propagation beyond a single propagation to an adjacent compartment, and there is no consideration of simultaneous fire propagations in which an initiating fire event is propagated to multiple paths simultaneously. The present paper suggests a fire propagation equation to identify all possible fire event scenarios for an explicitly treated fire event scenario in the fire PSA. Also, a method for separating fire events was developed to make all fire events a set of mutually exclusive events, which can facilitate arithmetic summation in fire risk quantification. A simple example is given to confirm the applicability of the present method for a 2x3 rectangular fire area. Also, a feasible asymptotic approach is discussed to reduce the computational burden for fire risk quantification

Using unplanned fires to help suppressing future large fires in Mediterranean forests.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adrián Regos

Full Text Available Despite the huge resources invested in fire suppression, the impact of wildfires has considerably increased across the Mediterranean region since the second half of the 20th century. Modulating fire suppression efforts in mild weather conditions is an appealing but hotly-debated strategy to use unplanned fires and associated fuel reduction to create opportunities for suppression of large fires in future adverse weather conditions. Using a spatially-explicit fire-succession model developed for Catalonia (Spain, we assessed this opportunistic policy by using two fire suppression strategies that reproduce how firefighters in extreme weather conditions exploit previous fire scars as firefighting opportunities. We designed scenarios by combining different levels of fire suppression efficiency and climatic severity for a 50-year period (2000-2050. An opportunistic fire suppression policy induced large-scale changes in fire regimes and decreased the area burnt under extreme climate conditions, but only accounted for up to 18-22% of the area to be burnt in reference scenarios. The area suppressed in adverse years tended to increase in scenarios with increasing amounts of area burnt during years dominated by mild weather. Climate change had counterintuitive effects on opportunistic fire suppression strategies. Climate warming increased the incidence of large fires under uncontrolled conditions but also indirectly increased opportunities for enhanced fire suppression. Therefore, to shift fire suppression opportunities from adverse to mild years, we would require a disproportionately large amount of area burnt in mild years. We conclude that the strategic planning of fire suppression resources has the potential to become an important cost-effective fuel-reduction strategy at large spatial scale. We do however suggest that this strategy should probably be accompanied by other fuel-reduction treatments applied at broad scales if large-scale changes in fire

Using unplanned fires to help suppressing future large fires in Mediterranean forests.

Science.gov (United States)

Regos, Adrián; Aquilué, Núria; Retana, Javier; De Cáceres, Miquel; Brotons, Lluís

2014-01-01

Despite the huge resources invested in fire suppression, the impact of wildfires has considerably increased across the Mediterranean region since the second half of the 20th century. Modulating fire suppression efforts in mild weather conditions is an appealing but hotly-debated strategy to use unplanned fires and associated fuel reduction to create opportunities for suppression of large fires in future adverse weather conditions. Using a spatially-explicit fire-succession model developed for Catalonia (Spain), we assessed this opportunistic policy by using two fire suppression strategies that reproduce how firefighters in extreme weather conditions exploit previous fire scars as firefighting opportunities. We designed scenarios by combining different levels of fire suppression efficiency and climatic severity for a 50-year period (2000-2050). An opportunistic fire suppression policy induced large-scale changes in fire regimes and decreased the area burnt under extreme climate conditions, but only accounted for up to 18-22% of the area to be burnt in reference scenarios. The area suppressed in adverse years tended to increase in scenarios with increasing amounts of area burnt during years dominated by mild weather. Climate change had counterintuitive effects on opportunistic fire suppression strategies. Climate warming increased the incidence of large fires under uncontrolled conditions but also indirectly increased opportunities for enhanced fire suppression. Therefore, to shift fire suppression opportunities from adverse to mild years, we would require a disproportionately large amount of area burnt in mild years. We conclude that the strategic planning of fire suppression resources has the potential to become an important cost-effective fuel-reduction strategy at large spatial scale. We do however suggest that this strategy should probably be accompanied by other fuel-reduction treatments applied at broad scales if large-scale changes in fire regimes are to be

Subsurface contaminant transport from the liquid disposal area, CRNL

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Killey, R.W.D.; Munch, J.H.

1984-01-01

This report summarizes geologic, hydrogeologic and geochemical information obtained from a detailed study of the aquifer receiving contaminated waste-waters from the Chemical Pit. Geologically, the study area features wind-deposited sand overlying a continuous lacustrine clayey silt and a bouldery basal till. Medium to coarse sands locally found at the base of the sand sequence appear to represent stream channel deposits following a buried drainage course towards Perch Lake. These channel sands significantly influence groundwater flow; 3-dimensional models will be required to mathematically simulate the system. Based on the subsurface data, calculated groundwater residence times between the infiltration pit and points of discharge to surface into the East Swamp range from 4 to 22 months. The shortest observed residence time for a non-reactive radio-nuclide is 5 months. Tritium data confirm that contamination is confined to the sands, but show that within the sand aquifer there is considerable heterogeneity in the distribution and rates of groundwater flow. Samples of contaminated groundwaters collected during this study featured increased redox potentials, increased acidity, and minor increases in some major ions relative to local uncontaminated groundwater. Extensive oxidation of the sands in contaminated portions of the aquifer may reflect much greater chemical differences in plume groundwaters in the past

Microbial Communities and Organic Matter Composition in Surface and Subsurface Sediments of the Helgoland Mud Area, North Sea

Science.gov (United States)

Oni, Oluwatobi E.; Schmidt, Frauke; Miyatake, Tetsuro; Kasten, Sabine; Witt, Matthias; Hinrichs, Kai-Uwe; Friedrich, Michael W.

2015-01-01

The role of microorganisms in the cycling of sedimentary organic carbon is a crucial one. To better understand relationships between molecular composition of a potentially bioavailable fraction of organic matter and microbial populations, bacterial and archaeal communities were characterized using pyrosequencing-based 16S rRNA gene analysis in surface (top 30 cm) and subsurface/deeper sediments (30–530 cm) of the Helgoland mud area, North Sea. Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Resonance Mass Spectrometry (FT-ICR MS) was used to characterize a potentially bioavailable organic matter fraction (hot-water extractable organic matter, WE-OM). Algal polymer-associated microbial populations such as members of the Gammaproteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Verrucomicrobia were dominant in surface sediments while members of the Chloroflexi (Dehalococcoidales and candidate order GIF9) and Miscellaneous Crenarchaeota Groups (MCG), both of which are linked to degradation of more recalcitrant, aromatic compounds and detrital proteins, were dominant in subsurface sediments. Microbial populations dominant in subsurface sediments (Chloroflexi, members of MCG, and Thermoplasmata) showed strong correlations to total organic carbon (TOC) content. Changes of WE-OM with sediment depth reveal molecular transformations from oxygen-rich [high oxygen to carbon (O/C), low hydrogen to carbon (H/C) ratios] aromatic compounds and highly unsaturated compounds toward compounds with lower O/C and higher H/C ratios. The observed molecular changes were most pronounced in organic compounds containing only CHO atoms. Our data thus, highlights classes of sedimentary organic compounds that may serve as microbial energy sources in methanic marine subsurface environments. PMID:26635758

Detection and Characterization of Low Temperature Peat Fires during the 2015 Fire Catastrophe in Indonesia Using a New High-Sensitivity Fire Monitoring Satellite Sensor (FireBird)

Science.gov (United States)

Atwood, Elizabeth C.; Englhart, Sandra; Lorenz, Eckehard; Halle, Winfried; Wiedemann, Werner; Siegert, Florian

2016-01-01

Vast and disastrous fires occurred on Borneo during the 2015 dry season, pushing Indonesia into the top five carbon emitting countries. The region was affected by a very strong El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) climate phenomenon, on par with the last severe event in 1997/98. Fire dynamics in Central Kalimantan were investigated using an innovative sensor offering higher sensitivity to a wider range of fire intensities at a finer spatial resolution (160 m) than heretofore available. The sensor is onboard the TET-1 satellite, part of the German Aerospace Center (DLR) FireBird mission. TET-1 images (acquired every 2–3 days) from the middle infrared were used to detect fires continuously burning for almost three weeks in the protected peatlands of Sebangau National Park as well as surrounding areas with active logging and oil palm concessions. TET-1 detection capabilities were compared with MODIS active fire detection and Landsat burned area algorithms. Fire dynamics, including fire front propagation speed and area burned, were investigated. We show that TET-1 has improved detection capabilities over MODIS in monitoring low-intensity peatland fire fronts through thick smoke and haze. Analysis of fire dynamics revealed that the largest burned areas resulted from fire front lines started from multiple locations, and the highest propagation speeds were in excess of 500 m/day (all over peat > 2m deep). Fires were found to occur most often in concessions that contained drainage infrastructure but were not cleared prior to the fire season. Benefits of implementing this sensor system to improve current fire management techniques are discussed. Near real-time fire detection together with enhanced fire behavior monitoring capabilities would not only improve firefighting efforts, but also benefit analysis of fire impact on tropical peatlands, greenhouse gas emission estimations as well as mitigation measures to reduce severe fire events in the future. PMID:27486664

Spatial products available for identifying areas of likely wildfire ignitions using lightning location data-Wildland Fire Assessment System (WFAS)

Science.gov (United States)

Paul Sopko; Larry Bradshaw; Matt Jolly

2016-01-01

The Wildland Fire Assessment System (WFAS, www.wfas.net) is a one-stop-shop giving wildland fire managers the ability to assess fire potential ranging in scale from national to regional and temporally from 1 to 5 days. Each day, broad-area maps are produced from fire weather station and lightning location networks. Three products are created using 24 hour...

Integrated approach for demarcating subsurface pollution and saline water intrusion zones in SIPCOT area: a case study from Cuddalore in Southern India.

Science.gov (United States)

Sankaran, S; Sonkamble, S; Krishnakumar, K; Mondal, N C

2012-08-01

This paper deals with a systematic hydrogeological, geophysical, and hydrochemical investigations carried out in SIPCOT area in Southern India to demarcate groundwater pollution and saline intrusion through Uppanar River, which flows parallel to sea coast with high salinity (average TDS 28, 870 mg/l) due to back waters as well as discharge of industrial and domestic effluents. Hydrogeological and geophysical investigations comprising topographic survey, self-potential, multi-electrode resistivity imaging, and water quality monitoring were found the extent of saline water intrusion in the south and pockets of subsurface pollution in the north of the study area. Since the area is beset with highly permeable unconfined quaternary alluvium forming potential aquifer at shallow depth, long-term excessive pumping and influence of the River have led to lowering of the water table and degradation of water quality through increased salinity there by generating reversal of hydraulic gradient in the south. The improper management of industrial wastes and left over chemicals by closed industries has led surface and subsurface pollution in the north of the study area.

Subsurface metals fatigue cracking without and with crack tip

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrey Shanyavskiy

2013-07-01

Full Text Available Very-High-Cycle-Fatigue regime for metals was considered and mechanisms of the subsurface crack origination were introduced. In many metals first step of crack origination takes place with specific area formation because of material pressing and rotation that directed to transition in any volume to material ultra-high-plasticity with nano-structure appearing. Then by the border of the nano-structure takes place volume rotation and fracture surface creates with spherical particles which usually named Fine-Granular-Area. In another case there takes place First-Smooth-Facet occurring in area of origin due to whirls appearing by the one of the slip systems under discussed the same stress-state conditions. Around Fine-Granular-Area or First-Smooth-Facet there plastic zone appeared and, then, subsurface cracking develops by the same manner as for through cracks. In was discussed quantum-mechanical nature of fatigue crack growth in accordance with Yang’s modulus quantization for low level of deformations. New simply equation was considered for describing subsurface cracking in metals out of Fine-Granular-Area or Fist-Smooth-Facet.

The influence of weather and fuel type on the fuel composition of the area burned by forest fires in Ontario, 1996-2006.

Science.gov (United States)

Podur, Justin J; Martell, David L

2009-07-01

Forest fires are influenced by weather, fuels, and topography, but the relative influence of these factors may vary in different forest types. Compositional analysis can be used to assess the relative importance of fuels and weather in the boreal forest. Do forest or wild land fires burn more flammable fuels preferentially or, because most large fires burn in extreme weather conditions, do fires burn fuels in the proportions they are available despite differences in flammability? In the Canadian boreal forest, aspen (Populus tremuloides) has been found to burn in less than the proportion in which it is available. We used the province of Ontario's Provincial Fuels Database and fire records provided by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources to compare the fuel composition of area burned by 594 large (>40 ha) fires that occurred in Ontario's boreal forest region, a study area some 430,000 km2 in size, between 1996 and 2006 with the fuel composition of the neighborhoods around the fires. We found that, over the range of fire weather conditions in which large fires burned and in a study area with 8% aspen, fires burn fuels in the proportions that they are available, results which are consistent with the dominance of weather in controlling large fires.

Fire regime in Mediterranean ecosystem

Science.gov (United States)

Biondi, Guido; Casula, Paolo; D'Andrea, Mirko; Fiorucci, Paolo

2010-05-01

The analysis of burnt areas time series in Mediterranean regions suggests that ecosystems characterising this area consist primarily of species highly vulnerable to the fire but highly resilient, as characterized by a significant regenerative capacity after the fire spreading. In a few years the area burnt may once again be covered by the same vegetation present before the fire. Similarly, Mediterranean conifer forests, which often refers to plantations made in order to reforest the areas most severely degraded with high erosion risk, regenerate from seed after the fire resulting in high resilience to the fire as well. Only rarely, and usually with negligible damages, fire affects the areas covered by climax species in relation with altitude and soil types (i.e, quercus, fagus, abies). On the basis of these results, this paper shows how the simple Drossel-Schwabl forest fire model is able to reproduce the forest fire regime in terms of number of fires and burned area, describing whit good accuracy the actual fire perimeters. The original Drossel-Schwabl model has been slightly modified in this work by introducing two parameters (probability of propagation and regrowth) specific for each different class of vegetation cover. Using model selection methods based on AIC, the model with the optimal number of classes with different fire behaviour was selected. Two different case studies are presented in this work: Regione Liguria and Regione Sardegna (Italy). Both regions are situated in the center of the Mediterranean and are characterized by a high number of fires and burned area. However, the two regions have very different fire regimes. Sardinia is affected by the fire phenomenon only in summer whilst Liguria is affected by fires also in winter, with higher number of fires and larger burned area. In addition, the two region are very different in vegetation cover. The presence of Mediterranean conifers, (Pinus Pinaster, Pinus Nigra, Pinus halepensis) is quite spread in

Export of solids and nutrients from burnt areas: effects of fire severity and forest type

Science.gov (United States)

Abrantes, Nelson; Morais, Inês; Silva, Vera; Malvar, Mauxa C.; Prats, Sérgio; Coelho, Celeste; Keizer, Jan J.

2015-04-01

In the last few decades, the number of wildfires has markedly increased in Mediterranean Europe, including Portugal. Besides a range of direct impacts, wildfires can significantly alter the geomorphological and hydrological processes during a period commonly referred to as the "window-of-disturbance". It is now increasingly recognized that these indirect wildfire effects depend strongly on fire severity, i.e. the heating-induced changes in vegetation and litter cover as well as in topsoil properties such as infiltration capacity, aggregate stability and soil water repellency. Nonetheless, the exact role of fire severity in post-fire hydrological and erosion processes is still poorly quantified in many parts of the world, including Portugal. Another important gap in fire-related research stills to be the impacts of wildfire on soil fertility losses, in particular through erosion by runoff. Both research gaps were addressed in this study, following a wildfire that took place in July 2013 in Talhadas (Sever do Vouga, Aveiro) and burnt circa 815 ha. In the burnt area and the surrounding unburnt areas, six study sites were selected and, immediately after the fire, instrumented with slope-scale runoff plots. Two of the sites were long-unburnt, two were burnt at low severity and the other two were burnt at high severity; for all of them one being covered by a Eucalyptus globulus plantation and the other by a Pinus pinaster plantation. Following the instrumentation of the sites, runoff was measured at 1- to 2-weekly intervals and, whenever possible, runoff samples were collected for subsequent analysis in the laboratory with respect to total suspended sediments content and total nitrogen and total phosphorus concentrations. The results obtained in this study showed that the severity of the fire played a more important role in the loss of nutrients and solids than the type of vegetation. While the occurrence of fire markedly increased soil (fertility) losses, this effect

Enhancing technology acceptance: The role of the subsurface contaminants focus area external integration team

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kirwan-Taylor, H.; McCabe, G.H. [Battelle Seattle Research Center, WA (United States); Lesperance, A. [Pacific Northwest National Lab., Richland, WA (United States); Kauffman, J.; Serie, P.; Dressen, L. [EnvironIssues (United States)

1996-09-01

The US DOE is developing and deploying innovative technologies for cleaning up its contaminated facilities using a market-oriented approach. This report describes the activities of the Subsurface Contaminant Focus Area`s (SCFA) External Integration Team (EIT) in supporting DOE`s technology development program. The SCFA program for technology development is market-oriented, driven by the needs of end users. The purpose of EIT is to understand the technology needs of the DOE sites and identify technology acceptance criteria from users and other stakeholders to enhance deployment of innovative technologies. Stakeholders include regulators, technology users, Native Americans, and environmental and other interest groups. The success of this national program requires close coordination and communication among technology developers and stakeholders to work through all of the various phases of planning and implementation. Staff involved must be willing to commit significant amounts of time to extended discussions with the various stakeholders.

Fires of sodium installations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hajek, L.; Tlalka, R.

1984-01-01

A survey is presented of the literature dealing with fires of sodium installations between 1974 and 1981. Also described are three experimental fires of ca 50 kg of sodium in an open area, monitored by UJV Rez. The experimental conditions of the experiments are described and a phenomenological description is presented of the course of the fires. The experiments showed a relationship between wind velocity in the area surrounding the fire and surface temperature of the sodium flame. Systems analysis methods were applied to sodium area, spray and tube fires. (author)

Surface and subsurface conditions in permafrost areas - a literature review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vidstrand, Patrik

2003-02-01

This report contains a summary of some of the information within existing technical and scientific literature on permafrost. Permafrost is viewed as one of the future climate driven process domains that may exist in Scandinavia, and that may give rise to significantly different surface and subsurface conditions than the present. Except for changes in the biosphere, permafrost may impact hydraulic, mechanical, and chemical subsurface processes and conditions. Permafrost and its influences on the subsurface conditions are thus of interest for the performance and safety assessments of deep geological waste repositories. The definition of permafrost is 'ground that stays at or below 0 deg C for at least two consecutive years'. Permafrost will effect the geological subsurface to some depth. How deep the permafrost may grow is a function of the heat balance, thermal conditions at the surface and within the ground, and the geothermal heat flux from the Earth's inner parts. The main chapters of the report summaries the knowledge on permafrost evolution, occurrence and distribution, and extracts information concerning hydrology and mechanical and chemical impacts due to permafrost related conditions. The results of a literature review are always dependent on the available literature. Concerning permafrost there is some literature available from investigations in the field of long-term repositories and some from mining industries. However, reports of these investigations are few and the bulk of permafrost literature comes from the science departments concerned with surficial processes (e.g. geomorphology, hydrology, agriculture, etc) and from engineering concerns, such as foundation of constructions and pipeline design. This focus within the permafrost research inevitably yields a biased but also an abundant amount of information on localised surficial processes and a limited amount on regional and deep permafrost characteristics. Possible conclusions are that there is

Surface and subsurface conditions in permafrost areas - a literature review

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vidstrand, Patrik [Bergab, Goeteborg (Sweden)

2003-02-01

This report contains a summary of some of the information within existing technical and scientific literature on permafrost. Permafrost is viewed as one of the future climate driven process domains that may exist in Scandinavia, and that may give rise to significantly different surface and subsurface conditions than the present. Except for changes in the biosphere, permafrost may impact hydraulic, mechanical, and chemical subsurface processes and conditions. Permafrost and its influences on the subsurface conditions are thus of interest for the performance and safety assessments of deep geological waste repositories. The definition of permafrost is 'ground that stays at or below 0 deg C for at least two consecutive years'. Permafrost will effect the geological subsurface to some depth. How deep the permafrost may grow is a function of the heat balance, thermal conditions at the surface and within the ground, and the geothermal heat flux from the Earth's inner parts. The main chapters of the report summaries the knowledge on permafrost evolution, occurrence and distribution, and extracts information concerning hydrology and mechanical and chemical impacts due to permafrost related conditions. The results of a literature review are always dependent on the available literature. Concerning permafrost there is some literature available from investigations in the field of long-term repositories and some from mining industries. However, reports of these investigations are few and the bulk of permafrost literature comes from the science departments concerned with surficial processes (e.g. geomorphology, hydrology, agriculture, etc) and from engineering concerns, such as foundation of constructions and pipeline design. This focus within the permafrost research inevitably yields a biased but also an abundant amount of information on localised surficial processes and a limited amount on regional and deep permafrost characteristics. Possible conclusions are that

Mapping Forest Fire Susceptibility in Temperate Mountain Areas with Expert Knowledge. A Case Study from Iezer Mountains, Romanian Carpathians

Science.gov (United States)

Mihai, Bogdan; Savulescu, Ionut

2014-05-01

Forest fires in Romanian Carpathians became a frequent phenomenon during the last decade, although local climate and other environmental features did not create typical conditions. From 2004, forest fires affect in Romania more than 100 hectares/year of different forest types (deciduous and coniferous). Their magnitude and frequency are not known, since a historical forest fire inventory does not exist (only press papers and local witness for some selected events). Forest fires features the summer dry periods but there are dry autumns and early winter periods with events of different magnitudes. The application we propose is based on an empirical modeling of forest fire susceptibility in a typical mountain area from the Southern Carpathians, the Iezer Mountains (2462 m). The study area features almost all the altitudinal vegetation zones of the European temperate mountains, from the beech zone, to the coniferous zone, the subalpine and the alpine zones (Mihai et al., 2007). The analysis combines GIS and remote sensing models (Chuvieco et al., 2012), starting from the ideas that forest fires are featured by the ignition zones and then by the fire propagation zones. The first data layer (ignition zones) is the result of the crossing between the ignition factors: lightning - points of multitemporal occurence and anthropogenic activities (grazing, tourism and traffic) and the ignition zones (forest fuel zonation - forest stands, soil cover and topoclimatic factor zonation). This data is modelled from different sources: the MODIS imagery fire product (Hantson et al., 2012), detailed topographic maps, multitemporal orthophotos at 0.5 m resolution, Landsat multispectral imagery, forestry cadastre maps, detailed soil maps, meteorological data (the WorldClim digital database) as well as the field survey (mapping using GPS and local observation). The second data layer (fire propagation zones) is the result of the crossing between the forest fuel zonation, obtained with the

Integrated approach to fire safety at the Krsko nuclear power plant - fire protection action plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lambright, J.A.; Cerjak, J.; Spiler, J.; Ioannidi, J.

1998-01-01

Nuclear Power Plant Krsko (NPP Krsko) is a Westinghouse design, single-unit, 1882 Megawatt thermal (MWt), two-loop, pressurized water nuclear power plant. The fire protection program at NPP Krsko has been reviewed and reports issued recommending changes and modifications to the program, plant systems and structures. Three reports were issued, the NPP Krsko Fire Hazard Analysis (Safe Shout down Separation Analysis Report), the ICISA Analysis of Core Damage Frequency Due to Fire at the NPP Krsko and IPEEE (Individual Plant External Event Examination) related to fire risk. The Fire Hazard Analysis Report utilizes a compliance - based deterministic approach to identification of fire area hazards. This report focuses on strict compliance from the perspective of US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC), standards, guidelines and acceptance criteria and does not consider variations to comply with the intent of the regulations. The probabilistic analysis methide used in the ICISA and IPEEE report utilizes a risk based nad intent based approach in determining critical at-risk fire areas. NPP Krsko has already completed the following suggestions/recommendations from the above and OSART reports in order to comply with Appendix R: Installation of smoke detectors in the Control Room; Installation of Emergency Lighting in some plant areas and of Remote Shout down panels; Extension of Sound Power Communication System; Installation of Fire Annunciator Panel at the On-site Fire Brigade Station; Installation of Smoke Detection System in the (a) Main Control Room Panels, (b) Essential Service Water Building. (c) Component Cooling Building pump area, chiller area and HVAC area, (d) Auxiliary Building Safety pump rooms, (e) Fuel Handling room, (f) Intermediate Building AFFW area and compressor room, and (g) Tadwaste building; inclusion of Auxiliary operators in the Fire Brigade; training of Fire Brigade Members in Plant Operation (9 week course); Development of Fire Door Inspection and

Resilience of Mediterranean terrestrial ecosystems and fire severity in semiarid areas: Responses of Aleppo pine forests in the short, mid and long term.

Science.gov (United States)

González-De Vega, S; De Las Heras, J; Moya, D

2016-12-15

In recent decades, the fire regime of the Mediterranean Basin has been disturbed by various factors: climate change; forest management policies; land cover; changed landscape. Size and severity have notably increased, which in turn have increased large fires events with >500ha burned (high severity). In spite of Mediterranean ecosystems' high resilience to fire, these changes have implied more vulnerability and reduced natural recovery with irreparable long-term negative effects. Knowledge of the response of ecosystems to increasing severity, mainly in semiarid areas, is still lacking, which is needed to rehabilitate and restore burned areas. Our approach assessed the resilience concept by focusing on the recovery of ecosystem functions and services, measured as changes in the composition and diversity of plant community vegetation and structure. This will be validated in the long term as a model of ecosystem response. Also, depending on the pre-fire characteristics of vegetation, fire severity and the post-fire management, this approach will lead to tools that can be applied to implement post-fire restoration efforts in order to help decision making in planning activities. Regarding Mediterranean ecosystems' ability to recover after wildfires, this study concludes that pre-fire communities are resilient in these fire-prone areas, but the window for natural recovery in semiarid areas of Aleppo pine forest in SE Iberian Peninsula varied from 3 to 15 post-fire years. Fire severity was also key for effects on the ecosystem: the vegetation types of areas burned with low and medium severity recovered naturally, while those areas with a high-severity burn induced shrublands. We concluded that very strong regeneration activity exists in the short term, and that the negative effects of medium- and high-severity fire are evidenced in the mid and long term, which affect natural recovery. Adaptive forest management to rehabilitate and restore burned Mediterranean ecosystems

Fire protection for launch facilities using machine vision fire detection

Science.gov (United States)

Schwartz, Douglas B.

1993-02-01

Fire protection of critical space assets, including launch and fueling facilities and manned flight hardware, demands automatic sensors for continuous monitoring, and in certain high-threat areas, fast-reacting automatic suppression systems. Perhaps the most essential characteristic for these fire detection and suppression systems is high reliability; in other words, fire detectors should alarm only on actual fires and not be falsely activated by extraneous sources. Existing types of fire detectors have been greatly improved in the past decade; however, fundamental limitations of their method of operation leaves open a significant possibility of false alarms and restricts their usefulness. At the Civil Engineering Laboratory at Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida, a new type of fire detector is under development which 'sees' a fire visually, like a human being, and makes a reliable decision based on known visual characteristics of flames. Hardware prototypes of the Machine Vision (MV) Fire Detection System have undergone live fire tests and demonstrated extremely high accuracy in discriminating actual fires from false alarm sources. In fact, this technology promises to virtually eliminate false activations. This detector could be used to monitor fueling facilities, launch towers, clean rooms, and other high-value and high-risk areas. Applications can extend to space station and in-flight shuttle operations as well; fiber optics and remote camera heads enable the system to see around obstructed areas and crew compartments. The capability of the technology to distinguish fires means that fire detection can be provided even during maintenance operations, such as welding.

Subsurface temperatures and surface heat flow in the Michigan Basin and their relationships to regional subsurface fluid movement

Science.gov (United States)

Vugrinovich, R.

1989-01-01

Linear regression of 405 bottomhole temperature (BHT) measurements vs. associated depths from Michigan's Lower Peninsula results in the following equation relating BHT and depth: BHT(??C) = 14.5 + 0.0192 ?? depth(m) Temperature residuals, defined as (BHT measured)-(BHT calculated), were determined for each of the 405 BHT's. Areas of positive temperature residuals correspond to areas of regional groundwater discharge (determined from maps of equipotential surface) while areas of negative temperature residuals correspond to areas of regional groundwater recharge. These relationships are observed in the principal aquifers in rocks of Devonian and Ordovician age and in a portion of the principal aquifer in rocks of Silurian age. There is a similar correspondence between high surface heat flow (determined using the silica geothermometer) and regional groundwater discharge areas and low surface heat flow and regional groundwater recharge areas. Post-Jurassic depositional and tectonic histories suggest that the observed coupling of subsurface temperature and groundwater flow systems may have persisted since Jurassic time. Thus the higher subsurface palaeotemperatures (and palaeogeothermal gradients) indicated by recent studies most likely pre-date the Jurassic. ?? 1989.

Subsurface transport program: Research summary

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1987-01-01

DOE's research program in subsurface transport is designed to provide a base of fundamental scientific information so that the geochemical, hydrological, and biological mechanisms that contribute to the transport and long term fate of energy related contaminants in subsurface ecosystems can be understood. Understanding the physical and chemical mechanisms that control the transport of single and co-contaminants is the underlying concern of the program. Particular attention is given to interdisciplinary research and to geosphere-biosphere interactions. The scientific results of the program will contribute to resolving Departmental questions related to the disposal of energy-producing and defense wastes. The background papers prepared in support of this document contain additional information on the relevance of the research in the long term to energy-producing technologies. Detailed scientific plans and other research documents are available for high priority research areas, for example, in subsurface transport of organic chemicals and mixtures and in the microbiology of deep aquifers. 5 figs., 1 tab

Quantifying the influence of previously burned areas on suppression effectiveness and avoided exposure: A case study of the Las Conchas Fire

Science.gov (United States)

Matthew P. Thompson; Patrick Freeborn; Jon D. Rieck; Dave Calkin; Julie W. Gilbertson-Day; Mark A. Cochrane; Michael S. Hand

2016-01-01

We present a case study of the Las Conchas Fire (2011) to explore the role of previously burned areas (wildfires and prescribed fires) on suppression effectiveness and avoided exposure. Methodological innovations include characterisation of the joint dynamics of fire growth and suppression activities, development of a fire line effectiveness framework, and...

Subsurface Contaminant Focus Area: Monitored Natural Attenuation (MNA)--Programmatic, Technical, and Regulatory Issues

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Krupka, Kenneth M.; Martin, Wayne J.

2001-07-23

Natural attenuation processes are commonly used for remediation of contaminated sites. A variety of natural processes occur without human intervention at all sites to varying rates and degrees of effectiveness to attenuate (decrease) the mass, toxicity, mobility, volume, or concentration of organic and inorganic contaminants in soil, groundwater, and surface water systems. The objective of this review is to identify potential technical investments to be incorporated in the Subsurface Contaminant Focus Area Strategic Plan for monitored natural attenuation. When implemented, the technical investments will help evaluate and implement monitored natural attenuation as a remediation option at DOE sites. The outcome of this review is a set of conclusions and general recommendations regarding research needs, programmatic guidance, and stakeholder issues pertaining to monitored natural attenuation for the DOE complex.

Technical issues associated with in situ vitrification of the INEL Subsurface Disposal Area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stoots, C.M.; Bates, S.O.; Callow, R.A.; Campbell, K.A.; Farnsworth, R.K.; Gratson, G.K.; McKellar, M.G.; Nickelson, D.F.; Slater, C.E.

1991-12-01

In situ vitrification (ISV) has been identified as an alternative technology for remediation of the Acid Pit and Transuranic Pits and Trenches (TRU-PTs) that are present at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) Subsurface Disposal Area (SDA). However, a number of technical issues exist that must be resolved before ISV can be considered applicable to these waste sites. To assist in the ISV technology evaluation, an ISV Steering Committee was formed to identify, prioritize, and develop closure roadmaps for technical issues associated with ISV application at the INEL SDA. The activities of the ISV Steering Committee are summarized in three volumes of this report. This document, Volume 1, identifies the systematic approach used to identify and prioritize the ISV technical issues, and briefly discusses the methodology that will be employed to resolve these issues

Fire Distribution in Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Borneo in 2015 with Special Emphasis on Peatland Fires.

Science.gov (United States)

Miettinen, Jukka; Shi, Chenghua; Liew, Soo Chin

2017-10-01

In this paper, we analyze the spatio-temporal distribution of vegetation fires in Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, and Borneo in the severe El Niño year of 2015, concentrating on the distribution of fires between mineral soils and peatland areas, and between land cover types in peatland areas. The results reveal that 53% of all Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) fire detections were recorded in peatlands that cover only 12% of the study area. However, fire occurrence in the peatland areas was highly dependent on land cover type. Pristine peat swamp forests (PSF) experienced only marginal fire activity (30 fire detections per 1000 km 2 ) compared to deforested undeveloped peatlands (831-915 fire detections per 1000 km 2 ). Our results also highlight the extreme fire vulnerability of the southern Sumatran and Bornean peatlands under strong El Niño conditions: 71% of all peatland hotspots were detected in the provinces of South Sumatra and Central Kalimantan, which contain 29% of peatlands in the study area. Degraded PSF and all deforested peatland land cover types, including managed areas, in the two provinces were severely affected, demonstrating how difficult it is to protect even managed drained agricultural areas from unwanted fires during dry periods. Our results thereby advocate rewetting and rehabilitation as the primary management option for highly fire prone degraded undeveloped peatland areas, whenever feasible, as a means to reduce fire risk during future dry episodes.

Fire hazards analysis for W-413, West Area Tank Farm Storage and Staging Facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huckfeldt, R.A.; Lott, D.T.

1994-01-01

In accordance with DOE Order 5480.7A, a Fire Hazards Analysis must be performed for all new facilities. The purpose of the analysis is to comprehensively assess the risk from fire within individual fire areas in relation to proposed fire protection so as to ascertain whether the fire protection objectives of the Order are met. The Order acknowledges a graded approach commensurate with the hazards involved. Tank Farms Operations must sore/stage material and equipment such as pipes, fittings, conduit, instrumentation and others related items until work packages are ready to work. Consumable materials, such as nut, bolts and welding rod, are also requires to be stored for routine and emergency work. Connex boxes and open storage is currently used for much of the storage because of the limited space at and 272WA. Safety issues based on poor housekeeping and material deteriorating due to weather damage has resulted from this inadequate storage space. It has been determined that a storage building in close proximity to the Tank Farm work force would be cost effective. This facility is classified as a safety class 4 building

Nuclear power plant fire protection: fire detection (subsystems study Task 2)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berry, D.L.

1977-12-01

This report examines the adequacy of fire detection in the context of nuclear power plant safety. Topics considered are: (1) establishing area detection requirements, (2) selecting specific detector types, (3) locating and spacing detectors, and (4) performing installation tests and maintenance. Based on a thorough review of fire detection codes and standards and fire detection literature, the report concludes that current design and regulatory guidelines alone are insufficient to ensure satisfactory fire detection system performance. To assure adequate fire detection, this report recommends the use of in-place testing of detectors under conditions expected to occur normally in areas being protected

A geological model for the management of subsurface data in the urban environment of Barcelona and surrounding area

Science.gov (United States)

Vázquez-Suñé, Enric; Ángel Marazuela, Miguel; Velasco, Violeta; Diviu, Marc; Pérez-Estaún, Andrés; Álvarez-Marrón, Joaquina

2016-09-01

The overdevelopment of cities since the industrial revolution has shown the need to incorporate a sound geological knowledge in the management of required subsurface infrastructures and in the assessment of increasingly needed groundwater resources. Additionally, the scarcity of outcrops and the technical difficulty to conduct underground exploration in urban areas highlights the importance of implementing efficient management plans that deal with the legacy of heterogeneous subsurface information. To deal with these difficulties, a methodology has been proposed to integrate all the available spatio-temporal data into a comprehensive spatial database and a set of tools that facilitates the analysis and processing of the existing and newly added data for the city of Barcelona (NE Spain). Here we present the resulting actual subsurface 3-D geological model that incorporates and articulates all the information stored in the database. The methodology applied to Barcelona benefited from a good collaboration between administrative bodies and researchers that enabled the realization of a comprehensive geological database despite logistic difficulties. Currently, the public administration and also private sectors both benefit from the geological understanding acquired in the city of Barcelona, for example, when preparing the hydrogeological models used in groundwater assessment plans. The methodology further facilitates the continuous incorporation of new data in the implementation and sustainable management of urban groundwater, and also contributes to significantly reducing the costs of new infrastructures.

Optimizing prescribed fire allocation for managing fire risk in central Catalonia.

Science.gov (United States)

Alcasena, Fermín J; Ager, Alan A; Salis, Michele; Day, Michelle A; Vega-Garcia, Cristina

2018-04-15

We used spatial optimization to allocate and prioritize prescribed fire treatments in the fire-prone Bages County, central Catalonia (northeastern Spain). The goal of this study was to identify suitable strategic locations on forest lands for fuel treatments in order to: 1) disrupt major fire movements, 2) reduce ember emissions, and 3) reduce the likelihood of large fires burning into residential communities. We first modeled fire spread, hazard and exposure metrics under historical extreme fire weather conditions, including node influence grid for surface fire pathways, crown fraction burned and fire transmission to residential structures. Then, we performed an optimization analysis on individual planning areas to identify production possibility frontiers for addressing fire exposure and explore alternative prescribed fire treatment configurations. The results revealed strong trade-offs among different fire exposure metrics, showed treatment mosaics that optimize the allocation of prescribed fire, and identified specific opportunities to achieve multiple objectives. Our methods can contribute to improving the efficiency of prescribed fire treatment investments and wildfire management programs aimed at creating fire resilient ecosystems, facilitating safe and efficient fire suppression, and safeguarding rural communities from catastrophic wildfires. The analysis framework can be used to optimally allocate prescribed fire in other fire-prone areas within the Mediterranean region and elsewhere. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Forest fires are changing: let’s change the fire management strategy

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Bovio G

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Forest fires in Italy are changing. More frequent heatwaves and drought increase the flammability of the vegetation; the abandonment of rural land produces 30.000 ha of newly afforested areas each year; and the wildland-urban interface is expanding with the sprawl of urbanized areas. However, forest fires are rarely understood and managed in their complexity. The public opinion is often misinformed on the causes and consequences of fires in the forest. Moreover, fire management relies almost exclusively on extinction and emergency response, resulting in high costs and limited efficacy versus extreme fire seasons. We advocate to increase the role and investments in wildfire prevention, which can be carried out by fuel-oriented silviculture, such as facilitating less flammable species or prescribed burning, in order to reduce the flammability of the vegetation and mitigate fire intensity in high-leverage areas. A centralized structure is necessary to implement such a strategy and coordinate the competences and actions of all local administrations and actors involved.

Twentieth-century fire patterns in the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness Area, Idaho/Montana, and the Gila/Aldo Leopold Wilderness Complex, New Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Matthew Rollins; Tom Swetnam; Penelope Morgan

2000-01-01

Twentieth century fire patterns were analyzed for two large, disparate wilderness areas in the Rocky Mountains. Spatial and temporal patterns of fires were represented as GIS-based digital fire atlases compiled from archival Forest Service data. We find that spatial and temporal fire patterns are related to landscape features and changes in land use. The rate and...

Explore inhabitants’ perceptions of wildfire and mitigation behaviours in the Cerrado biome, a fire-prone area of Brazil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Giovanni Santopuoli

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Fire represents an important natural feature of Brazilian landscape, especially in the Cerrado biome. The Cerrado is the economic livelihood of thousands of people from rural areas in Brazil. It is one of the most important hotspot of biodiversity in the world but also it is a fire-prone area thanks to the high flammability index of the vegetation. Residents and native people of this environment use fire very frequently. The majority of wildfires are caused by humans, though there are some aggravating natural factors affecting the risk, intensity and severity of wildfires. Since residents are continuously involved in fire suppression activities, understanding their perceptions is important for the decision makers who must assess the local capacity to preserve natural resources. This study explores perceptions about wildfire risk and fire mitigation behaviors within three municipalities of the state of Tocantins (Brazil. The study demonstrates that survey participants perceived wildfire risk as rather high, although the perceptions were complex and conflicting among interviewees. A wide range of confused perceptions about fire ignition and heterogeneous point of view have carried out form the survey. However, the residence of interviewees and their educational attainment result the variables that significantly (p-value <0.05 affect the inhabitants’ perceptions.

Estimation of groundwater recharge from the subsurface to the rock mass. A case study of Tono Mine Area, Gifu Prefecture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kobayashi, Koichi; Nakano, Katushi; Koide, Kaoru

1996-01-01

The groundwater flow analysis involve the groundwater recharge from the subsurface to the rock mass. According to water balance method, annual groundwater recharge is calculated by the remainder of annual evapotranspirator and river flow from annual precipitation. In this estimation, hydrological and meteorological data observed for 5 years on the watershed in Tono mine area is used. Annual precipitation ranges from 1,000 to 1,900 mm and annual river flow ranges from 400 to 1,300 mm, then river flow depends critically on precipitation. Annual evapotranspiration calculated by Penman method ranges from 400 to 500 mm. It is less fluctuant than annual precipitation. As the result of examination of water balance in subsurface zone estimated, annual ground water recharge ranges from 10 to 200 mm in this watershed. (author)

Estimation of subsurface formation temperature in the Yangtze area, South China: implications for shale gas generation and preservation

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, S.; Hao, C.; Li, X.; Xu, M.

2015-12-01

Temperature is one key parameter for hydrocarbon generation and preservation, also playing important role in geothermal energy assessment;however, accurate regional temperature pattern is still challenging, owing to a lack of data coverage and data quality as well. The Yangtze area, located in the South China, is considered as the most favorable target for shale gas resource exploration in China, and attracts more and more attention recently. Here we used the newly acquired steady-state temperature loggings, reliable Drilling Stem Test temperature data available and thermal properties, estimated the subsurface temperature-at-depth for the Yangtze area. Results show that the geothermal gradient ranges between 17 K/m and 74K/m, mainly falling into 20~30K/m, with a mean of 24 K/m; heat flow varies from 25 mW/m2 to 92 mW/m2, with a mean of 65 mW/m2. For the estimated temperature-at-depth, it is about 20~50 ℃ at the depth of 1000m, 50~80℃ for that at 2000m; while the highest temperature can be up to 110℃ at 3000m depth. Generally, the present-day geothermal regime of the Yangtze area is characterized by high in the northeast, low in the middle and localized high again in the southwest, and this pattern is well consistent with the tectono-thermal processes occurred in the area. Due to Cenozoic crustal extension in the northeastern Yangtze area, magmatism is prevailed, accounting for the high heat flow observed. Precambrian basement exists in the middle Yangtze area, such as the Xuefeng and Wuling Mountains, heat flow and subsurface temperature accordingly show relatively low as well. While for the southwestern Yangtze area, especially Yunnan and western Sichuan provinces, localized Cenozoic magmatism and tectonic activities are available, which is attributed to the high geothermal regime there. Considering the Paleozoic intensive tectonic deformation in the Yangtze area, tectonically stable area is prerequisite for shale gas preservation. Geothermal regime analysis

The aspects of fire safety at landfills

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aleshina Tat'yana Anatol'evna

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Starting with 2008 and till 2013 there have been alarm messages about fires occurring at landfill places in Russia. Landfill fires are especially dangerous as they emit dangerous fumes from the combustion of the wide range of materials within the landfill. Subsurface landfill fires, unlike typical fires, cannot be put out with water. The article includes the analysis of the sources and causes of conflagrations at landfills. There maintains the necessity to eliminate the reasons, which cause the fires. There are quantification indices of environmental, social and economic effects of fires at landfills all over Russia. Surface fires generally burn at relatively low temperatures and are characterized by the emission of dense white smoke and the products of incomplete combustion. The smoke includes irritating agents, such as organic acids and other compounds. Higher temperature fires can cause the breakdown of volatile compounds, which emit dense black smoke. Surface fires are classified as either accidental or deliberate. For the ecologic security there is a need in the execution of proper hygienic requirements to the content of the places as well as international recommendations. In addition to the burning and explosion hazards posed by landfill fires, smoke and other by-products of landfill fires also present a health risk to firefighters and others exposed to them. Smoke from landfill fires generally contains particulate matter (the products of incomplete combustion of the fuel source, which can aggravate pre-existing pulmonary conditions or cause respiratory distress and damage ecosystem. The monitoring of conducting preventive inflamings and transition to alternative, environment friendly methods of waste disposal is needed.

Subsurface conditions description for the S-SX waste management area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

WOOD, M.I.

1999-01-01

This document provides a discussion of the subsurface conditions relevant to the occurrence and migration of contaminants in the vadose zone and groundwater underlying the 241-5 and 241-SX tank farms This document provides a concise summary of existing information in support of characterization planning This document includes a description of the available environmental contamination data and a limited qualitative interpretation of these data

Combined use of weather forecasting and satellite remote sensing information for fire risk, fire and fire impact monitoring

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wolfgang Knorr

2011-06-01

Full Text Available The restoration of fire-affected forest areas needs to be combined with their future protection from renewed catastrophic fires, such as those that occurred in Greece during the 2007 summer season. The present work demonstrates that the use of various sources of satellite data in conjunction with weather forecast information is capable of providing valuable information for the characterization of fire danger with the purpose of protecting the Greek national forest areas. This study shows that favourable meteorological conditions have contributed to the fire outbreak during the days of the unusually damaging fires in Peloponnese as well as Euboia (modern Greek: Evia at the end of August 2007. During those days, Greece was located between an extended high pressure system in Central Europe and a low pressure system in the Middle East. Their combination resulted in strong north-northeasterly winds in the Aegean Sea. As a consequence, strong winds were also observed in the regions of Evia and Peloponnese, especially in mountainous areas. The analysis of satellite images showing smoke emitted from the fires corroborates the results from the weather forecasts. A further analysis using the Fraction of Absorbed Photosyntetically Active Radiation (FAPAR as an indicator of active vegetation shows the extent of the destruction caused by the fire. The position of the burned areas coincides with that of the active fires detected in the earlier satellite image. Using the annual maximum FAPAR as an indicator of regional vegetation density, it was found that only regions with relatively high FAPAR were burned.

Changes in fire weather distributions: effects on predicted fire behavior

Science.gov (United States)

Lucy A. Salazar; Larry S. Bradshaw

1984-01-01

Data that represent average worst fire weather for a particular area are used to index daily fire danger; however, they do not account for different locations or diurnal weather changes that significantly affect fire behavior potential. To study the effects that selected changes in weather databases have on computed fire behavior parameters, weather data for the...

Quantifying Fire Impact on Alaskan Tundra from Satellite Observations and Field Measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Loboda, T. V.; Chen, D.; He, J.; Jenkins, L. K.

2017-12-01

Wildfire is a major disturbance agent in Alaskan tundra. The frequency and extent of fire events obtained from paleo, management, and satellite records may yet underestimate the scope of tundra fire impact. Field measurements, collected within the NASA's ABoVE campaign, revealed unexpectedly shallow organic soils ( 15 cm) across all sampled sites of the Noatak valley with no significant difference between recently burned and unburned sites. In typical small and medium-sized tundra burns vegetation recovers rapidly and scars are not discernable in 30 m optical satellite imagery by the end of the first post-fire season. However, field observations indicate that vegetation and subsurface characteristics within fire scars of different ages vary across the landscape. In this study we develop linkages between fire-induced changes to tundra and satellite-based observations from optical, thermal, and microwave imagers to enable extrapolation of in-situ observations to cover the full extent of Alaskan tundra. Our results show that recent ( 30 years) fire history can be reconstructed from optical observations (R2 0.65, pfire history can be determined for 4 years post fire primarily due to increased soil moisture at burned sites. Field measurements suggest that the relatively quick SAR signal dissipation results from more even distribution of surface moisture through the soil column with increases in Active Layer Thickness (ALT). Similar to previous long-term field studies we find an increase in shrub fraction and shrub height within burns over time at the landscape scale; however, the strength and significance of the relationship between shrub fraction and time since fire is governed by burn severity with more severe burns predictably (p post-fire shrub cover. Although reasonably well-correlated to each other when adjusted for topography (R2 0.35, p < 0.001), neither ALT nor soil temperature can be directly linked to optical or thermal brightness observations with acceptable

Studying the Post-Fire Response of Vegetation in California Protected Areas with NDVI-based Pheno-Metrics

Science.gov (United States)

Jia, S.; Gillespie, T. W.

2016-12-01

Post-fire response from vegetation is determined by the intensity and timing of fires as well as the nature of local biomes. Though the field-based studies focusing on selected study sites helped to understand the mechanisms of post-fire response, there is a need to extend the analysis to a broader spatial extent with the assistance of remotely sensed imagery of fires and vegetation. Pheno-metrics, a series of variables on the growing cycle extracted from basic satellite measurements of vegetation coverage, translate the basic remote sensing measurements such as NDVI to the language of phenology and fire ecology in a quantitative form. In this study, we analyzed the rate of biomass removal after ignition and the speed of post-fire recovery in California protected areas from 2000 to 2014 with USGS MTBS fire data and USGS eMODIS pheno-metrics. NDVI drop caused by fire showed the aboveground biomass of evergreen forest was removed much slower than shrubland because of higher moisture level and greater density of fuel. In addition, the above two major land cover types experienced a greatly weakened immediate post-fire growing season, featuring a later start and peak of season, a shorter length of season, and a lower start and peak of NDVI. Such weakening was highly correlated with burn severity, and also influenced by the season of fire and the land cover type, according to our modeling between the anomalies of pheno-metrics and the difference of normalized burn ratio (dNBR). The influence generally decayed over time, but can remain high within the first 5 years after fire, mostly because of the introduction of exotic species when the native species were missing. Local-specific variables are necessary to better address the variance within the same fire and improve the outcomes of models. This study can help ecologists in validating the theories of post-fire vegetation response mechanisms and assist local fire managers in post-fire vegetation recovery.

The potential for LiDAR technology to map fire fuel hazard over large areas of Australian forest.

Science.gov (United States)

Price, Owen F; Gordon, Christopher E

2016-10-01

Fuel load is a primary determinant of fire spread in Australian forests. In east Australian forests, litter and canopy fuel loads and hence fire hazard are thought to be highest at and beyond steady-state fuel loads 15-20 years post-fire. Current methods used to predict fuel loads often rely on course-scale vegetation maps and simple time-since-fire relationships which mask fine-scale processes influencing fuel loads. Here we use Light Detecting and Remote Sensing technology (LiDAR) and field surveys to quantify post-fire mid-story and crown canopy fuel accumulation and fire hazard in Dry Sclerophyll Forests of the Sydney Basin (Australia) at fine spatial-scales (20 × 20 m cell resolution). Fuel cover was quantified in three strata important for crown fire propagation (0.5-4 m, 4-15 m, >15 m) over a 144 km(2) area subject to varying fire fuel ages. Our results show that 1) LiDAR provided a precise measurement of fuel cover in each strata and a less precise but still useful predictor of surface fuels, 2) cover varied greatly within a mapped vegetation class of the same fuel age, particularly for elevated fuel, 3) time-since-fire was a poor predictor of fuel cover and crown fire hazard because fuel loads important for crown fire propagation were variable over a range of fire fuel ages between 2 and 38 years post-fire, and 4) fuel loads and fire hazard can be high in the years immediately following fire. Our results show the benefits of spatially and temporally specific in situ fuel sampling methods such as LiDAR, and are widely applicable for fire management actions which aim to decrease human and environmental losses due to wildfire. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fate of Magnesium Chloride Brine Applied to Suppress Dust from Unpaved Roads at the INEEL Subsurface Disposal Area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Larry Hull; Carolyn Bishop

2004-01-01

Between 1984 and 1993, MgCl 2 brine was used to suppress dust on unpaved roads at a radioactive waste subsurface disposal area. Because Cl - might enhance corrosion of buried metals in the waste, we investigated the distribution and fate of Cl - in the vadose zone using pore water samples collected from suction lysimeters and soluble salt concentrations extracted from sediment samples. The Cl/Br mass ratio and the total dissolved Cl - concentration of pore water show that brine contamination occurs primarily within 13 m of treated roads, but can extend as much as 30 m laterally in near-surface sedimentary deposits. Within the deep vadose zone, which consists of interlayered basalt lava flows and sedimentary interbeds, brine has moved up to 110 m laterally. This lateral migration suggests formation of perched water and horizontal transport during periods of high recharge. In a few locations, brine migrated to depths of 67 m within 3 to 5 yr. Elevated Cl - concentrations were found to depths of 2 m in roadbed material. In drainage ditches along roads, where runoff accumulates and recharge of surface water is high, Cl - was flushed from the sediments in 3 to 4 yr. In areas of lower recharge, Cl - remained in the sediments after 5 yr. Vertical brine movement is directly related to surface recharge through sediments. The distribution of Cl - in pore water and sediments is consistent with estimates of vadose zone residence times and spatial distribution of surface water recharge from other investigations at the subsurface disposal area

Bringing soil science to society after catastrophic events such as big forest fires. Some examples of field approaches in Spanish Mediterranean areas

Science.gov (United States)

Mataix-Solera, Jorge; Arcenegui, Vicky; Cerdà, Artemi; García-Orenes, Fuensanta; Moltó, Jorge; Chrenkovà, Katerina; Torres, Pilar; Lozano, Elena; Jimenez-Pinilla, Patricia; Jara-Navarro, Ana B.

2015-04-01

Forest fires must be considered a natural factor in Mediterranean ecosystems, but the changes in land use in the last six decades have altered its natural regime making them an ongoing environmental problem. Some big forest fires (> 500 has) also have a great socio-economical impact on human population. Our research team has experience of 20 years studying the effects of forest fires on soil properties, their recovery after fire and the impact of some post-fire management treatments. In this work we want to show our experience of how to transfer part of our knowledge to society after two catastrophic events of forest fires in the Alicante Province (E Spain). Two big forest fires: one in "Sierra de Mariola (Alcoi)" and other in "Montgó Natural Park (Javea-Denia)" occurred in in July 2012 and September 2014 respectivelly, and as consequence a great impact was produced on the populations of nearby affected villages. Immediatelly, some groups were formed through social networks with the aim of trying to help recover the affected areas as soon as possible. Usually, society calls for early reforestation and this preassure on forest managers and politicians can produce a response with a greater impact on fire-affected area than the actual fire. The soil is a fragile ecosystem after forest fire, and the situation after fire can vary greatly depending on many factors such as fire severity, previous history of fire in the area, soil type, topography, etc. An evaluation of the site to make the best decision for recovery of the area, protecting the soil and avoiding degradation of the ecosystem is necessary. In these 2 cases we organized some field activities and conferences to give society knowledge of how soil is affected by forest fires, and what would be the best post-fire management depending on how healthy the soil is and the vegetation resilience after fire and our expectations for a natural recovery. The application of different types of mulch in vulnerable areas, the

Fire models for assessment of nuclear power plant fires

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nicolette, V.F.; Nowlen, S.P.

1989-01-01

This paper reviews the state-of-the-art in available fire models for the assessment of nuclear power plants fires. The advantages and disadvantages of three basic types of fire models (zone, field, and control volume) and Sandia's experience with these models will be discussed. It is shown that the type of fire model selected to solve a particular problem should be based on the information that is required. Areas of concern which relate to all nuclear power plant fire models are identified. 17 refs., 6 figs

Identification and application of the valid wavelength bands for burnt area detection and fire severity classification using Landsat/TM data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maki, M.; Tamura, M.

2003-01-01

Firstly, by using Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) imagery before and after forest fire, the valid wavelength bands for detecting burnt areas were examined and compared to NDVI. Secondly, by using the valid wavelength bands, mapping of burnt area and classification of fire severity were examined. The results show that (a) channel 4 and 7 were more sensitive than other channels for detecting burnt area, (b) BAI (Burnt Area Index) [(ch. 4-ch. 7)/(ch. 4+ch. 7)] was more useful than NDVI for detecting burnt areas, and (c) BAI imagery was more useful for classification of burn severity than NDVI imagery

Ground penetrating radar and differential global positioning system data collected in April 2016 from Fire Island, New York

Science.gov (United States)

Forde, Arnell S.; Bernier, Julie C.; Miselis, Jennifer L.

2018-02-22

Researchers from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted a long-term coastal morphologic-change study at Fire Island, New York, prior to and after Hurricane Sandy impacted the area in October 2012. The Fire Island Coastal Change project objectives include understanding the morphologic evolution of the barrier island system on a variety of time scales (months to centuries) and resolving storm-related impacts, post-storm beach response, and recovery. In April 2016, scientists from the USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center conducted geophysical and sediment sampling surveys on Fire Island to characterize and quantify spatial variability in the subaerial geology with the goal of subsequently integrating onshore geology with other surf zone and nearshore datasets.  This report, along with the associated USGS data release, serves as an archive of ground penetrating radar (GPR) and post-processed differential global positioning system (DGPS) data collected from beach and back-barrier environments on Fire Island, April 6–13, 2016 (USGS Field Activity Number 2016-322-FA). Data products, including unprocessed GPR trace data, processed DGPS data, elevation-corrected subsurface profile images, geographic information system files, and accompanying Federal Geographic Data Committee metadata are available for download.

Post-fire vegetation and fuel development influences fire severity patterns in reburns.

Science.gov (United States)

Coppoletta, Michelle; Merriam, Kyle E; Collins, Brandon M

2016-04-01

In areas where fire regimes and forest structure have been dramatically altered, there is increasing concern that contemporary fires have the potential to set forests on a positive feedback trajectory with successive reburns, one in which extensive stand-replacing fire could promote more stand-replacing fire. Our study utilized an extensive set of field plots established following four fires that occurred between 2000 and 2010 in the northern Sierra Nevada, California, USA that were subsequently reburned in 2012. The information obtained from these field plots allowed for a unique set of analyses investigating the effect of vegetation, fuels, topography, fire weather, and forest management on reburn severity. We also examined the influence of initial fire severity and time since initial fire on influential predictors of reburn severity. Our results suggest that high- to moderate-severity fire in the initial fires led to an increase in standing snags and shrub vegetation, which in combination with severe fire weather promoted high-severity fire effects in the subsequent reburn. Although fire behavior is largely driven by weather, our study demonstrates that post-fire vegetation composition and structure are also important drivers of reburn severity. In the face of changing climatic regimes and increases in extreme fire weather, these results may provide managers with options to create more fire-resilient ecosystems. In areas where frequent high-severity fire is undesirable, management activities such as thinning, prescribed fire, or managed wildland fire can be used to moderate fire behavior not only prior to initial fires, but also before subsequent reburns.

Tropical Forest Fire Susceptibility Mapping at the Cat Ba National Park Area, Hai Phong City, Vietnam, Using GIS-Based Kernel Logistic Regression

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Dieu Tien Bui

2016-04-01

Full Text Available The Cat Ba National Park area (Vietnam with its tropical forest is recognized as being part of the world biodiversity conservation by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO and is a well-known destination for tourists, with around 500,000 travelers per year. This area has been the site for many research projects; however, no project has been carried out for forest fire susceptibility assessment. Thus, protection of the forest including fire prevention is one of the main concerns of the local authorities. This work aims to produce a tropical forest fire susceptibility map for the Cat Ba National Park area, which may be helpful for the local authorities in forest fire protection management. To obtain this purpose, first, historical forest fires and related factors were collected from various sources to construct a GIS database. Then, a forest fire susceptibility model was developed using Kernel logistic regression. The quality of the model was assessed using the Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC curve, area under the ROC curve (AUC, and five statistical evaluation measures. The usability of the resulting model is further compared with a benchmark model, the support vector machine (SVM. The results show that the Kernel logistic regression model has a high level of performance in both the training and validation dataset, with a prediction capability of 92.2%. Since the Kernel logistic regression model outperforms the benchmark model, we conclude that the proposed model is a promising alternative tool that should also be considered for forest fire susceptibility mapping in other areas. The results of this study are useful for the local authorities in forest planning and management.

Quantitative comparison of fire danger index performance using fire activity

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Steenkamp, KC

2012-07-01

Full Text Available parameters such as flame length or rate of spread can be physically measured or modeled. Fire danger indices are not designed to describe the characteristics of a fire but rather the potential of a fire taking place in an area of interest [5]. Several...

The contribution of natural fire management to wilderness fire science

Science.gov (United States)

Carol Miller

2014-01-01

When the federal agencies established policies in the late 1960s and early 1970s to allow the use of natural fires in wilderness, they launched a natural fire management experiment in a handful of wilderness areas. As a result, wildland fire has played more of its natural role in wilderness than anywhere else. Much of what we understand about fire ecology comes from...

Effects of accelerated wildfire on future fire regimes and implications for the United States federal fire policy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alan A. Ager

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Wildland fire suppression practices in the western United States are being widely scrutinized by policymakers and scientists as costs escalate and large fires increasingly affect social and ecological values. One potential solution is to change current fire suppression tactics to intentionally increase the area burned under conditions when risks are acceptable to managers and fires can be used to achieve long-term restoration goals in fire adapted forests. We conducted experiments with the Envision landscape model to simulate increased levels of wildfire over a 50-year period on a 1.2 million ha landscape in the eastern Cascades of Oregon, USA. We hypothesized that at some level of burned area fuels would limit the growth of new fires, and fire effects on the composition and structure of forests would eventually reduce future fire intensity and severity. We found that doubling current rates of wildfire resulted in detectable feedbacks in area burned and fire intensity. Area burned in a given simulation year was reduced about 18% per unit area burned in the prior five years averaged across all scenarios. The reduction in area burned was accompanied by substantially lower fire severity, and vegetation shifted to open forest and grass-shrub conditions at the expense of old growth habitat. Negative fire feedbacks were slightly moderated by longer-term positive feedbacks, in which the effect of prior area burned diminished during the simulation. We discuss trade-offs between managing fuels with wildfire versus prescribed fire and mechanical fuel treatments from a social and policy standpoint. The study provides a useful modeling framework to consider the potential value of fire feedbacks as part of overall land management strategies to build fire resilient landscapes and reduce wildfire risk to communities in the western U.S. The results are also relevant to prior climate-wildfire studies that did not consider fire feedbacks in projections of future

Data in support of environmental controls on the characteristics of mean number of forest fires and mean forest area burned (1987–2007 in China

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Yu Chang

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Fire frequency and size are two important parameters describing fire characteristics. Exploring the spatial variation of fire characteristics and understanding the environmental controls are indispensable to fire prediction and sustainable forest landscape management. To illustrate the spatial variation of forest fire characteristics over China and to quantitatively determine the relative contribution of each of the environmental controls to this variation, forest fire characteristic data (mean number of forest fires and mean burned forest area and environmental data (climate, land use, vegetation type and topography at provincial level were derived. These data sets can potentially serve as a foundation for future studies relating to fire risk assessment, carbon emission by forest fires, and the impact of climate change on fire characteristics. This data article contains data related to the research article entitled “Environmental controls on the characteristics of mean number of forest fires and mean forest area burned (1987–2007 in China” by chang et al. [1].

Comparing the Global Charcoal Database with Burned Area Trends from an Offline Fire Model Driven by the NCAR Last Millennium Ensemble

Science.gov (United States)

Schaefer, A.; Magi, B. I.; Marlon, J. R.; Bartlein, P. J.

2017-12-01

This study uses an offline fire model driven by output from the NCAR Community Earth System Model Last Millennium Ensemble (LME) to evaluate how climate, ecological, and human factors contributed to burned area over the past millennium, and uses the Global Charcoal Database (GCD) record of fire activity as a constraint. The offline fire model is similar to the fire module within the NCAR Community Land Model. The LME experiment includes 13 simulations of the Earth system from 850 CE through 2005 CE, and the fire model simulates burned area using LME climate and vegetation with imposed land use and land cover change. The fire model trends are compared to GCD records of charcoal accumulation rates derived from sediment cores. The comparisons are a way to assess the skill of the fire model, but also set up a methodology to directly test hypotheses of the main drivers of fire patterns over the past millennium. The focus is on regions selected from the GCD with high data density, and that have lake sediment cores that best capture the last millennium. Preliminary results are based on a fire model which excludes burning cropland and pasture land cover types, but this allows some assessment of how climate variability is captured by the fire model. Generally, there is good agreement between modeled burned area trends and fire trends from GCD for many regions of interest, suggesting the strength of climate variability as a control. At the global scale, trends and features are similar from 850 to 1700, which includes the Medieval Climate Anomaly and the Little Ice Age. After 1700, the trends significantly deviate, which may be due to non-cultivated land being converted to cultivated. In key regions of high data density in the GCD such as the Western USA, the trends agree from 850 to 1200 but diverge from 1200 to 1300. From 1300 to 1800, the trends show good agreement again. Implementing processes to include burning cultivated land within the fire model is anticipated to

Pre-fire treatment effects and post-fire forest dynamics on the Rodeo-Chediski burn area, Arizona

Science.gov (United States)

Barbara A. Strom

2005-01-01

The 2002 Rodeo-Chediski fire was the largest wildfire in Arizona history at 189,000 ha (468,000 acres), and exhibited some of the most extreme fire behavior ever seen in the Southwest. Pre-fire fuel reduction treatments of thinning, timber harvesting, and prescribed burning on the White Mountain Apache Tribal lands (WMAT) and thinning on the Apache-Sitgreaves National...

Application of wildfire simulation methods to assess wildfire exposure in a Mediterranean fire-prone area (Sardinia, Italy)

Science.gov (United States)

Salis, M.; Ager, A.; Arca, B.; Finney, M.; Bacciu, V. M.; Spano, D.; Duce, P.

2012-12-01

Spatial and temporal patterns of fire spread and behavior are dependent on interactions among climate, topography, vegetation and fire suppression efforts (Pyne et al. 1996; Viegas 2006; Falk et al. 2007). Humans also play a key role in determining frequency and spatial distribution of ignitions (Bar Massada et al, 2011), and thus influence fire regimes as well. The growing incidence of catastrophic wildfires has led to substantial losses for important ecological and human values within many areas of the Mediterranean basin (Moreno et al. 1998; Mouillot et al. 2005; Viegas et al. 2006a; Riaño et al. 2007). The growing fire risk issue has led to many new programs and policies of fuel management and risk mitigation by environmental and fire agencies. However, risk-based methodologies to help identify areas characterized by high potential losses and prioritize fuel management have been lacking for the region. Formal risk assessment requires the joint consideration of likelihood, intensity, and susceptibility, the product of which estimates the chance of a specific loss (Brillinger 2003; Society of Risk Analysis, 2006). Quantifying fire risk therefore requires estimates of a) the probability of a specific location burning at a specific intensity and location, and b) the resulting change in financial or ecological value (Finney 2005; Scott 2006). When large fires are the primary cause of damage, the application of this risk formulation requires modeling fire spread to capture landscape properties that affect burn probability. Recently, the incorporation of large fire spread into risk assessment systems has become feasible with the development of high performance fire simulation systems (Finney et al. 2011) that permit the simulation of hundreds of thousands of fires to generate fine scale maps of burn probability, flame length, and fire size, while considering the combined effects of weather, fuels, and topography (Finney 2002; Andrews et al. 2007; Ager and Finney 2009

Understorey fire propagation and tree mortality on adjacent areas to an Amazonian deforestation fire

Science.gov (United States)

J.A. Carvalho; C.A. Gurgel Veras; E.C. Alvarado; D.V. Sandberg; S.J. Leite; R. Gielow; E.R.C. Rabelo; J.C. Santos

2010-01-01

Fire characteristics in tropical ecosystems are poorly documented quantitatively in the literature. This paper describes an understorey fire propagating across the edges of a biomass burn of a cleared primary forest. The experiment was carried out in 2001 in the Amazon forest near Alta Floresta, state of Mato Grosso, Brazil, as part of biomass burning experiments...

INTERPRETATION OF BOUGUER ANOMALY TO DETERMINE FAULT AND SUBSURFACE STRUCTURE AT BLAWAN-IJEN GEOTHERMAL AREA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anjar Pranggawan Azhari

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Gravity survey has been acquired by Gravimeter Lacoste & Romberg G-1035 at Blawan-Ijen geothermal area. It was a focusing study from previous research. The residual Bouguer anomaly data was obtain after applying gravity data reduction, reduction to horizontal plane, and upward continuation. Result of Bouguer anomaly interpretation shows occurrence of new faults and their relative movement. Blawan fault (F1, F2, F3, and F6 are normal fault. Blawan fault is main fault controlling hot springs at Blawan-Ijen geothermal area. F4 and F5 are oblique fault and forming a graben at Banyupahit River. F7 is reverse fault. Subsurface model shows that Blawan-Ijen geothermal area was dominated by the Ijen caldera forming ignimbrite (ρ1=2.670 g/cm3, embedded shale and sand (ρ2=2.644 g/cm3 as Blawan lake sediments, magma intrusion (ρ3=2.814 g/cm3 & ρ7=2.821 g/cm3, andesite rock (ρ4=2.448 g/cm3 as geothermal reservoir, pyroclastic air fall deposits (ρ5=2.613 g/cm3 from Mt. Blau, and lava flow (ρ6=2.890 g/cm3.

Monitoring vegetation recovery in fire-affected areas using temporal profiles of spectral signal from time series MODIS and LANDSAT satellite images

Science.gov (United States)

Georgopoulou, Danai; Koutsias, Nikos

2015-04-01

Vegetation phenology is an important element of vegetation characteristics that can be useful in vegetation monitoring especially when satellite remote sensing observations are used. In that sense temporal profiles extracted from spectral signal of time series MODIS and LANDSAT satellite images can be used to characterize vegetation phenology and thus to be helpful for monitoring vegetation recovery in fire-affected areas. The aim of this study is to explore the vegetation recovery pattern of the catastrophic wildfires that occurred in Peloponnisos, southern Greece, in 2007. These fires caused the loss of 67 lives and were recognized as the most extreme natural disaster in the country's recent history. Satellite remote sensing data from MODIS and LANDSAT satellites in the period from 2000 to 2014 were acquired and processed to extract the temporal profiles of the spectral signal for selected areas within the fire-affected areas. This dataset and time period analyzed together with the time that these fires occurred gave the opportunity to create temporal profiles seven years before and seven years after the fire. The different scale of the data used gave us the chance to understand how vegetation phenology and therefore the recovery patterns are influenced by the spatial resolution of the satellite data used. Different metrics linked to key phenological events have been created and used to assess vegetation recovery in the fire-affected areas. Our analysis was focused in the main land cover types that were mostly affected by the 2007 wildland fires. Based on CORINE land-cover maps these were agricultural lands highly interspersed with large areas of natural vegetation followed by sclerophyllous vegetation, transitional woodland shrubs, complex cultivation patterns and olive groves. Apart of the use of the original spectral data we estimated and used vegetation indices commonly found in vegetation studies as well as in burned area mapping studies. In this study we

Remote sensing techniques to assess active fire characteristics and post-fire effects

Science.gov (United States)

Leigh B. Lentile; Zachary A. Holden; Alistair M. S. Smith; Michael J. Falkowski; Andrew T. Hudak; Penelope Morgan; Sarah A. Lewis; Paul E. Gessler; Nate C. Benson

2006-01-01

Space and airborne sensors have been used to map area burned, assess characteristics of active fires, and characterize post-fire ecological effects. Confusion about fire intensity, fire severity, burn severity, and related terms can result in the potential misuse of the inferred information by land managers and remote sensing practitioners who require unambiguous...

Thermal surface characteristics of coal fires 1 results of in-situ measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Jianzhong; Kuenzer, Claudia

2007-12-01

Natural underground coal fires are fires in coal seams occurring subsurface. The fires are ignited through a process named spontaneous combustion, which occurs based on a natural reaction but is usually triggered through human interaction. Coal mining activities expose coal to the air. This leads to the exothermal oxidation of the carbon in the coal with the air's oxygen to CO 2 and - under certain circumstances - to spontaneous combustion. Coal fires occur in many countries world wide - however, currently the Chinese coal mining industry faces the biggest problems with coal fires. Coal fires destroy the valuable resource coal and furthermore lead to many environmental degradation phenomena such as the deterioration of surrounding vegetation, land subsidence and the emission of toxic gasses (CO, N 2O). They additionally contribute to the emission of green house relevant gasses such as CO 2 and CH 4 to the atmosphere. In this paper we present thermal characteristics of coal fires as measured in-situ during a field campaign to the Wuda coal fire area in south-central Inner Mongolia, China. Thermal characteristics include temperature anomaly measurements at the surface, spatial surface temperature profiles of fire areas and unaffected background areas, diurnal temperature profiles, and temperature measurements inside of coal fire induced cracks in the overlying bedrock. For all the measurements the effects of uneven solar heating through influences of slope and aspect are considered. Our findings show that coal fires result in strong or subtle thermal surface anomalies. Especially the latter can easily be influenced by heating of the surrounding background material through solar influences. Temperature variation of background rocks with different albedo, slope, aspect or vegetation cover can substantially influence the detectability of thermal anomalies. In the worst case coal fire related thermal anomalies can be completely masked by solar patterns during the daytime

Wildland fire as a self-regulating mechanism: the role of previous burns and weather in limiting fire progression.

Science.gov (United States)

Parks, Sean A; Holsinger, Lisa M; Miller, Carol; Nelson, Cara R

2015-09-01

Theory suggests that natural fire regimes can result in landscapes that are both self-regulating and resilient to fire. For example, because fires consume fuel, they may create barriers to the spread of future fires, thereby regulating fire size. Top-down controls such as weather, however, can weaken this effect. While empirical examples demonstrating this pattern-process feedback between vegetation and fire exist, they have been geographically limited or did not consider the influence of time between fires and weather. The availability of remotely sensed data identifying fire activity over the last four decades provides an opportunity to explicitly quantify-the ability of wildland fire to limit the progression of subsequent fire. Furthermore, advances in fire progression mapping now allow an evaluation of how daily weather as a top-down control modifies this effect. In this study, we evaluated the ability of wildland fire to create barriers that limit the spread of subsequent fire along a gradient representing time between fires in four large study areas in the western United States. Using fire progression maps in conjunction with weather station data, we also evaluated the influence of daily weather. Results indicate that wildland fire does limit subsequent fire spread in all four study areas, but this effect decays over time; wildland fire no longer limits subsequent fire spread 6-18 years after fire, depending on the study area. We also found that the ability of fire to regulate, subsequent fire progression was substantially reduced under extreme conditions compared to moderate weather conditions in all four study areas. This study increases understanding of the spatial feedbacks that can lead to self-regulating landscapes as well as the effects of top-down controls, such as weather, on these feedbacks. Our results will be useful to managers who seek to restore natural fire regimes or to exploit recent burns when managing fire.

Subsurface barrier verification technologies, informal report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heiser, J.H.

1994-06-01

One of the more promising remediation options available to the DOE waste management community is subsurface barriers. Some of the uses of subsurface barriers include surrounding and/or containing buried waste, as secondary confinement of underground storage tanks, to direct or contain subsurface contaminant plumes and to restrict remediation methods, such as vacuum extraction, to a limited area. To be most effective the barriers should be continuous and depending on use, have few or no breaches. A breach may be formed through numerous pathways including: discontinuous grout application, from joints between panels and from cracking due to grout curing or wet-dry cycling. The ability to verify barrier integrity is valuable to the DOE, EPA, and commercial sector and will be required to gain full public acceptance of subsurface barriers as either primary or secondary confinement at waste sites. It is recognized that no suitable method exists for the verification of an emplaced barrier's integrity. The large size and deep placement of subsurface barriers makes detection of leaks challenging. This becomes magnified if the permissible leakage from the site is low. Detection of small cracks (fractions of an inch) at depths of 100 feet or more has not been possible using existing surface geophysical techniques. Compounding the problem of locating flaws in a barrier is the fact that no placement technology can guarantee the completeness or integrity of the emplaced barrier. This report summarizes several commonly used or promising technologies that have been or may be applied to in-situ barrier continuity verification

Subsurface Interim Measures/Interim Remedial Action Plan and Decision Document for the 903 Pad, Mound, and East Trenches Areas (Operable Unit No. 2)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

The Department of Energy (DOE) is pursuing an Interim Measure/Interim Remedial Action (IM/IRA) at the 903 Pad, Mound, and East Trenches Areas (Operable Unit No. 2) at the Rocky Flats Plant (RFP). This MIRA is to be conducted to provide information that will aid in the selection and design of final remedial actions at OU2 that will address removal of suspected free-phase volatile organic compound (VOC) contamination. The Plan involves investigating the removal of residual free-phase VOCs by in situ vacuum-enhanced vapor extraction technology at 3 suspected VOC source areas within OU2. VOC-contaminated vapors extracted from the subsurface would be treated by granular activated carbon (GAC) adsorption and discharged. The Plan also includes water table depression, when applicable at the test sites, to investigate the performance of vapor extraction technology in the saturated zone. The Plan provides for treatment of any contaminated ground water recovered during the IM/IRA at existing RFP treatment facilities. The proposed MVIRA Plan is presented in the document entitled ''Proposed Subsurface Interim Measures/Interim Remedial Action Plan/Environmental Assessment and Decision Document, 903 Pad, Mound, and East Trenches Areas, Operable Unit No. 2, '' dated 20 March 1992. Information concerning the proposed Subsurface IM/IRA was presented during a DOE Quarterly Review meeting held on 07 April 1992 and a public meeting held on 07 May 1992, at the Marriott Hotel in Golden, Colorado. The Responsiveness Summary presents DOE's response to all comments received at the public meeting, as well as those mailed to date to DOE during the public comment period

Yucca Mountain Project Subsurface Facilities Design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Linden, A.; Saunders, R.S.; Boutin, R.J.; Harrington, P.G.; Lachman, K.D.; Trautner, L.J.

2002-01-01

Four units of the Topopah Springs formation (volcanic tuff) are considered for the proposed repository: the upper lithophysal, the middle non-lithophysal, the lower lithophysal, and the lower non-lithophysal. Yucca Mountain was recently designated the site for a proposed repository to dispose of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Work is proceeding to advance the design of subsurface facilities to accommodate emplacing waste packages in the proposed repository. This paper summarized recent progress in the design of subsurface layout of the proposed repository. The original Site Recommendation (SR) concept for the subsurface design located the repository largely within the lower lithophysal zone (approximately 73%) of the Topopah The Site Recommendation characterized area suitable for emplacement consisted of the primary upper block, the lower block and the southern upper block extension. The primary upper block accommodated the mandated 70,000 metric tons of heavy metal (MTHM) at a 1.45 kW/m hear heat load. Based on further study of the Site Recommendation concept, the proposed repository siting area footprint was modified to make maximum use of available site characterization data, and thus, reduce uncertainties associated with performance assessment. As a result of this study, a modified repository footprint has been proposed and is presently being review for acceptance by the DOE. A panel design concept was developed to reduce overall costs and reduce the overall emplacement schedule. This concept provides flexibility to adjust the proposed repository subsurface layout with time, as it makes it unnecessary to ''commit'' to development of a large single panel at the earliest stages of construction. A description of the underground layout configuration and influencing factors that affect the layout configuration are discussed in the report

Southern Africa Fire Network (SAFNet) regional burned-area product-validation protocol

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Roy, DP

2005-10-10

Full Text Available on the spatial extent and timing of burning, as clouds may preclude hotspot detection and because the satellite may not overpass when burning occurs (Justice et al. 2002). Algorithms that use multi-temporal satellite data to map the areas affected by the passage... independent reference data from aircraft observations of prescribed fires and wildfires (Kaufman et al. 1998). However, aircraft campaigns are expensive to undertake in a regionally representative manner and are difficult to coordinate with cloud...

Overview of fire curtains in construction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nedryshkin Oleg

2016-01-01

Full Text Available A fire curtain is use where, if there is a fire, it is necessary to create a temporary barrier within an opening, which seals off the area on fire. The curtain descends and prevents any fire and smoke from spreading from one area to another. It also allows people access to protected escape routes without any loss of fire resistance. The paper aims to presents the results of analysis of the scientific literature on the subject of fire curtains.

A brush fire forensic case.

Science.gov (United States)

Rella, R; Sturaro, A; Parvoli, G; Ferrara, D; Casellato, U; Vadalà, G

2005-01-01

In Italy, every summer forest fires attract public attention due to the number of victims, the intensity of the fires, the areas devastated, the environmental damage and the loss of property. Excluding some fires by natural causes, other causes are related to the social, economic, and productive profile of the territory. The erroneous expectation is that wooded areas destroyed by fire can then be used for private interests. Often, a fire, started to clear a small area, can completely change the expected result, producing disaster, loss of property, destruction of entire forests and resident fauna, and kill innocent people. In this case report, the reconstruction of an arson scene, the analytical techniques and the results obtained are illustrated in this paper, with the aim of sharing with other research laboratories the current knowledge on forest fire.

Fire scenarios in nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Asp, I.B.; MacDougall, E.A.; Hall, R.E.

1978-01-01

This report defines a Design Base Fire and looks at 3 major areas of a hypothetical model for a Nuclear Power Plant. In each of these areas a Design Base Fire was developed and explained. In addition, guidance is given for comparing fire conditions of a given Nuclear Power Plant with the model plant described. Since there is such a wide variation in nuclear plant layouts, model areas were chosen for simplicity. The areas were not patterned after any existing plant area; rather several plant layouts were reviewed and a simplified model developed. The developed models considered several types of fires. The fire selected was considered to be the dominant one for the case in point. In general, the dominant fire selected is time dependent and starts at a specific location. After these models were developed, a comparison was drawn between the model and an operating plant for items such as area, cable numbers and weight, tray sizes and lengths. The heat loads of the model plant are summarized by area and compared with those of an actual operating plant. This document is intended to be used as a guide in the evaluation of fire hazards in nuclear power stations and a summarization of one acceptable analytical methodology to accomplish this

Mid-21st-century climate changes increase predicted fire occurrence and fire season length, Northern Rocky Mountains, United States

Science.gov (United States)

Riley, Karin L.; Loehman, Rachel A.

2016-01-01

Climate changes are expected to increase fire frequency, fire season length, and cumulative area burned in the western United States. We focus on the potential impact of mid-21st-century climate changes on annual burn probability, fire season length, and large fire characteristics including number and size for a study area in the Northern Rocky Mountains. Although large fires are rare they account for most of the area burned in western North America, burn under extreme weather conditions, and exhibit behaviors that preclude methods of direct control. Allocation of resources, development of management plans, and assessment of fire effects on ecosystems all require an understanding of when and where fires are likely to burn, particularly under altered climate regimes that may increase large fire occurrence. We used the large fire simulation model FSim to model ignition, growth, and containment of wildfires under two climate scenarios: contemporary (based on instrumental weather) and mid-century (based on an ensemble average of global climate models driven by the A1B SRES emissions scenario). Modeled changes in fire patterns include increased annual burn probability, particularly in areas of the study region with relatively short contemporary fire return intervals; increased individual fire size and annual area burned; and fewer years without large fires. High fire danger days, represented by threshold values of Energy Release Component (ERC), are projected to increase in number, especially in spring and fall, lengthening the climatic fire season. For fire managers, ERC is an indicator of fire intensity potential and fire economics, with higher ERC thresholds often associated with larger, more expensive fires. Longer periods of elevated ERC may significantly increase the cost and complexity of fire management activities, requiring new strategies to maintain desired ecological conditions and limit fire risk. Increased fire activity (within the historical range of

Fire protection: no fire without smoke. CCTV breakthrough in fire detection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1997-01-01

A new CCTV-based fire detection system uses advanced software to detect and locate smoke and vapour from a fire before it becomes visible to the human eye, but is intelligent enough to avoid false alarms due to steam, moving machinery or operating staff in the monitored area. The starting point for the development effort was video motion detection software as used in the security industry. (author)

Drilling Specifications: Well Installations in the 300 Area to Support PNNL's Integrated Field-Scale Subsurface Research Challenge (IFC) Project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bjornstad, Bruce N.; Vermeul, Vince R.

2008-01-01

Part of the 300 Area Integrated Field-Scale Subsurface Research Challenge (IFC) will be installation of a network of high density borings and wells to monitor migration of fluids and contaminants (uranium), both in groundwater and vadose zone, away from an surface infiltration plot (Figure A-1). The infiltration plot will be located over an area of suspected contamination at the former 300 Area South Process Pond (SPP). The SPP is located in the southeastern portion of the Hanford Site, within the 300-FF-5 Operable Unit. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) with the support of FH shall stake the well locations prior to the start of drilling. Final locations will be based on accessibility and will avoid any surface or underground structures or hazards as well as surface contamination

The role of fire severity, distance from fire perimeter and vegetation on post-fire recovery of small-mammal communities in chaparal

Science.gov (United States)

Jay Diffendorfer; Genie M. Fleming; Scott Tremor; Wayne Spencer; Jan L. Beyers

2012-01-01

Chaparral shrublands in southern California, US, exhibit significant biodiversity but are prone to large, intense wildfires. Debate exists regarding fuel reduction to prevent such fires in wildland areas, but the effects of these fires on fauna are not well understood. We studied whether fire severity and distance from unburned fire perimeter influenced recovery of the...

2015 Groundwater Monitoring Report Project Shoal Area: Subsurface Correction Unit 447

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Findlay, Rick [Navarro Research and Engineering, Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

2016-04-01

The Project Shoal Area in Nevada was the site of a 12-kiloton-yield underground nuclear test in 1963. Although the surface of the site has been remediated, investigation of groundwater contamination resulting from the test is still in the corrective action process. Annual sampling and hydraulic head monitoring are conducted at the site as part of the subsurface corrective action strategy. The corrective action strategy is currently focused on revising the site conceptual model (SCM) and evaluating the adequacy of the monitoring well network. Some aspects of the SCM are known; however, two major concerns are the uncertainty in the groundwater flow direction and the cause of rising water levels in site wells west of the shear zone. Water levels have been rising in the site wells west of the shear zone since the first hydrologic characterization wells were installed in 1996. Although water levels in wells west of the shear zone continue to rise, the rate of increase is less than in previous years. The SCM will be revised, and an evaluation of the groundwater monitoring network will be conducted when water levels at the site have stabilized to the agreement of both the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Legacy Management and the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection.

How to generate and interpret fire characteristics charts for surface and crown fire behavior

Science.gov (United States)

Patricia L. Andrews; Faith Ann Heinsch; Luke Schelvan

2011-01-01

A fire characteristics chart is a graph that presents primary related fire behavior characteristics-rate of spread, flame length, fireline intensity, and heat per unit area. It helps communicate and interpret modeled or observed fire behavior. The Fire Characteristics Chart computer program plots either observed fire behavior or values that have been calculated by...

Change in ocean subsurface environment to suppress tropical cyclone intensification under global warming

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Ping; Lin, I. -I; Chou, Chia; Huang, Rong-Hui

2015-01-01

Tropical cyclones (TCs) are hazardous natural disasters. Because TC intensification is significantly controlled by atmosphere and ocean environments, changes in these environments may cause changes in TC intensity. Changes in surface and subsurface ocean conditions can both influence a TC's intensification. Regarding global warming, minimal exploration of the subsurface ocean has been undertaken. Here we investigate future subsurface ocean environment changes projected by 22 state-of-the-art climate models and suggest a suppressive effect of subsurface oceans on the intensification of future TCs. Under global warming, the subsurface vertical temperature profile can be sharpened in important TC regions, which may contribute to a stronger ocean coupling (cooling) effect during the intensification of future TCs. Regarding a TC, future subsurface ocean environments may be more suppressive than the existing subsurface ocean environments. This suppressive effect is not spatially uniform and may be weak in certain local areas. PMID:25982028

High resolution fire risk mapping in Italy

Science.gov (United States)

Fiorucci, Paolo; Biondi, Guido; Campo, Lorenzo; D'Andrea, Mirko

2014-05-01

The high topographic and vegetation heterogeneity makes Italy vulnerable to forest fires both in the summer and in winter. In particular, northern regions are predominantly characterized by a winter fire regime, mainly due to frequent extremely dry winds from the north, while southern and central regions and the large islands are characterized by a severe summer fire regime, because of the higher temperatures and prolonged lack of precipitation. The threat of wildfires in Italy is not confined to wooded areas as they extend to agricultural areas and urban-forest interface areas. The agricultural and rural areas, in the last century, have been gradually abandoned, especially in areas with complex topography. Many of these areas were subject to reforestation, leading to the spread of pioneer species mainly represented by Mediterranean conifer, which are highly vulnerable to fire. Because of the frequent spread of fire, these areas are limited to the early successional stages, consisting mainly of shrub vegetation; its survival in the competition with the climax species being ensured by the spread of fire itself. Due to the frequency of fire ignition — almost entirely man caused — the time between fires on the same area is at least an order of magnitude less than the time that would allow the establishment of forest climax species far less vulnerable to fire. In view of the limited availability of fire risk management resources, most of which are used in the management of national and regional air services, it is necessary to precisely identify the areas most vulnerable to fire risk. The few resources available can thus be used on a yearly basis to mitigate problems in the areas at highest risk by defining a program of forest management interventions, which is expected to make a significant contribution to the problem in a few years' time. The goal of such detailed planning is to dramatically reduce the costs associated with water bombers fleet management and fire

Modular evaluation method for subsurface activities (MEMSA). A novel approach for integrating social acceptance in a permit decision-making process for subsurface activities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Os, Herman W.A. van; Herber, Rien; Scholtens, Bert

2017-01-01

We investigate how the decision support system ‘Modular Evaluation Method Subsurface Activities’ (MEMSA) can help facilitate an informed decision-making process for permit applications of subsurface activities. To this end, we analyze the extent the MEMSA approach allows for a dialogue between stakeholders in a transparent manner. We use the exploration permit for the underground gas storage facility at the Pieterburen salt dome (Netherlands) as a case study. The results suggest that the MEMSA approach is flexible enough to adjust to changing conditions. Furthermore, MEMSA provides a novel way for identifying structural problems and possible solutions in permit decision-making processes for subsurface activities, on the basis of the sensitivity analysis of intermediate rankings. We suggest that the planned size of an activity should already be specified in the exploration phase, because this would allow for a more efficient use of the subsurface as a whole. We conclude that the host community should be involved to a greater extent and in an early phase of the permit decision-making process, for example, already during the initial analysis of the project area of a subsurface activity. We suggest that strategic national policy goals are to be re-evaluated on a regular basis, in the form of a strategic vision for the subsurface, to account for timing discrepancies between the realization of activities and policy deadlines, because this discrepancy can have a large impact on the necessity and therefore acceptance of a subsurface activity.

Modular evaluation method for subsurface activities (MEMSA). A novel approach for integrating social acceptance in a permit decision-making process for subsurface activities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Os, Herman W.A. van, E-mail: h.w.a.van.os@rug.nl [University of Groningen, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Geo-Energy, PO Box 800, 9700 AV Groningen (Netherlands); Herber, Rien, E-mail: rien.herber@rug.nl [University of Groningen, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Geo-Energy, PO Box 800, 9700 AV Groningen (Netherlands); Scholtens, Bert, E-mail: l.j.r.scholtens@rug.nl [University of Groningen, Faculty of Economics and Business, PO Box 800, 9700 AV Groningen (Netherlands)

2017-05-15

We investigate how the decision support system ‘Modular Evaluation Method Subsurface Activities’ (MEMSA) can help facilitate an informed decision-making process for permit applications of subsurface activities. To this end, we analyze the extent the MEMSA approach allows for a dialogue between stakeholders in a transparent manner. We use the exploration permit for the underground gas storage facility at the Pieterburen salt dome (Netherlands) as a case study. The results suggest that the MEMSA approach is flexible enough to adjust to changing conditions. Furthermore, MEMSA provides a novel way for identifying structural problems and possible solutions in permit decision-making processes for subsurface activities, on the basis of the sensitivity analysis of intermediate rankings. We suggest that the planned size of an activity should already be specified in the exploration phase, because this would allow for a more efficient use of the subsurface as a whole. We conclude that the host community should be involved to a greater extent and in an early phase of the permit decision-making process, for example, already during the initial analysis of the project area of a subsurface activity. We suggest that strategic national policy goals are to be re-evaluated on a regular basis, in the form of a strategic vision for the subsurface, to account for timing discrepancies between the realization of activities and policy deadlines, because this discrepancy can have a large impact on the necessity and therefore acceptance of a subsurface activity.

Post-fire regeneration in a Mediterranean pine forest with historically low fire frequency

Science.gov (United States)

Buhk, Constanze; Götzenberger, Lars; Wesche, Karsten; Gómez, Pedro Sánchez; Hensen, Isabell

2006-11-01

Species of Mediterranean vegetation are known to regenerate directly after fire. The phenomenon of autosuccession (direct regeneration) has been found to be often combined with an increase of species richness during the first years after fire due to the high abundance of short-lived herbaceous plants facilitated by plentiful nutrients and light. The high degree of vegetation resilience, which is expressed in terms of autosuccession, has been explained by the selective pressure of fire in historic times. According to existing palaeoecological data, however, the Pinus halepensis forests in the Ricote Mountains (Province of Murcia, SE Spain) did not experience substantial fire impact before the presence of man nor are they especially fire-prone today. Therefore, we studied post-fire regeneration to find out if direct succession is present or if species from pre-fire vegetation are absent during the post-fire regeneration stages. Patterns of succession were deduced from observations made in sample plots on sites of a known regeneration age as well as in adjacent unburnt areas. The results of the vegetation analyses, including a Detrended Correspondence Analysis, indicate that Pinus halepensis forest regeneration after fire resembles autosuccession. As regards the presence of woody species, there is a high percentage similarity on north (83%) and south (70%) facing slopes during the first year after fire vs. reference areas which is due, for example, to direct regeneration of the resprouting Quercus coccifera or seeders like Pinus halepensis or Fumana laevipes. However, if herbaceous species are included in the comparison, the similarity on north-facing sites decreases (to 53%) with the presence of additional species, mainly ruderals like Anagallis arvensis or Reseda phyteuma, and even woody species on the burnt plots. This effect indicates "enhanced autosuccession", which was not found on south-facing sites where overall species richness was very high irrespective of

Fire, carbon, and climate change

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Amiro, B.; Flannigan, M.

2005-01-01

One million hectares of forest are harvested in Canada annually, with 1 to 8 million hectares destroyed by fire and a further 10 to 25 million hectares consumed by insects. Enhanced disturbances have meant that Canadian forests are becoming carbon sources instead of carbon sinks. Canadian fire statistics from the year 1920 were provided along with a map of large fires between 1980 and 1999. A cycle of combustion losses, decomposition and regeneration of forests was presented, along with a stylized concept of forest carbon life cycles with fire. Direct emissions from forests fires were evaluated. An annual net ecosystem production in Canadian boreal forests and stand age was presented. Projections of areas burned were presented based on weather and fire danger relationships, with statistics suggesting that a 75 to 120 per cent increase is likely to occur by the end of this century. Trend observations show that areas burned are correlated with increasing temperature caused by anthropogenic effects. Prevention, detection, suppression and fuels management were presented as areas that needed improvement in fire management. However, management strategies may only postpone an increase in forest fires. Changes in disturbances such as fire and insects will be a significant early impact of climate change on forests. tabs., figs

A simulation study of moisture movement in proposed barriers for the subsurface disposal area, INEL

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Magnuson, S.O.

1993-09-01

This document presents a simulation study that was conducted to investigate moisture movement within two engineered barriers, which are proposed for use in eventual closure of the Subsurface Disposal Area. The results of the study are intended to guide the design and implementation of field test plots that will be constructed to test the barrier designs. Discussed are the sensitivity of barrier performance to changes in the conceptual model, which was used to simulate the barriers, and to changes in hydrologic parameters, which were used to describe the materials composing the barriers. In addition, estimates are presented concerning the time required for the moisture profile within the barriers to come into equilibrium with the meteorological conditions at the surface. In addition, the performance of the barriers under conditions of supplemental precipitation and ponding is presented

Mapping the Daily Progression of Large Wildland Fires Using MODIS Active Fire Data

Science.gov (United States)

Veraverbeke, Sander; Sedano, Fernando; Hook, Simon J.; Randerson, James T.; Jin, Yufang; Rogers, Brendan

2013-01-01

High temporal resolution information on burned area is a prerequisite for incorporating bottom-up estimates of wildland fire emissions in regional air transport models and for improving models of fire behavior. We used the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) active fire product (MO(Y)D14) as input to a kriging interpolation to derive continuous maps of the evolution of nine large wildland fires. For each fire, local input parameters for the kriging model were defined using variogram analysis. The accuracy of the kriging model was assessed using high resolution daily fire perimeter data available from the U.S. Forest Service. We also assessed the temporal reporting accuracy of the MODIS burned area products (MCD45A1 and MCD64A1). Averaged over the nine fires, the kriging method correctly mapped 73% of the pixels within the accuracy of a single day, compared to 33% for MCD45A1 and 53% for MCD64A1.

Enhancing technology acceptance: The role of the subsurface contaminants focus area external integration team

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kirwan-Taylor, H.; McCabe, G.H.; Lesperance, A.; Kauffman, J.; Serie, P.; Dressen, L.

1996-09-01

The US DOE is developing and deploying innovative technologies for cleaning up its contaminated facilities using a market-oriented approach. This report describes the activities of the Subsurface Contaminant Focus Area's (SCFA) External Integration Team (EIT) in supporting DOE's technology development program. The SCFA program for technology development is market-oriented, driven by the needs of end users. The purpose of EIT is to understand the technology needs of the DOE sites and identify technology acceptance criteria from users and other stakeholders to enhance deployment of innovative technologies. Stakeholders include regulators, technology users, Native Americans, and environmental and other interest groups. The success of this national program requires close coordination and communication among technology developers and stakeholders to work through all of the various phases of planning and implementation. Staff involved must be willing to commit significant amounts of time to extended discussions with the various stakeholders

Fire management in central America

Science.gov (United States)

Andrea L. Koonce; Armando González-Cabán

1992-01-01

Information on fire management operations in Central America is scant. To evaluate the known level of fire occurrence in seven countries in that area, fire management officers were asked to provide information on their fire control organizations and on any available fire statistics. The seven countries surveyed were Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua,...

Analysis of postfire hydrology, water quality, and sediment transport for selected streams in areas of the 2002 Hayman and Hinman fires, Colorado

Science.gov (United States)

Stevens, Michael R.

2013-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) began a 5-year study in 2003 that focused on postfire stream-water quality and postfire sediment load in streams within the Hayman and Hinman fire study areas. This report compares water quality of selected streams receiving runoff from unburned areas and burned areas using concentrations and loads, and trend analysis, from seasonal data (approximately April–November) collected 2003–2007 at the Hayman fire study area, and data collected from 1999–2000 (prefire) and 2003 (postfire) at the Hinman fire study area. The water-quality data collected during this study include onsite measurements of streamflow, specific conductance, and turbidity, laboratory-determined pH, and concentrations of major ions, nutrients, organic carbon, trace elements, and suspended sediment. Postfire floods and effects on water quality of streams, lakes and reservoirs, drinking-water treatment, and the comparison of measured concentrations to applicable water quality standards also are discussed. Exceedances of Colorado water-quality standards in streams of both the Hayman and Hinman fire study areas only occurred for concentrations of five trace elements (not all trace-element exceedances occurred in every stream). Selected samples analyzed for total recoverable arsenic (fixed), dissolved copper (acute and chronic), total recoverable iron (chronic), dissolved manganese (acute, chronic, and fixed) and total recoverable mercury (chronic) exceeded Colorado aquatic-life standards.

Wilderness fire management planning guide

Science.gov (United States)

William C. Fischer

1984-01-01

Outlines a procedure for fire management planning for parks; wilderness areas; and other wild, natural, or essentially undeveloped areas. Discusses background and philosophy of wilderness fire management, planning concepts, planning elements, and planning methods.

The thermal impact of subsurface building structures on urban groundwater resources - A paradigmatic example.

Science.gov (United States)

Epting, Jannis; Scheidler, Stefan; Affolter, Annette; Borer, Paul; Mueller, Matthias H; Egli, Lukas; García-Gil, Alejandro; Huggenberger, Peter

2017-10-15

Shallow subsurface thermal regimes in urban areas are increasingly impacted by anthropogenic activities, which include infrastructure development like underground traffic lines as well as industrial and residential subsurface buildings. In combination with the progressive use of shallow geothermal energy systems, this results in the so-called subsurface urban heat island effect. This article emphasizes the importance of considering the thermal impact of subsurface structures, which commonly is underestimated due to missing information and of reliable subsurface temperature data. Based on synthetic heat-transport models different settings of the urban environment were investigated, including: (1) hydraulic gradients and conductivities, which result in different groundwater flow velocities; (2) aquifer properties like groundwater thickness to aquitard and depth to water table; and (3) constructional features, such as building depths and thermal properties of building structures. Our results demonstrate that with rising groundwater flow velocities, the heat-load from building structures increase, whereas down-gradient groundwater temperatures decrease. Thermal impacts on subsurface resources therefore have to be related to the permeability of aquifers and hydraulic boundary conditions. In regard to the urban settings of Basel, Switzerland, flow velocities of around 1 md -1 delineate a marker where either down-gradient temperature deviations or heat-loads into the subsurface are more relevant. Furthermore, no direct thermal influence on groundwater resources should be expected for aquifers with groundwater thicknesses larger 10m and when the distance of the building structure to the groundwater table is higher than around 10m. We demonstrate that measuring temperature changes down-gradient of subsurface structures is insufficient overall to assess thermal impacts, particularly in urban areas. Moreover, in areas which are densely urbanized, and where groundwater flow

Physico-chemical and Mineralogical Characterisation of Subsurface ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Studies were carried out on subsurface sediments obtained around the Gaborone landfill area Botswana, in order to characterize their mineralogy and physico-chemistry, appraise any contaminant inputs from the landfill and assess their ability to attenuate contaminants from the landfill. Physico-chemical properties ...

Frozen Soil Barrier. Subsurface Contaminants Focus Area. OST Reference No. 51

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1999-01-01

Problem: Hazardous and radioactive materials have historically been disposed of at the surface during operations at Department of Energy facilities. These contaminants have entered the subsurface, contaminating soils and groundwater resources. Remediation of these groundwater plumes using the baseline technology of pump and treat is expensive and takes a long time to complete. Containment of these groundwater plumes can be alternative or an addition to the remediation activities. Standard containment technologies include slurry walls, sheet piling, and grouting. These are permanent structures that once installed are difficult to remove. How It Works: Frozen Soil Barrier technology provides a containment alternative, with the key difference being that the barrier can be easily removed after a period of time, such as after the remediation or removal of the source is completed. Frozen Soil Barrier technology can be used to isolate and control the migration of underground radioactive or other hazardous contaminants subject to transport by groundwater flow. Frozen Soil Barrier technology consists of a series of subsurface heat transfer devices, known as thermoprobes, which are installed around a contaminant source and function to freeze the soil pore water. The barrier can easily be maintained in place until remediation or removal of the contaminants is complete, at which time the barrier is allowed to thaw.

Subsurface Contamination Control

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Y. Yuan

2001-12-12

There are two objectives of this report, ''Subsurface Contamination Control''. The first is to provide a technical basis for recommending limiting radioactive contamination levels (LRCL) on the external surfaces of waste packages (WP) for acceptance into the subsurface repository. The second is to provide an evaluation of the magnitude of potential releases from a defective WP and the detectability of the released contents. The technical basis for deriving LRCL has been established in ''Retrieval Equipment and Strategy for Wp on Pallet'' (CRWMS M and O 2000g, 6.3.1). This report updates the derivation by incorporating the latest design information of the subsurface repository for site recommendation. The derived LRCL on the external surface of WPs, therefore, supercede that described in CRWMS M and O 2000g. The derived LRCL represent the average concentrations of contamination on the external surfaces of each WP that must not be exceeded before the WP is to be transported to the subsurface facility for emplacement. The evaluation of potential releases is necessary to control the potential contamination of the subsurface repository and to detect prematurely failed WPs. The detection of failed WPs is required in order to provide reasonable assurance that the integrity of each WP is intact prior to MGR closure. An emplaced WP may become breached due to manufacturing defects or improper weld combined with failure to detect the defect, by corrosion, or by mechanical penetration due to accidents or rockfall conditions. The breached WP may release its gaseous and volatile radionuclide content to the subsurface environment and result in contaminating the subsurface facility. The scope of this analysis is limited to radioactive contaminants resulting from breached WPs during the preclosure period of the subsurface repository. This report: (1) documents a method for deriving LRCL on the external surfaces of WP for acceptance into the

Deforestation fires versus understory fires in the Amazon Basin: What can we learn from satellite-based CO measurements?

Science.gov (United States)

Martinez-Alonso, S.; Deeter, M. N.; Worden, H. M.; Gille, J. C.; Clerbaux, C.; George, M.

2014-12-01

Deforestation fires in the Amazon Basin abound during the dry season (July to October) and are mostly associated with "slash and burn" agricultural practices. Understory fires occur when fires escape from deforested areas into neighboring standing forests; they spread slowly below the canopy, affecting areas that may be comparable or even larger than clear-cut areas. The interannual variabilities of understory fires and deforestation rates appear to be uncorrelated. Areas burned in understory fires are particularly extensive during droughts. Because they progress below a canopy of living trees, understory fires and their effects are not as easily identifiable from space as deforestation fires. Here we analyze satellite remote sensing products for CO and fire to investigate differences between deforestation fires and understory fires in the Amazon Basin under varying climatic conditions. The MOPITT (Measurements Of Pollution In The Troposphere) instrument on board NASA's Terra satellite has been measuring tropospheric CO since 2000, providing the longest global CO record to date. IASI (the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer) A and B are two instruments on board METOP-A and -B, respectively, measuring, among others, CO since 2006 and 2012. MODIS (the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) instruments on board NASA's Terra and Aqua satellites provide, among other products, a daily record of fires and their effects since 2000 and 2002, respectively. The temporal extent of all these datasets allows for the detailed analysis of drought versus non-drought years. Initial results indicate that MOPITT CO emissions during the dry season peaked in 2005, 2007, and 2010. Those were draught years and coincide with peaks in area affected by understory fires.

Aerosol generation from Kerosene fires

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jordan, S.; Lindner, W.

1981-01-01

The course of solvent surface fires is dependent on the surface area on fire; depth of pool and solvent composition do not influence the fire rate. But the fire rate increases rapidly with the burning area. The residual oxygen concentration after a fire in a closed container is dependent on the violence of the fire, i.e. on the burning surface. Moreover the ending of the fire is influenced by the TBP-concentration of the solvent. With sufficient supply of solvent the TBP-concentration changes only slightly during the fire, so that a fire at 14% O 2 -concentration is extinguished within the container. With the TBP-concentration changing considerably, i.e. little mass, a fire with a similar burning surface is already extinguished at an O 2 -content of 18%. The aerosol generation depends on the fire rate, and so it is higher in free atmosphere than in closed containers. The soot production in the mixture fire (kerosene /TBP 70/30) is higher by a factor 7 than in the pure kerosene fire. Primary soot-particles have a diameter of approximately 0,05 μm and agglomerate rapidly into aggregates of 0,2-0,4 μm. (orig.) [de

Suppression of the Thermal Decomposition Reaction of Forest Combustible Materials in Large-Area Fires

Science.gov (United States)

Volkov, R. S.; Zhdanova, A. O.; Kuznetsov, G. V.; Strizhak, P. A.

2018-05-01

Experimental investigations on the characteristic time of suppression of the thermal decomposition reaction of typical forest combustible materials (aspen twigs, birch leaves, spruce needles, pine chips, and a mixture of these materials) and the volume of water required for this purpose have been performed for model fire hotbeds of different areas: SFCM = 0.0003-0.007 m2 and SFCM = 0.045-0.245 m2. In the experiments, aerosol water flows with droplets of size 0.01-0.25 mm were used for the spraying of model fire hotbeds, and the density of spraying was 0.02 L/(m2·s). It was established that the characteristics of suppression of a fire by an aerosol water flow are mainly determined by the sizes of the droplets in this flow. Prognostic estimates of changes in the dispersivity of a droplet cloud, formed from large (as large as 0.5 L) "drops" (water agglomerates) thrown down from a height, have been made. It is shown that these changes can influence the conditions and characteristics of suppression of a forest fire. Dependences, allowing one to forecast the characteristics of suppression of the thermal decomposition of forest combustible materials with the use of large water agglomerates thrown down from an aircraft and aerosol clouds formed from these agglomerates in the process of their movement to the earth, are presented.

Suppression of the Thermal Decomposition Reaction of Forest Combustible Materials in Large-Area Fires

Science.gov (United States)

Volkov, R. S.; Zhdanova, A. O.; Kuznetsov, G. V.; Strizhak, P. A.

2018-03-01

Experimental investigations on the characteristic time of suppression of the thermal decomposition reaction of typical forest combustible materials (aspen twigs, birch leaves, spruce needles, pine chips, and a mixture of these materials) and the volume of water required for this purpose have been performed for model fire hotbeds of different areas: SFCM = 0.0003-0.007 m2 and SFCM = 0.045-0.245 m2. In the experiments, aerosol water flows with droplets of size 0.01-0.25 mm were used for the spraying of model fire hotbeds, and the density of spraying was 0.02 L/(m2·s). It was established that the characteristics of suppression of a fire by an aerosol water flow are mainly determined by the sizes of the droplets in this flow. Prognostic estimates of changes in the dispersivity of a droplet cloud, formed from large (as large as 0.5 L) "drops" (water agglomerates) thrown down from a height, have been made. It is shown that these changes can influence the conditions and characteristics of suppression of a forest fire. Dependences, allowing one to forecast the characteristics of suppression of the thermal decomposition of forest combustible materials with the use of large water agglomerates thrown down from an aircraft and aerosol clouds formed from these agglomerates in the process of their movement to the earth, are presented.

Taxonomic and functional responses to fire and post-fire management of a Mediterranean hymenoptera community.

Science.gov (United States)

Mateos, Eduardo; Santos, Xavier; Pujade-Villar, Juli

2011-11-01

Fire is one of the commonest disturbances worldwide, transforming habitat structure and affecting ecosystem functioning. Understanding how species respond to such environmental disturbances is a major conservation goal that should be monitored using functionally and taxonomically diverse groups such as Hymenoptera. In this respect, we have analyzed the taxonomic and functional response to fire and post-fire management of a Hymenoptera community from a Mediterranean protected area. Thus, Hymenoptera were sampled at fifteen sites located in three burnt areas submitted to different post-fire practices, as well as at five sites located in peripheral unburnt pine forest. A total of 4882 specimens belonging to 33 families, which were classified into six feeding groups according to their dietary preferences, were collected. ANOVA and Redundancy Analyses showed a taxonomic and functional response to fire as all burnt areas had more Hymenoptera families, different community composition and higher numbers of parasitoids than the unburnt area. Taxonomic differences were also found between burnt areas in terms of the response of Hymenoptera to post-fire management. In general the number of parasitoids was positively correlated to the number of potential host arthropods. Parasitoids are recognized to be sensitive to habitat changes, thus highlighting their value for monitoring the functional responses of organisms to habitat disturbance. The taxonomic and functional responses of Hymenoptera suggest that some pine-forest fires can enhance habitat heterogeneity and arthropod diversity, hence increasing interspecific interactions such as those established by parasitoids and their hosts.

Taxonomic and Functional Responses to Fire and Post-Fire Management of a Mediterranean Hymenoptera Community

Science.gov (United States)

Mateos, Eduardo; Santos, Xavier; Pujade-Villar, Juli

2011-11-01

Fire is one of the commonest disturbances worldwide, transforming habitat structure and affecting ecosystem functioning. Understanding how species respond to such environmental disturbances is a major conservation goal that should be monitored using functionally and taxonomically diverse groups such as Hymenoptera. In this respect, we have analyzed the taxonomic and functional response to fire and post-fire management of a Hymenoptera community from a Mediterranean protected area. Thus, Hymenoptera were sampled at fifteen sites located in three burnt areas submitted to different post-fire practices, as well as at five sites located in peripheral unburnt pine forest. A total of 4882 specimens belonging to 33 families, which were classified into six feeding groups according to their dietary preferences, were collected. ANOVA and Redundancy Analyses showed a taxonomic and functional response to fire as all burnt areas had more Hymenoptera families, different community composition and higher numbers of parasitoids than the unburnt area. Taxonomic differences were also found between burnt areas in terms of the response of Hymenoptera to post-fire management. In general the number of parasitoids was positively correlated to the number of potential host arthropods. Parasitoids are recognized to be sensitive to habitat changes, thus highlighting their value for monitoring the functional responses of organisms to habitat disturbance. The taxonomic and functional responses of Hymenoptera suggest that some pine-forest fires can enhance habitat heterogeneity and arthropod diversity, hence increasing interspecific interactions such as those established by parasitoids and their hosts.

Object-based Forest Fire Analysis for Pedrógão Grande Fire Using Landsat 8 OLI and Sentinel-2A Imagery

Science.gov (United States)

Tonbul, H.; Kavzoglu, T.

2017-12-01

Forest fires are among the most important natural disasters with the damage to the natural habitat and human-life. Mapping damaged forest fires is crucial for assessing ecological effects caused by fire, monitoring land cover changes and modeling atmospheric and climatic effects of fire. In this context, satellite data provides a great advantage to users by providing a rapid process of detecting burning areas and determining the severity of fire damage. Especially, Mediterranean ecosystems countries sets the suitable conditions for the forest fires. In this study, the determination of burnt areas of forest fire in Pedrógão Grande region of Portugal occurred in June 2017 was carried out using Landsat 8 OLI and Sentinel-2A satellite images. The Pedrógão Grande fire was one of the largest fires in Portugal, more than 60 people was killed and thousands of hectares were ravaged. In this study, four pairs of pre-fire and post-fire top of atmosphere (TOA) and atmospherically corrected images were utilized. The red and near infrared (NIR) spectral bands of pre-fire and post-fire images were stacked and multiresolution segmentation algorithm was applied. In the segmentation processes, the image objects were generated with estimated optimum homogeneity criteria. Using eCognition software, rule sets have been created to distinguish unburned areas from burned areas. In constructing the rule sets, NDVI threshold values were determined pre- and post-fire and areas where vegetation loss was detected using the NDVI difference image. The results showed that both satellite images yielded successful results for burned area discrimination with a very high degree of consistency in terms of spatial overlap and total burned area (over 93%). Object based image analysis (OBIA) was found highly effective in delineation of burnt areas.

2012 Groundwater Monitoring Report Central Nevada Test Area, Subsurface Corrective Action Unit 443

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None

2013-04-01

The Central Nevada Test Area was the site of a 0.2- to 1-megaton underground nuclear test in 1968. The surface of the site has been closed, but the subsurface is still in the corrective action process. The corrective action alternative selected for the site was monitoring with institutional controls. Annual sampling and hydraulic head monitoring are conducted as part of the subsurface corrective action strategy. The site is currently in the fourth year of the 5-year proof-of-concept period that is intended to validate the compliance boundary. Analytical results from the 2012 monitoring are consistent with those of previous years. Tritium remains at levels below the laboratory minimum detectable concentration in all wells in the monitoring network. Samples collected from reentry well UC-1-P-2SR, which is not in the monitoring network but was sampled as part of supplemental activities conducted during the 2012 monitoring, indicate concentrations of tritium that are consistent with previous sampling results. This well was drilled into the chimney shortly after the detonation, and water levels continue to rise, demonstrating the very low permeability of the volcanic rocks. Water level data from new wells MV-4 and MV-5 and recompleted well HTH-1RC indicate that hydraulic heads are still recovering from installation and testing. Data from wells MV-4 and MV-5 also indicate that head levels have not yet recovered from the 2011 sampling event during which several thousand gallons of water were purged. It has been recommended that a low-flow sampling method be adopted for these wells to allow head levels to recover to steady-state conditions. Despite the lack of steady-state groundwater conditions, hydraulic head data collected from alluvial wells installed in 2009 continue to support the conceptual model that the southeast-bounding graben fault acts as a barrier to groundwater flow at the site.

Technical issues associated with in situ vitrification of the INEL Subsurface Disposal Area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stoots, C.M.; Bates, S.O.; Callow, R.A.; Campbell, K.A.; Farnsworth, R.K.; Gratson, G.K.; McKellar, M.G.; Nickelson, D.F.; Slater, C.E.

1992-01-01

In situ vitrification (ISV) has been identified as an alternative technology for remediation of the Acid Pit and Transuranic Pits and Trenches (TRU-PTs) that are present at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) Subsurface Disposal Area (SDA). However, a number of technical issues exist that must be resolved before ISV can be considered applicable to these waste sites. To assist in the ISV technology evaluation, an ISV Steering Committee was formed to identify, prioritize, and develop closure roadmaps for technical issues associated with ISV application at the INEL SDA. The activities of the ISV Steering Committee are summarized in three volumes of this report. Volume 1 identifies the systematic approach used to identify and prioritize the ISV technical issues, and briefly discusses the methodology that will be employed to resolve these issues. This document Volume 2 and Volume 3 discusses each technical issue in greater detail and suggest specific closure roadmaps to be used in resolving technical issues associated with ISV at the SDA Acid Pit and TRU-PTs, respectively

Closure Report Central Nevada Test Area Subsurface Corrective Action Unit 443 January 2016

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Findlay, Rick [US Department of Energy, Washington, DC (United States). Office of Legacy Management

2015-11-01

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Legacy Management (LM) prepared this Closure Report for the subsurface Corrective Action Unit (CAU) 443 at the Central Nevada Test Area (CNTA), Nevada, Site. CNTA was the site of a 0.2- to 1-megaton underground nuclear test in 1968. Responsibility for the site’s environmental restoration was transferred from the DOE, National Nuclear Security Administration, Nevada Field Office to LM on October 1, 2006. The environmental restoration process and corrective action strategy for CAU 443 are conducted in accordance with the Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order (FFACO 1996, as amended 2011) and all applicable Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP) policies and regulations. This Closure Report provides justification for closure of CAU 443 and provides a summary of completed closure activities; describes the selected corrective action alternative; provides an implementation plan for long-term monitoring with well network maintenance and approaches/policies for institutional controls (ICs); and presents the contaminant, compliance, and use-restriction boundaries for the site.

Emergency post-fire rehabilitation treatment effects on burned area ecology and long-term restoration

Science.gov (United States)

Peter R. Robichaud; Sarah A. Lewis; Robert E. Brown; Louise E. Ashmun

2009-01-01

The predicted continuation of strong drying and warming trends in the southwestern United States underlies the associated prediction of increased frequency, area, and severity of wildfires in the coming years. As a result, the management of wildfires and fire effects on public lands will continue to be a major land management priority for the foreseeable future....

Spatial and temporal corroboration of a fire-scar-based fire history in a frequently burned ponderosa pine forest.

Science.gov (United States)

Farris, Calvin A; Baisan, Christopher H; Falk, Donald A; Yool, Stephen R; Swetnam, Thomas W

2010-09-01

Fire scars are used widely to reconstruct historical fire regime parameters in forests around the world. Because fire scars provide incomplete records of past fire occurrence at discrete points in space, inferences must be made to reconstruct fire frequency and extent across landscapes using spatial networks of fire-scar samples. Assessing the relative accuracy of fire-scar fire history reconstructions has been hampered due to a lack of empirical comparisons with independent fire history data sources. We carried out such a comparison in a 2780-ha ponderosa pine forest on Mica Mountain in southern Arizona (USA) for the time period 1937-2000. Using documentary records of fire perimeter maps and ignition locations, we compared reconstructions of key spatial and temporal fire regime parameters developed from documentary fire maps and independently collected fire-scar data (n = 60 plots). We found that fire-scar data provided spatially representative and complete inventories of all major fire years (> 100 ha) in the study area but failed to detect most small fires. There was a strong linear relationship between the percentage of samples recording fire scars in a given year (i.e., fire-scar synchrony) and total area burned for that year (y = 0.0003x + 0.0087, r2 = 0.96). There was also strong spatial coherence between cumulative fire frequency maps interpolated from fire-scar data and ground-mapped fire perimeters. Widely reported fire frequency summary statistics varied little between fire history data sets: fire-scar natural fire rotations (NFR) differed by or = 25% of study area burned) were identical between data sets (25.5 yr); fire-scar MFIs for all fire years differed by 1.2 yr from documentary records. The known seasonal timing of past fires based on documentary records was furthermore reconstructed accurately by observing intra-annual ring position of fire scars and using knowledge of tree-ring growth phenology in the Southwest. Our results demonstrate clearly

Fire and EMS Districts, These layers show the geographic area of each Fire and EMS responder contained in the County of Polk, Wisconsin., Published in 2006, 1:2400 (1in=200ft) scale, Polk County Government.

Data.gov (United States)

NSGIC Local Govt | GIS Inventory — Fire and EMS Districts dataset current as of 2006. These layers show the geographic area of each Fire and EMS responder contained in the County of Polk, Wisconsin..

Avian response to fire in pine–oak forests of Great Smoky Mountains National Park following decades of fire suppression

Science.gov (United States)

Rose, Eli T.; Simons, Theodore R.

2016-01-01

Fire suppression in southern Appalachian pine–oak forests during the past century dramatically altered the bird community. Fire return intervals decreased, resulting in local extirpation or population declines of many bird species adapted to post-fire plant communities. Within Great Smoky Mountains National Park, declines have been strongest for birds inhabiting xeric pine–oak forests that depend on frequent fire. The buildup of fuels after decades of fire suppression led to changes in the 1996 Great Smoky Mountains Fire Management Plan. Although fire return intervals remain well below historic levels, management changes have helped increase the amount of fire within the park over the past 20 years, providing an opportunity to study patterns of fire severity, time since burn, and bird occurrence. We combined avian point counts in burned and unburned areas with remote sensing indices of fire severity to infer temporal changes in bird occurrence for up to 28 years following fire. Using hierarchical linear models that account for the possibility of a species presence at a site when no individuals are detected, we developed occurrence models for 24 species: 13 occurred more frequently in burned areas, 2 occurred less frequently, and 9 showed no significant difference between burned and unburned areas. Within burned areas, the top models for each species included fire severity, time since burn, or both, suggesting that fire influenced patterns of species occurrence for all 24 species. Our findings suggest that no single fire management strategy will suit all species. To capture peak occupancy for the entire bird community within xeric pine–oak forests, at least 3 fire regimes may be necessary; one applying frequent low severity fire, another using infrequent low severity fire, and a third using infrequently applied high severity fire.

Technical Targets - A Tool to Support Strategic Planning in the Subsurface Contaminants Focus Area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Looney, B.B.

2002-01-01

The Subsurface Contaminants Focus Area (SCFA) is supported by a lead laboratory consisting of technical representatives from DOE laboratories across the country. This broadly representative scientific group has developed and implemented a process to define Technical Targets to assist the SCFA in strategic planning and in managing their environmental research and development portfolio. At an initial meeting in Golden Colorado, an initial set of Technical Targets was identified using a rapid consensus based technical triage process. Thirteen Technical Targets were identified and described. Vital scientific and technical objectives were generated for each target. The targets generally fall into one of the following five strategic investment categories: Enhancing Environmental Stewardship, Eliminating Contaminant Sources, Isolating Contaminants, Controlling Contaminant Plumes, Enabling DOEs CleanUp Efforts. The resulting targets and the detail they comprise on what is, and what is not, needed to meet Environmental Management needs provide a comprehensive technically-based framework to assist in prioritizing future work and in managing the SCFA program

Fire Propagation Tracing Model in the Explicit Treatment of Events of Fire PSA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lim, Ho Gon; Han, Sang Hoon; Yang, Jun Eon

2010-01-01

The fire propagation model in a fire PSA has not been considered analytically instead a simplified analyst's intuition was used to consider the fire propagation path. A fire propagation equation is developed to trace all the propagation paths in the fire area in which a zone is defined to identify various fire ignition sources. An initiation of fire is assumed to take place in a zone. Then, the propagation is modeled with a Boolean equation. Since the explicit fire PSA modeling requires an exclusive event set to sum up the..., exclusive event sets are derived from the fire propagation equation. As an example, we show the exclusive set for a 2x3 rectangular fire zone. Also, the applicability the developed fire equation is discussed when the number of zone increases including the limitation of the explicit fire PSA modeling method

Fire tolerance of a resprouting Artemisia (Asteraceae) shrub

Science.gov (United States)

Winter, S.L.; Fuhlendorf, S.D.; Goad, C.L.; Davis, C.A.; Hickman, K.R.; Leslie, David M.

2011-01-01

In North America, most Artemisia (Asteraceae) shrub species lack the ability to resprout after disturbances that remove aboveground biomass. We studied the response of one of the few resprouting Artemisia shrubs, Artemisia filifolia (sand sagebrush), to the effects of prescribed fires. We collected data on A. filifolia density and structural characteristics (height, canopy area, and canopy volume) in an A. filifolia shrubland in the southern Great Plains of North America. Our study sites included areas that had not been treated with prescribed fire, areas that had been treated with only one prescribed fire within the previous 5 years, and areas that had been treated with two prescribed fires within the previous 10 years. Our data were collected at time periods ranging from 1/2 to 5 years after the prescribed fires. Density of A. filifolia was not affected by one or two fires. Structural characteristics, although initially altered by prescribed fire, recovered to levels characteristic of unburned areas in 3-4 years after those fires. In contrast to most non-sprouting North American Artemisia shrub species, our research suggested that the resprouting A. filifolia is highly tolerant to the effects of fire. ?? 2011 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

Restoring surface fire stabilizes forest carbon under extreme fire weather in the Sierra Nevada

Science.gov (United States)

Daniel J. Krofcheck; Matthew D. Hurteau; Robert M. Scheller; E. Louise Loudermilk

2017-01-01

Climate change in the western United States has increased the frequency of extreme fire weather events and is projected to increase the area burned by wildfire in the coming decades. This changing fire regime, coupled with increased high-severity fire risk from a legacy of fire exclusion, could destabilize forest carbon (C), decrease net ecosystem exchange (...

Fire mosaics and reptile conservation in a fire-prone region.

Science.gov (United States)

Nimmo, D G; Kelly, L T; Spence-Bailey, L M; Watson, S J; Taylor, R S; Clarke, M F; Bennett, A F

2013-04-01

Fire influences the distribution of fauna in terrestrial biomes throughout the world. Use of fire to achieve a mosaic of vegetation in different stages of succession after burning (i.e., patch-mosaic burning) is a dominant conservation practice in many regions. Despite this, knowledge of how the spatial attributes of vegetation mosaics created by fire affect fauna is extremely scarce, and it is unclear what kind of mosaic land managers should aim to achieve. We selected 28 landscapes (each 12.6 km(2) ) that varied in the spatial extent and diversity of vegetation succession after fire in a 104,000 km(2) area in the semiarid region of southeastern Australia. We surveyed for reptiles at 280 sites nested within the 28 landscapes. The landscape-level occurrence of 9 of the 22 species modeled was associated with the spatial extent of vegetation age classes created by fire. Biogeographic context and the extent of a vegetation type influenced 7 and 4 species, respectively. No species were associated with the diversity of vegetation ages within a landscape. Negative relations between reptile occurrence and both extent of recently burned vegetation (≤10 years postfire, n = 6) and long unburned vegetation (>35 years postfire, n = 4) suggested that a coarse-grained mosaic of areas (e.g. >1000 ha) of midsuccessional vegetation (11-35 years postfire) may support the fire-sensitive reptile species we modeled. This age class coincides with a peak in spinifex cover, a keystone structure for reptiles in semiarid and arid Australia. Maintaining over the long term a coarse-grained mosaic of large areas of midsuccessional vegetation in mallee ecosystems will need to be balanced against the short-term negative effects of large fires on many reptile species and a documented preference by species from other taxonomic groups, particularly birds, for older vegetation. © 2012 Society for Conservation Biology.

Simulation and validation of concentrated subsurface lateral flow paths in an agricultural landscape

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Q.; Lin, H. S.

2009-08-01

The importance of soil water flow paths to the transport of nutrients and contaminants has long been recognized. However, effective means of detecting concentrated subsurface flow paths in a large landscape are still lacking. The flow direction and accumulation algorithm based on single-direction flow algorithm (D8) in GIS hydrologic modeling is a cost-effective way to simulate potential concentrated flow paths over a large area once relevant data are collected. This study tested the D8 algorithm for simulating concentrated lateral flow paths at three interfaces in soil profiles in a 19.5-ha agricultural landscape in central Pennsylvania, USA. These interfaces were (1) the interface between surface plowed layers of Ap1 and Ap2 horizons, (2) the interface with subsoil water-restricting clay layer where clay content increased to over 40%, and (3) the soil-bedrock interface. The simulated flow paths were validated through soil hydrologic monitoring, geophysical surveys, and observable soil morphological features. The results confirmed that concentrated subsurface lateral flow occurred at the interfaces with the clay layer and the underlying bedrock. At these two interfaces, the soils on the simulated flow paths were closer to saturation and showed more temporally unstable moisture dynamics than those off the simulated flow paths. Apparent electrical conductivity in the soil on the simulated flow paths was elevated and temporally unstable as compared to those outside the simulated paths. The soil cores collected from the simulated flow paths showed significantly higher Mn content at these interfaces than those away from the simulated paths. These results suggest that (1) the D8 algorithm is useful in simulating possible concentrated subsurface lateral flow paths if used with appropriate threshold value of contributing area and sufficiently detailed digital elevation model (DEM); (2) repeated electromagnetic surveys can reflect the temporal change of soil water storage

Project 93L-EWL-097, fire alarm system improvements, 300 Area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Scott, M.V.

1995-01-01

This document contains the Acceptance Test Procedure (ATP) which will demonstrate that the modifications to the Fire Protection systems in the 338 Building function as intended. The ATP will test the fire alarm control panel, flow alarm pressure switch, post indicator valve tamper switch, heat detectors, flow switches, and fire alarm signaling devices

Multivariate analysis of subsurface radiometric data in Rongsohkham area, East Khasi Hills district, Meghalaya (India): implication on uranium exploration.

Science.gov (United States)

Kukreti, B M; Pandey, Pradeep; Singh, R V

2012-08-01

Non-coring based exploratory drilling was under taken in the sedimentary environment of Rangsohkham block, East Khasi Hills district to examine the eastern extension of existing uranium resources located at Domiasiat and Wakhyn in the Mahadek basin of Meghalaya (India). Although radiometric survey and radiometric analysis of surface grab/channel samples in the block indicate high uranium content but the gamma ray logging results of exploratory boreholes in the block, did not obtain the expected results. To understand this abrupt discontinuity between the two sets of data (surface and subsurface) multivariate statistical analysis of primordial radioactive elements (K(40), U(238) and Th(232)) was performed using the concept of representative subsurface samples, drawn from the randomly selected 11 boreholes of this block. The study was performed to a high confidence level (99%), and results are discussed for assessing the U and Th behavior in the block. Results not only confirm the continuation of three distinct geological formations in the area but also the uranium bearing potential in the Mahadek sandstone of the eastern part of Mahadek Basin. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fire Power

Science.gov (United States)

Denker, Deb; West, Lee

2009-01-01

For education administrators, campus fires are not only a distressing loss, but also a stark reminder that a campus faces risks that require special vigilance. In many ways, campuses resemble small communities, with areas for living, working and relaxing. A residence hall fire may raise the specter of careless youth, often with the complication of…

Post-fire rill and gully formation, Schultz Fire 2010, Arizona, USA

Science.gov (United States)

Daniel G. Neary; Karen A. Koestner; Ann Youberg; Peter E. Koestner

2011-01-01

The Schultz Fire burned 6,100 ha on the eastern slopes of the San Francisco Peaks, a dormant Middle Pliocene to Holocene aged stratovolcano in northern Arizona (Figure 1). The fire burned in the Coconino National Forest between June 20th and 30th, 2010, across moderate to very steep ponderosa pine and mixed conifer watersheds. About 40% of the fire area was classified...

Fire protection and fire fighting in nuclear installations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1989-01-01

Fires are a threat to all technical installations. While fire protection has long been a well established conventional discipline, its application to nuclear facilities requires special considerations. Nevertheless, for a long time fire engineering has been somewhat neglected in the design and operation of nuclear installations. In the nuclear industry, the Browns Ferry fire in 1975 brought about an essential change in the attention paid to fire problems. Designers and plant operators, as well as insurance companies and regulators, increased their efforts to develop concepts and methods for reducing fire risks, not only to protect the capital investment in nuclear plants but also to consider the potential secondary effects which could lead to nuclear accidents. Although the number of fires in nuclear installations is still relatively large, their overall importance to the safety of nuclear power plants was not considered to be very high. Only more recently have probabilistic analyses changed this picture. The results may well have to be taken into account more carefully. Various aspects of fire fighting and fire protection were discussed during the Symposium, the first of its kind to be organized by the IAEA. It was convened in co-operation with several organizations working in the nuclear or fire protection fields. The intention was to gather experts from nuclear engineering areas and the conventional fire protection field at one meeting with a view to enhancing the exchange of information and experience and to presenting current knowledge on the various disciplines involved. The presentations at the meeting were subdivided into eight sessions: standards and licensing (6 papers); national fire safety practices (7 papers); fire safety by design (11 papers); fire fighting (2 papers); computer fire modeling (7 papers); fire safety in fuel center facilities (7 papers); fire testing of materials (3 papers); fire risk assessment (5 papers). A separate abstract was

Unconventional energy resources in a crowded subsurface: Reducing uncertainty and developing a separation zone concept for resource estimation and deep 3D subsurface planning using legacy mining data.

Science.gov (United States)

Monaghan, Alison A

2017-12-01

Over significant areas of the UK and western Europe, anthropogenic alteration of the subsurface by mining of coal has occurred beneath highly populated areas which are now considering a multiplicity of 'low carbon' unconventional energy resources including shale gas and oil, coal bed methane, geothermal energy and energy storage. To enable decision making on the 3D planning, licensing and extraction of these resources requires reduced uncertainty around complex geology and hydrogeological and geomechanical processes. An exemplar from the Carboniferous of central Scotland, UK, illustrates how, in areas lacking hydrocarbon well production data and 3D seismic surveys, legacy coal mine plans and associated boreholes provide valuable data that can be used to reduce the uncertainty around geometry and faulting of subsurface energy resources. However, legacy coal mines also limit unconventional resource volumes since mines and associated shafts alter the stress and hydrogeochemical state of the subsurface, commonly forming pathways to the surface. To reduce the risk of subsurface connections between energy resources, an example of an adapted methodology is described for shale gas/oil resource estimation to include a vertical separation or 'stand-off' zone between the deepest mine workings, to ensure the hydraulic fracturing required for shale resource production would not intersect legacy coal mines. Whilst the size of such separation zones requires further work, developing the concept of 3D spatial separation and planning is key to utilising the crowded subsurface energy system, whilst mitigating against resource sterilisation and environmental impacts, and could play a role in positively informing public and policy debate. Copyright © 2017 British Geological Survey, a component institute of NERC. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Fires: what plant locations should we really protect

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berry, D.L.

1980-01-01

A fire protection analysis technique was developed from earlier work involving the protection of nuclear power plants against acts of sabotage. Characteristics unique to fire phenomena were used to modify the sabotage analysis methodology. These characteristics include the effects of fuel loads, ventilation rates, heat loss areas, barrier ratings, and plant locations. The new fire analysis technique was applied to an example nuclear power plant having 85 different plant areas. It was found that some safety and nonsafety areas were both highly vulnerable to fire spread and important to overall safety, while other areas were found to be of marginal importance to fire safety

36 CFR 261.52 - Fire.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Fire. 261.52 Section 261.52... in Areas Designated by Order § 261.52 Fire. When provided by an order, the following are prohibited: (a) Building, maintaining, attending or using a fire, campfire, or stove fire. (b) Using an explosive...

Review of the IAEA fire symposium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fischer, J.

1991-01-01

The IAEA Symposium on Fire Protection and Fire Fighting in Nuclear Installations covered a large scope in the field in order to provide the opportunity for screening all aspects of present technology, research and development, standardization, licensing and fire fighting practices. Although application to any nuclear facility was within its scope, the majority of presentations concerned nuclear power plants. The approach to fire protection is the classical one in all plant designs: reduction of fire loads, appropriate zoning, manual and automatic extinguishment. However, methods of analysis and consequence prediction are changing. Computerized fire modelling is becoming a powerful tool in this area; probabilistic analytical methods are being improved, though they are not yet used widely for fire hazards. Differences in opinion were revealed in the definition of barrier resistance, the prediction of cable insulation behaviour and the optimal design of extinguishing systems. Greater international co-operation, especially in these areas, may be a good way of optimizing results with limited resources. Discussion contributions showed interest in exchange of experience in more specialized topics and encouraged the IAEA to increase its activity in the area of fire protection. (orig.)

Uranium Biomineralization by Natural Microbial Phosphatase Activities in the Subsurface

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sobecky, Patricia A. [Univ. of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL (United States)

2015-04-06

In this project, inter-disciplinary research activities were conducted in collaboration among investigators at The University of Alabama (UA), Georgia Institute of Technology (GT), Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL), the DOE Joint Genome Institute (JGI), and the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Light source (SSRL) to: (i) confirm that phosphatase activities of subsurface bacteria in Area 2 and 3 from the Oak Ridge Field Research Center result in solid U-phosphate precipitation in aerobic and anaerobic conditions; (ii) investigate the eventual competition between uranium biomineralization via U-phosphate precipitation and uranium bioreduction; (iii) determine subsurface microbial community structure changes of Area 2 soils following organophosphate amendments; (iv) obtain the complete genome sequences of the Rahnella sp. Y9-602 and the type-strain Rahnella aquatilis ATCC 33071 isolated from these soils; (v) determine if polyphosphate accumulation and phytate hydrolysis can be used to promote U(VI) biomineralization in subsurface sediments; (vi) characterize the effect of uranium on phytate hydrolysis by a new microorganism isolated from uranium-contaminated sediments; (vii) utilize positron-emission tomography to label and track metabolically-active bacteria in soil columns, and (viii) study the stability of the uranium phosphate mineral product. Microarray analyses and mineral precipitation characterizations were conducted in collaboration with DOE SBR-funded investigators at LBNL. Thus, microbial phosphorus metabolism has been shown to have a contributing role to uranium immobilization in the subsurface.

Uranium Biomineralization by Natural Microbial Phosphatase Activities in the Subsurface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sobecky, Patricia A.

2015-01-01

In this project, inter-disciplinary research activities were conducted in collaboration among investigators at The University of Alabama (UA), Georgia Institute of Technology (GT), Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL), the DOE Joint Genome Institute (JGI), and the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Light source (SSRL) to: (i) confirm that phosphatase activities of subsurface bacteria in Area 2 and 3 from the Oak Ridge Field Research Center result in solid U-phosphate precipitation in aerobic and anaerobic conditions; (ii) investigate the eventual competition between uranium biomineralization via U-phosphate precipitation and uranium bioreduction; (iii) determine subsurface microbial community structure changes of Area 2 soils following organophosphate amendments; (iv) obtain the complete genome sequences of the Rahnella sp. Y9-602 and the type-strain Rahnella aquatilis ATCC 33071 isolated from these soils; (v) determine if polyphosphate accumulation and phytate hydrolysis can be used to promote U(VI) biomineralization in subsurface sediments; (vi) characterize the effect of uranium on phytate hydrolysis by a new microorganism isolated from uranium-contaminated sediments; (vii) utilize positron-emission tomography to label and track metabolically-active bacteria in soil columns, and (viii) study the stability of the uranium phosphate mineral product. Microarray analyses and mineral precipitation characterizations were conducted in collaboration with DOE SBR-funded investigators at LBNL. Thus, microbial phosphorus metabolism has been shown to have a contributing role to uranium immobilization in the subsurface.

Fire vegetative ash and erosion in the Mediterranean areas. State of the art and future perspectives

Science.gov (United States)

Pereira, Paulo; Cerdà, Artemi

2013-04-01

Fire is a global phenomenon with important ecological impacts. Among all ecosystems, the Mediterranean is frequently visited by severe wildfires with serious impacts on soil properties and increase soil vulnerability to erosion due vegetation removal. After the fire the ash distributed in soil surface can mitigate soil exposition to erosion and rain splash (Cerda and Doerr, 2008), however, this depends on the fire severity that have implications on the type of ash produced (Pereira et al., 2010). High fire severities produced thinner ash that it is easily transported by wind, contrary to low severity wildfires where combustion is not so intense and the mass loss is less, providing a better soil protection in the immediate period after the fire. Soil protection after the fire highly depends on fire severity (Pereira et al. 2013a; Pereira et al. 2013b). Ash it is a highly mobile material, thus this protection can change in space and time, providing a better cover in some areas and worst in others. In the period immediate after the fire, ash can change soil hydrological properties, increasing water retention and reducing sediment transport in relation to bare soil areas (Cerda and Doerr, 2008), but also clog soil pores, seal the soil and increase erosion (Onda et al., 2008). In fact results are controversial and the impacts of vegetative ash in soil erosion may rely on the proprieties of ash produced, that can be extremely variable, even in small distances (Pereira and Úbeda, 2010), due the different conditions of combustions. Ash produced at low severity temperatures can be highly hydrophilic (Bodi et al., 2011) and induce soil hydrophobicity (Bodi et al., 2012). Other mechanisms as the direct impact of fire in soil, can induce soil water repellency, and do not have any interference of vegetative ash. This fire can induce direct (e.g temperature) and indirect (e.g. ash properties) on soil wettability, with obvious implications on spatio-temporal pattern of soil

Utilizing Multi-Sensor Fire Detections to Map Fires in the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Howard, S. M.; Picotte, J. J.; Coan, M. J.

2014-11-01

In 2006, the Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (MTBS) project began a cooperative effort between the US Forest Service (USFS) and the U.S.Geological Survey (USGS) to map and assess burn severity all large fires that have occurred in the United States since 1984. Using Landsat imagery, MTBS is mandated to map wildfire and prescribed fire that meet specific size criteria: greater than 1000 acres in the west and 500 acres in the east, regardless of ownership. Relying mostly on federal and state fire occurrence records, over 15,300 individual fires have been mapped. While mapping recorded fires, an additional 2,700 "unknown" or undocumented fires were discovered and assessed. It has become apparent that there are perhaps thousands of undocumented fires in the US that are yet to be mapped. Fire occurrence records alone are inadequate if MTBS is to provide a comprehensive accounting of fire across the US. Additionally, the sheer number of fires to assess has overwhelmed current manual procedures. To address these problems, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Applied Sciences Program is helping to fund the efforts of the USGS and its MTBS partners (USFS, National Park Service) to develop, and implement a system to automatically identify fires using satellite data. In near real time, USGS will combine active fire satellite detections from MODIS, AVHRR and GOES satellites with Landsat acquisitions. Newly acquired Landsat imagery will be routinely scanned to identify freshly burned area pixels, derive an initial perimeter and tag the burned area with the satellite date and time of detection. Landsat imagery from the early archive will be scanned to identify undocumented fires. Additional automated fire assessment processes will be developed. The USGS will develop these processes using open source software packages in order to provide freely available tools to local land managers providing them with the capability to assess fires at the local level.

Subsurface Facility System Description Document

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eric Loros

2001-01-01

The Subsurface Facility System encompasses the location, arrangement, size, and spacing of the underground openings. This subsurface system includes accesses, alcoves, and drifts. This system provides access to the underground, provides for the emplacement of waste packages, provides openings to allow safe and secure work conditions, and interfaces with the natural barrier. This system includes what is now the Exploratory Studies Facility. The Subsurface Facility System physical location and general arrangement help support the long-term waste isolation objectives of the repository. The Subsurface Facility System locates the repository openings away from main traces of major faults, away from exposure to erosion, above the probable maximum flood elevation, and above the water table. The general arrangement, size, and spacing of the emplacement drifts support disposal of the entire inventory of waste packages based on the emplacement strategy. The Subsurface Facility System provides access ramps to safely facilitate development and emplacement operations. The Subsurface Facility System supports the development and emplacement operations by providing subsurface space for such systems as ventilation, utilities, safety, monitoring, and transportation

Intelligent SUBsurface Quality : Intelligent use of subsurface infrastructure for surface quality

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hooimeijer, F.L.; Kuzniecow Bacchin, T.; Lafleur, F.; van de Ven, F.H.M.; Clemens, F.H.L.R.; Broere, W.; Laumann, S.J.; Klaassen, R.G.; Marinetti, C.

2016-01-01

This project focuses on the urban renewal of (delta) metropolises and concentrates on the question how to design resilient, durable (subsurface) infrastructure in urban renewal projects using parameters of the natural system – linking in an efficient way (a) water cycle, (b) soil and subsurface

Deep subsurface microbial processes

Science.gov (United States)

Lovley, D.R.; Chapelle, F.H.

1995-01-01

Information on the microbiology of the deep subsurface is necessary in order to understand the factors controlling the rate and extent of the microbially catalyzed redox reactions that influence the geophysical properties of these environments. Furthermore, there is an increasing threat that deep aquifers, an important drinking water resource, may be contaminated by man's activities, and there is a need to predict the extent to which microbial activity may remediate such contamination. Metabolically active microorganisms can be recovered from a diversity of deep subsurface environments. The available evidence suggests that these microorganisms are responsible for catalyzing the oxidation of organic matter coupled to a variety of electron acceptors just as microorganisms do in surface sediments, but at much slower rates. The technical difficulties in aseptically sampling deep subsurface sediments and the fact that microbial processes in laboratory incubations of deep subsurface material often do not mimic in situ processes frequently necessitate that microbial activity in the deep subsurface be inferred through nonmicrobiological analyses of ground water. These approaches include measurements of dissolved H2, which can predict the predominant microbially catalyzed redox reactions in aquifers, as well as geochemical and groundwater flow modeling, which can be used to estimate the rates of microbial processes. Microorganisms recovered from the deep subsurface have the potential to affect the fate of toxic organics and inorganic contaminants in groundwater. Microbial activity also greatly influences 1 the chemistry of many pristine groundwaters and contributes to such phenomena as porosity development in carbonate aquifers, accumulation of undesirably high concentrations of dissolved iron, and production of methane and hydrogen sulfide. Although the last decade has seen a dramatic increase in interest in deep subsurface microbiology, in comparison with the study of

Interim Corrective Measures Work Plan for the Expanded Bioventing System Eglin Main Base Old Fire Training Area

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

1997-01-01

This interim corrective measures work plan (ICM work plan) presents the scope for an expanded bioventing system for in situ treatment of fuel-contaminated soils at the Eglin Main Base Old Fire Training Area (old Eglin FTA...

Fires in Chile

Science.gov (United States)

2002-01-01

On February 5, 2002, the dense smoke from numerous forest fires stretched out over the Pacific Ocean about 400 miles south of Santiago, Chile. This true-color Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) image shows the fires, which are located near the city of Temuco. The fires are indicated with red dots (boxes in the high-resolution imagery). The fires were burning near several national parks and nature reserves in an area of the Chilean Andes where tourism is very popular. Southeast of the fires, the vegetation along the banks of the Rio Negro in Argentina stands out in dark green. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC

Use of Large-Scale Multi-Configuration EMI Measurements to Characterize Subsurface Structures of the Vadose Zone.

Science.gov (United States)

Huisman, J. A.; Brogi, C.; Pätzold, S.; Weihermueller, L.; von Hebel, C.; Van Der Kruk, J.; Vereecken, H.

2017-12-01

Subsurface structures of the vadose zone can play a key role in crop yield potential, especially during water stress periods. Geophysical techniques like electromagnetic induction EMI can provide information about dominant shallow subsurface features. However, previous studies with EMI have typically not reached beyond the field scale. We used high-resolution large-scale multi-configuration EMI measurements to characterize patterns of soil structural organization (layering and texture) and their impact on crop productivity at the km2 scale. We collected EMI data on an agricultural area of 1 km2 (102 ha) near Selhausen (NRW, Germany). The area consists of 51 agricultural fields cropped in rotation. Therefore, measurements were collected between April and December 2016, preferably within few days after the harvest. EMI data were automatically filtered, temperature corrected, and interpolated onto a common grid of 1 m resolution. Inspecting the ECa maps, we identified three main sub-areas with different subsurface heterogeneity. We also identified small-scale geomorphological structures as well as anthropogenic activities such as soil management and buried drainage networks. To identify areas with similar subsurface structures, we applied image classification techniques. We fused ECa maps obtained with different coil distances in a multiband image and applied supervised and unsupervised classification methodologies. Both showed good results in reconstructing observed patterns in plant productivity and the subsurface structures associated with them. However, the supervised methodology proved more efficient in classifying the whole study area. In a second step, we selected hundred locations within the study area and obtained a soil profile description with type, depth, and thickness of the soil horizons. Using this ground truth data it was possible to assign a typical soil profile to each of the main classes obtained from the classification. The proposed methodology was

Land cover fire proneness in Europe

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mario Gonzalez Pereira

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Aim of study: This study aims to identify and characterize the spatial and temporal evolution of the types of vegetation that are most affected by forest fires in Europe. The characterization of the fuels is an important issue of the fire regime in each specific ecosystem while, on the other hand, fire is an important disturbance for global vegetation dynamics.Area of study: Southern European countries: Portugal, Spain, France, Italy and Greece.Material and Methods: Corine Land Cover maps for 2000 and 2006 (CLC2000, CLC2006 and burned area (BA perimeters, from 2000 to 2013 in Europe are combined to access the spatial and temporal evolution of the types of vegetation that are most affected by wild fires using descriptive statistics and Geographical Information System (GIS techniques.Main results: The spatial and temporal distribution of BA perimeters, vegetation and burnt vegetation by wild fires was performed and different statistics were obtained for Mediterranean and entire Europe, confirming the usefulness of the proposed land cover system. A fire proneness index is proposed to assess the fire selectivity of land cover classes. The index allowed to quantify and to compare the propensity of vegetation classes and countries to fire.Research highlights: The usefulness and efficiency of the land cover classification scheme and fire proneness index. The differences between northern Europe and southern Europe and among the Mediterranean region in what concerns to vegetation cover, fire incidence, area burnt in land cover classes and fire proneness between classes for the different countries.Keywords: Fire proneness; Mixed forests; Land cover/land use; Fire regime; Europe; GIS; Corine land cover. 

Advanced Fire Information System - A real time fire information system for Africa

Science.gov (United States)

Frost, P. E.; Roy, D. P.

2012-12-01

The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) lead by the Meraka Institute and supported by the South African National Space Agency (SANSA) developed the Advanced Fire Information System (AFIS) to provide near real time fire information to a variety of operational and science fire users including disaster managers, fire fighters, farmers and forest managers located across Southern and Eastern Africa. The AFIS combines satellite data with ground based observations and statistics and distributes the information via mobile phone technology. The system was launched in 2004, and Eskom (South Africa' and Africa's largest power utility) quickly became the biggest user and today more than 300 Eskom line managers and support staff receive cell phone and email fire alert messages whenever a wildfire is within 2km of any of the 28 000km of Eskom electricity transmission lines. The AFIS uses Earth observation satellites from NASA and Europe to detect possible actively burning fires and their fire radiative power (FRP). The polar orbiting MODIS Terra and Aqua satellites provide data at around 10am, 15pm, 22am and 3am daily, while the European Geostationary MSG satellite provides 15 minute updates at lower spatial resolution. The AFIS processing system ingests the raw satellite data and within minutes of the satellite overpass generates fire location and FRP based fire intensity information. The AFIS and new functionality are presented including an incident report and permiting system that can be used to differentiate between prescribed burns and uncontrolled wild fires, and the provision of other information including 5-day fire danger forecasts, vegetation curing information and historical burned area maps. A new AFIS mobile application for IOS and Android devices as well as a fire reporting tool are showcased that enable both the dissemination and alerting of fire information and enable user upload of geo tagged photographs and on the fly creation of fire reports

Areas of Agreement and Disagreement Regarding Ponderosa Pine and Mixed Conifer Forest Fire Regimes: A Dialogue with Stevens et al.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dennis C Odion

Full Text Available In a recent PLOS ONE paper, we conducted an evidence-based analysis of current versus historical fire regimes and concluded that traditionally defined reference conditions of low-severity fire regimes for ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa and mixed-conifer forests were incomplete, missing considerable variability in forest structure and fire regimes. Stevens et al. (this issue agree that high-severity fire was a component of these forests, but disagree that one of the several sources of evidence, stand age from a large number of forest inventory and analysis (FIA plots across the western USA, support our findings that severe fire played more than a minor role ecologically in these forests. Here we highlight areas of agreement and disagreement about past fire, and analyze the methods Stevens et al. used to assess the FIA stand-age data. We found a major problem with a calculation they used to conclude that the FIA data were not useful for evaluating fire regimes. Their calculation, as well as a narrowing of the definition of high-severity fire from the one we used, leads to a large underestimate of conditions consistent with historical high-severity fire. The FIA stand age data do have limitations but they are consistent with other landscape-inference data sources in supporting a broader paradigm about historical variability of fire in ponderosa and mixed-conifer forests than had been traditionally recognized, as described in our previous PLOS paper.

Areas of Agreement and Disagreement Regarding Ponderosa Pine and Mixed Conifer Forest Fire Regimes: A Dialogue with Stevens et al.

Science.gov (United States)

Odion, Dennis C; Hanson, Chad T; Baker, William L; DellaSala, Dominick A; Williams, Mark A

2016-01-01

In a recent PLOS ONE paper, we conducted an evidence-based analysis of current versus historical fire regimes and concluded that traditionally defined reference conditions of low-severity fire regimes for ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) and mixed-conifer forests were incomplete, missing considerable variability in forest structure and fire regimes. Stevens et al. (this issue) agree that high-severity fire was a component of these forests, but disagree that one of the several sources of evidence, stand age from a large number of forest inventory and analysis (FIA) plots across the western USA, support our findings that severe fire played more than a minor role ecologically in these forests. Here we highlight areas of agreement and disagreement about past fire, and analyze the methods Stevens et al. used to assess the FIA stand-age data. We found a major problem with a calculation they used to conclude that the FIA data were not useful for evaluating fire regimes. Their calculation, as well as a narrowing of the definition of high-severity fire from the one we used, leads to a large underestimate of conditions consistent with historical high-severity fire. The FIA stand age data do have limitations but they are consistent with other landscape-inference data sources in supporting a broader paradigm about historical variability of fire in ponderosa and mixed-conifer forests than had been traditionally recognized, as described in our previous PLOS paper.

Subsurface event detection and classification using Wireless Signal Networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Yoon, Suk-Un; Ghazanfari, Ehsan; Cheng, Liang; Pamukcu, Sibel; Suleiman, Muhannad T

2012-11-05

Subsurface environment sensing and monitoring applications such as detection of water intrusion or a landslide, which could significantly change the physical properties of the host soil, can be accomplished using a novel concept, Wireless Signal Networks (WSiNs). The wireless signal networks take advantage of the variations of radio signal strength on the distributed underground sensor nodes of WSiNs to monitor and characterize the sensed area. To characterize subsurface environments for event detection and classification, this paper provides a detailed list and experimental data of soil properties on how radio propagation is affected by soil properties in subsurface communication environments. Experiments demonstrated that calibrated wireless signal strength variations can be used as indicators to sense changes in the subsurface environment. The concept of WSiNs for the subsurface event detection is evaluated with applications such as detection of water intrusion, relative density change, and relative motion using actual underground sensor nodes. To classify geo-events using the measured signal strength as a main indicator of geo-events, we propose a window-based minimum distance classifier based on Bayesian decision theory. The window-based classifier for wireless signal networks has two steps: event detection and event classification. With the event detection, the window-based classifier classifies geo-events on the event occurring regions that are called a classification window. The proposed window-based classification method is evaluated with a water leakage experiment in which the data has been measured in laboratory experiments. In these experiments, the proposed detection and classification method based on wireless signal network can detect and classify subsurface events.

Fire history and pattern in a Cascade Range landscape.

Science.gov (United States)

Peter H. Morrison; Frederick J. Swanson

1990-01-01

Fire history from years 1150 to 1985 was reconstructed by analyzing forest stands in two 1940-hectare areas in the central-western Cascade Range of Oregon. Serving as records for major fire episodes, these stands revealed a highly variable fire regime. The steeper, more dissected, lower elevation Cook-Quentin study area experienced more frequent fires (natural fire...

Emissions from forest fires near Mexico City

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. J. Yokelson

2007-11-01

Full Text Available The emissions of NO_x (defined as NO (nitric oxide + NO₂ (nitrogen dioxide and hydrogen cyanide (HCN, per unit amount of fuel burned, from fires in the pine forests that dominate the mountains surrounding Mexico City (MC are about 2 times higher than normally observed for forest burning. The ammonia (NH₃ emissions are about average for forest burning. The upper limit for the mass ratio of NO_x to volatile organic compounds (VOC for these MC-area mountain fires was ~0.38, which is similar to the NO_x/VOC ratio in the MC urban area emissions inventory of 0.34, but much larger than the NO_x/VOC ratio for tropical forest fires in Brazil (~0.068. The nitrogen enrichment in the fire emissions may be due to deposition of nitrogen-containing pollutants in the outflow from the MC urban area. This effect may occur worldwide wherever biomass burning coexists with large urban areas (e.g. the tropics, southeastern US, Los Angeles Basin. The molar emission ratio of HCN to carbon monoxide (CO for the mountain fires was 0.012±0.007, which is 2–9 times higher than widely used literature values for biomass burning. The ambient molar ratio HCN/CO in the MC-area outflow is about 0.003±0.0003. Thus, if only mountain fires emit significant amounts of HCN, these fires may be contributing about 25% of the CO production in the MC-area (~98–100 W and 19–20 N. Comparing the PM₁₀/CO and PM_2.5/CO mass ratios in the MC Metropolitan Area emission inventory (0.0115 and 0.0037 to the PM1/CO mass ratio for the mountain fires (0.133 then suggests that these fires could produce as much as ~79–92% of the primary fine particle mass generated in the MC-area. Considering both the uncertainty in the HCN/CO ratios and secondary aerosol formation in the urban and fire emissions implies that about 50±30% of the "aged" fine particle mass in the March 2006 MC-area outflow could be from these fires.

Wildfires and post-fire erosion risk in a coastal area under severe anthropic pressure associated with the touristic fluxes

Science.gov (United States)

Canu, Annalisa; Arca, Bachisio; Pellizzaro, Grazia; Valeriano Pintus, Gian; Ferrara, Roberto; Duce, Pierpaolo

2017-04-01

In the last decades a rapid and intense development of the tourism industry led to an increasing of anthropic pressure on several coastal areas of Sardinia. This fact not only modified the coastal aesthetics, but has also generated an increase of risk for the environment. This phenomenon affected also the ancient structure of the landscape with a negative impact mainly caused by the following factors: land abandonment, wildfire occurrence, post-fire erosion, urbanization. These regional changes can be analyzed in detail by considering the geo-diachronic dynamics. The main objectives of this work were i) to perform a diachronic analysis of land use and land cover dynamics, ii) to analyse the recent dynamics of wildfires, and iii) to predict the soil erosion risk in relation to land use change occurred between the 1950s and the 2000s. The study was realized in a coastal area located in North-East Sardinia where the geo-historical processes were summarized and organized in a geographic information system that has been employed to examine the landscape variations at three different time steps: 1954, 1977 and 2000. In addition, different scenarios of wildfire propagation were simulated by FlamMap in order to estimate the spatial pattern of fire danger factors in the study area. Afterwards, maps of post-fire soil erosion were produced to identify the temporal and spatial variations of the erosion risk. The results show how the changes in land use and the significant and rapid increase of the residential areas affect the risk of both wildfires and post-fire soil erosion. The study reveals the capabilities of this type of approach and can be used by management agencies and policy makers e in sustainable landscape management planning. This approach can be extended to other regions of the Mediterranean basin characterized by complex interactions among landscape and anthropic factors affecting the environmental risk.

Effectiveness of Fire and Fire Surrogate Treatments For Controlling Wildfire Behavior in Piedmont Forests: A Simulation Study

Science.gov (United States)

Helen H. Mohr; Thomas A. Waldrop; Sandra Rideout; Ross J. Phillips; Charles T. Flint

2004-01-01

The need for fuel reduction has increased in United States forests due to decades of fire exclusion. Excessive fuel buildup has led to uncharacteristically severe fires in areas with historically short-interval, low-to-moderate-intensity fire regimes. The National Fire and Fire Surrogate (NFFS) Study compared the impacts of three fuel-reduction treatments on numerous...

Technical issues associated with in situ vitrification of the INEL Subsurface Disposal Area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stoots, C.M.; Bates, S.O.; Callow, R.A.; Campbell, K.A.; Farnsworth, R.K.; Krisman, G.K.; McKellar, M.G.; Nickelson, D.F.; Slater, C.E.

1992-07-01

In situ vitrification (ISV) has been identified as an alternative technology for remediation of the acid pit and transuranic pits and trenches (TRU-PTs) at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) Subsurface Disposal Area (SDA). However, a number of technical issues must be resolved before ISV can be considered applicable to these waste sites. To assist in the ISV technology evaluation, an ISV Steering Committee was formed to identify, prioritize, and develop closure roadmaps for technical issues lated with ISV application at the SDA. The activities of the ISV Steering Committee are summarized in a three-volume report. Volume I identifies the systematic approach used to identify and prioritize the ISV technical issues and briefly discusses the methodology that will be employed to resolve these issues. Volumes 2 and 3 discuss each technical issue in greater detail and suggest specific closure roadmaps to be used in resolving technical issues associated with ISV at the SDA Acid Pit and TRU-PTS, respectively. The three-volume report is a working document that will be updated as necessary to reflect current evaluation strategy for the ISV technology. This is Volume 3

DETERMINATION OF IMPORTANCE EVALUATION FOR THE SUBSURFACE EXPLORATORY STUDIES FACILITY

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Clark, W.J.

1999-01-01

This Determination of Importance Evaluation (DIE) applies to the Subsurface Exploratory Studies Facility (ESF), encompassing the Topopah Spring (TS) Loop from Station 0+00 meters (m) at the North Portal to breakthrough at the South Portal (approximately 78+77 m), the Enhanced Characterization of the Repository Block (ECRB) East-West Cross Drift Starter Tunnel (to approximate ECRB Station 0+26 m), and ancillary test and operation support areas in the TS Loop. This evaluation applies to the construction, operation, and maintenance of these excavations. A more detailed description of these items is provided in Section 6.0. Testing activities are not evaluated in this DIE. Certain construction activities with respect to testing activities are evaluated; but the testing activities themselves are not evaluated. The DIE for ESF Subsurface Testing Activities (BAJ3000000-01717-2200-000111) (CRWMS M and O 1998a) evaluates Subsurface ESF Testing activities. The construction, operation, and maintenance of the TS Loop niches and alcove slot cuts is evaluated herein and is also discussed in CRWMS M and O 1998a. The construction, operation, and maintenance of the Busted Butte subsurface test area in support of the Unsaturated Zone (UZ) Transport Test is evaluated in CRWMS M and O 1998a. Potential test-to-test interference and the waste isolation impacts of testing activities are evaluated in the ESF Subsurface Testing Activities DIE and other applicable evaluation(s) for the Job Package (JP), Test Planning Package (TPP), and/or Field Work Package (FWP). The objectives of this DIE are to determine whether the Subsurface ESF TS Loop and associated excavations, including activities associated with their construction and operation, potentially impact site characterization testing or the waste isolation capabilities of the site. Controls needed to limit any potential impacts are identified. The validity and veracity of the individual tests, including data collection, are the

DETERMINATION OF IMPORTANCE EVALUATION FOR THE SUBSURFACE EXPORATORY STUDIES FACILITY

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

W.J. Clark

1999-06-28

This Determination of Importance Evaluation (DIE) applies to the Subsurface Exploratory Studies Facility (ESF), encompassing the Topopah Spring (TS) Loop from Station 0+00 meters (m) at the North Portal to breakthrough at the South Portal (approximately 78+77 m), the Enhanced Characterization of the Repository Block (ECRB) East-West Cross Drift Starter Tunnel (to approximate ECRB Station 0+26 m), and ancillary test and operation support areas in the TS Loop. This evaluation applies to the construction, operation, and maintenance of these excavations. A more detailed description of these items is provided in Section 6.0. Testing activities are not evaluated in this DIE. Certain construction activities with respect to testing activities are evaluated; but the testing activities themselves are not evaluated. The DIE for ESF Subsurface Testing Activities (BAJ3000000-01717-2200-00011 Rev 01) (CRWMS M&O 1998a) evaluates Subsurface ESF Testing activities. The construction, operation, and maintenance of the TS Loop niches and alcove slot cuts is evaluated herein and is also discussed in CRWMS M&O 1998a. The construction, operation, and maintenance of the Busted Butte subsurface test area in support of the Unsaturated Zone (UZ) Transport Test is evaluated in CRWMS M&O 1998a. Potential test-to-test interference and the waste isolation impacts of testing activities are evaluated in the ESF Subsurface Testing Activities DIE and other applicable evaluation(s) for the Job Package (JP), Test Planning Package (TPP), and/or Field Work Package (FWP). The objectives of this DIE are to determine whether the Subsurface ESF TS Loop and associated excavations, including activities associated with their construction and operation, potentially impact site characterization testing or the waste isolation capabilities of the site. Controls needed to limit any potential impacts are identified. The validity and veracity of the individual tests, including data collection, are the responsibility

Forest fires and lightning activity during the outstanding 2003 and 2005 fire seasons

Science.gov (United States)

Russo, Ana; Ramos, Alexandre; Trigo, Ricardo

2013-04-01

Wildfires in southern Europe cause frequent extensive economical and ecological losses and, even human casualties. Comparatively to other Mediterranean countries, Portugal is the country with more burnt area and fires per unit area in the last decade, mainly during the summer season (Pereira et al., 2011). According to the fire records available, between 1980 and 2009, wildfires have affected over 3 million hectares in Portugal (JRC, 2011), which corresponds to approximately a third of the Portuguese Continental territory. The main factors that influence fire ignition and propagation are: (1) the presence of fuel (i.e. vegetation); (2) climate and weather; (3) socioeconomic conditions that affect land use/land cover patterns, fire-prevention and fire-fighting capacity and (4) topography. Specifically, weather (e.g. wind, temperature, precipitation, humidity, and lightning occurrence) plays an important role in fire behavior, affecting both ignition and spread of wildfires. Some countries have a relatively large fraction of fires caused by lightning, e.g. northwestern USA, Canada, Russia (). In contrast, Portugal has only a small percentage of fire records caused by lightning. Although significant doubts remain for the majority of fires in the catalog since they were cataloged without a likely cause. The recent years of 2003 and 2005 were particularly outstanding for fire activity in Portugal, registering, respectively, total burned areas of 425 726 ha and 338 262 ha. However, while the 2003 was triggered by an exceptional heatwave that struck the entire western Europe, the 2005 fire season registered was coincident with one of the most severe droughts of the 20th century. In this work we have used mainly two different databases: 1) the Portuguese Rural Fire Database (PRFD) which is representative of rural fires that have occurred in Continental Portugal, 2001-2011, with the original data provided by the Autoridade Florestal Nacional (AFN, 2011); 2) lightning

Fire emissions and regional air quality impacts from fires in oil palm, timber, and logging concessions in Indonesia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marlier, Miriam E; DeFries, Ruth S; Kim, Patrick S; Koplitz, Shannon N; Jacob, Daniel J; Mickley, Loretta J; Myers, Samuel S

2015-01-01

Fires associated with agricultural and plantation development in Indonesia impact ecosystem services and release emissions into the atmosphere that degrade regional air quality and contribute to greenhouse gas concentrations. In this study, we estimate the relative contributions of the oil palm, timber (for wood pulp and paper), and logging industries in Sumatra and Kalimantan to land cover change, fire activity, and regional population exposure to smoke concentrations. Concessions for these three industries cover 21% and 49% of the land area in Sumatra and Kalimantan respectively, with the highest overall area in lowlands on mineral soils instead of more carbon-rich peatlands. In 2012, most remaining forest area was located in logging concessions for both islands, and for all combined concessions, there was higher remaining lowland and peatland forest area in Kalimantan (45% and 46%, respectively) versus Sumatra (20% and 27%, respectively). Emissions from all combined concessions comprised 41% of total fire emissions (within and outside of concession boundaries) in Sumatra and 27% in Kalimantan for the 2006 burning season, which had high fire activity relative to decadal emissions. Most fire emissions were observed in concessions located on peatlands and non-forested lowlands, the latter of which could include concessions that are currently under production, cleared in preparation for production, or abandoned lands. For the 2006 burning season, timber concessions from Sumatra (47% of area and 88% of emissions) and oil palm concessions from Kalimantan (33% of area and 67% of emissions) contributed the most to concession-related fire emissions from each island. Although fire emissions from concessions were higher in Kalimantan, emissions from Sumatra contributed 63% of concession-related smoke concentrations for the population-weighted region because fire sources were located closer to population centers. In order to protect regional public health, our results

Fire impact and assessment of post-fire actions of a typical Mediterranean forest from SW Spain

Science.gov (United States)

Jiménez-González, Marco A.; María De la Rosa, José; Jiménez-Morillo, Nicasio T.; Zavala, Lorena M.; Knicker, Heike

2015-04-01

Wildfires may cause significant changes in soil physical and chemical properties. In addition, soil organic matter (SOM) content and chemical properties are usually affected by fire. Fire impacts may negatively affect soil health and quality, and induce or enhance runoff generation and, thereby, soil erosion risk and cause damages to the habitat of species. This fact is especially dramatic in Mediterranean ecosystems, where forest fires are a frequent phenomenon and restoration strategies are a key issue. The goals of this study are to determine: i) the immediate effects of fire on soil properties, including changes occurred in the quantity and quality of SOM and ii) the effect of post-fire actions on soil properties. In August 2012, a wildfire affected a forest area of approx. 90 ha in Montellano (Seville, SW Spain; longitude 37.00 °, latitude -5.56 °). This area is dominated by pines (Pinus pinaster and Pinus halepensis), and eucalypts (Eucaliptus globulus) with a Mediterranean climate. Dominant soil types are Rendzic Leptosols and Calcaric Haplic Regosols. It is a poorly limestone-developed soil (usually swallower than 25 cm). Four soil subsamples were collected 1 month and 25 months after fire within an area of approximately 200 m2. Subsamples were mixed together, homogenized, air-dried, crushed and sieved (2 mm). One control sample was collected in an adjacent area. The litter layer was removed by hand and studied separately. Branches, stems, bushes and plant residues on the fire-affected area were removed 16 months after the fire using heavy machinery as part of the post-fire management. The present research focuses on the study of the elemental composition (C, H and N) and physical properties (pH, water holding capacity, electrical conductivity) of bulk soil samples, and on the spectroscopic analysis (FT-IR, 13C NMR) and analytical pyrolysis data obtained from bulk the oils and from the humic acid fraction. immediate effects of fire, including the charring

Subsurface arrangement constraints and selection criteria SOW, 4.5.1.2.1: Technical report, Revision 0

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1984-12-01

The United States Department of Energy has the responsibility to develop an underground geological repository for the storage and isolation of nuclear waste. This report identifies design constraints and subsurface arrangement selection criteria for the subsurface portion of a repository in salt. These criteria provide a base from which subsurface layout will be selected for approval by the Department of Energy. This document provides the basic criteria for the architect/engineer to select the subsurface layout. While this document does not address site-specific criteria, it does act as a guideline for subsurface design allowing for exploration of any reasonable option of that design. The criteria developed in this report address specific areas and concerns within a subsurface layout plan. The subsurface layout selection criteria were developed from industry standards, federal regulations, and quality assurance standards. 18 refs., 7 figs., 5 tabs

Prevention and suppression of metal packing fires.

Science.gov (United States)

Roberts, Mark; Rogers, William J; Sam Mannan, M; Ostrowski, Scott W

2003-11-14

Structured packing has been widely used because of large surface area that makes possible columns with high capacity and efficiency. The large surface area also contributes to fire hazards because of hydrocarbon deposits that can easily combust and promote combustion of the thin metal packing materials. Materials of high surface area that can fuel fires include reactive metals, such as titanium, and materials that are not considered combustible, such as stainless steel. Column design and material selection for packing construction is discussed together with employee training and practices for safe column maintenance and operations. Presented also are methods and agents for suppression of metal fires. Guidance for prevention and suppression of metal fires is related to incidents involving packing fires in columns.

Groundwater Salinity Simulation of a Subsurface Reservoir in Taiwan

Science.gov (United States)

Fang, H. T.

2015-12-01

The subsurface reservoir is located in Chi-Ken Basin, Pescadores (a group islands located at western part of Taiwan). There is no river in these remote islands and thus the freshwater supply is relied on the subsurface reservoir. The basin area of the subsurface reservoir is 2.14 km2 , discharge of groundwater is 1.27×106m3 , annual planning water supplies is 7.9×105m3 , which include for domestic agricultural usage. The annual average temperature is 23.3oC, average moisture is 80~85%, annual average rainfall is 913 mm, but ET rate is 1975mm. As there is no single river in the basin; the major recharge of groundwater is by infiltration. Chi-Ken reservoir is the first subsurface reservoir in Taiwan. Originally, the water quality of the reservoir is good. The reservoir has had the salinity problem since 1991 and it became more and more serious from 1992 until 1994. Possible reason of the salinity problem was the shortage of rainfall or the leakage of the subsurface barrier which caused the seawater intrusion. The present study aimed to determine the leakage position of subsurface barrier that caused the salinity problem. In order to perform the simulation for different possible leakage position of the subsurface reservoir, a Groundwater Modeling System (GMS) is used to define soils layer data, hydro-geological parameters, initial conditions, boundary conditions and the generation of three dimension meshes. A three dimension FEMWATER(Yeh , 1996) numerical model was adopted to find the possible leakage position of the subsurface barrier and location of seawater intrusion by comparing the simulation of different possible leakage with the observations. 1.By assuming the leakage position in the bottom of barrier, the simulated numerical result matched the observation better than the other assumed leakage positions. It showed that the most possible leakage position was at the bottom of the barrier. 2.The research applied three dimension FEMWATER and GMS as an interface

PART I: Bioventing Pilot Test Work Plan for Fire Protection Training Area Site FY-03, Charleston AFB, South Carolina. PART II: Draft Interim Pilot Test Results Report for Fire Protection Training Area Site FT-03, Charleston AFB, South Carolina

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

1993-01-01

This site-specific work plan presents the scope of a bioventing pilot test for in situ treatment of fuel contaminated soils at the Fire Protection Training Area designated as Site FT-O3, Charleston Air Force Base (AFB), South Carolina...

Ecological strategies in california chaparral: Interacting effects of soils, climate, and fire on specific leaf area

Science.gov (United States)

Anacker, Brian; Rajakaruna, Nishanta; Ackerly, David; Harrison, Susan; Keeley, Jon E.; Vasey, Michael

2011-01-01

Background: High values of specific leaf area (SLA) are generally associated with high maximal growth rates in resource-rich conditions, such as mesic climates and fertile soils. However, fire may complicate this relationship since its frequency varies with both climate and soil fertility, and fire frequency selects for regeneration strategies (resprouting versus seeding) that are not independent of resource-acquisition strategies. Shared ancestry is also expected to affect the distribution of resource-use and regeneration traits.Aims: We examined climate, soil, and fire as drivers of community-level variation in a key functional trait, SLA, in chaparral in California.Methods: We quantified the phylogenetic, functional, and environmental non-independence of key traits for 87 species in 115 plots.Results: Among species, SLA was higher in resprouters than seeders, although not after phylogeny correction. Among communities, mean SLA was lower in harsh interior climates, but in these climates it was higher on more fertile soils and on more recently burned sites; in mesic coastal climates, mean SLA was uniformly high despite variation in soil fertility and fire history.Conclusions: We conclude that because important correlations exist among both species traits and environmental filters, interpreting the functional and phylogenetic structure of communities may require an understanding of complex interactive effects.

Ecological recovery of affected areas by a forest fire in the Tintales watershed (Boyacá, Colombia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fernando Fernández-Méndez

2016-07-01

Full Text Available The tintales watershed, located in the Santuario de Flora y Fauna (SFF of Iguaque, Boyaca, was affected by a wildfire. In that area, the natural regeneration was evaluated in 29 permanent plots. Two phyto-physiognomies, a rocky outcrop and oak were evaluated to compare their richness, diversity and dominance, with rocky outcrop yielding a greater richness and diversity. The Asteraceae family was the one that obtained greater representation, with a dominance of species such as Hypoxis decumbens, Pterídium aquilinum and Andropogon bicornis. The diversity in the whole sampling was low and uniform due to the repeated incidence of forest fires that have caused changes in the structure and composition of vegetation. The vegetation found did not differ substantially from other studies reported for this life zone and the region, where the dynamics of land use are similar, with high deforestation and fires. The vegetation established after the fire is dominated by colonizing and pioneering species. In the two phyto physiognomies studied after a year of the fire, two plant communities with statistically significant differences in wealth and homogeneity could be stablished. To start the restoration process, it is recommended to use as one of the inputs, the taxonomic differences found between oak  and rocky outcrop.

Modelling Variable Fire Severity in Boreal Forests: Effects of Fire Intensity and Stand Structure.

Science.gov (United States)

Miquelajauregui, Yosune; Cumming, Steven G; Gauthier, Sylvie

2016-01-01

It is becoming clear that fires in boreal forests are not uniformly stand-replacing. On the contrary, marked variation in fire severity, measured as tree mortality, has been found both within and among individual fires. It is important to understand the conditions under which this variation can arise. We integrated forest sample plot data, tree allometries and historical forest fire records within a diameter class-structured model of 1.0 ha patches of mono-specific black spruce and jack pine stands in northern Québec, Canada. The model accounts for crown fire initiation and vertical spread into the canopy. It uses empirical relations between fire intensity, scorch height, the percent of crown scorched and tree mortality to simulate fire severity, specifically the percent reduction in patch basal area due to fire-caused mortality. A random forest and a regression tree analysis of a large random sample of simulated fires were used to test for an effect of fireline intensity, stand structure, species composition and pyrogeographic regions on resultant severity. Severity increased with intensity and was lower for jack pine stands. The proportion of simulated fires that burned at high severity (e.g. >75% reduction in patch basal area) was 0.80 for black spruce and 0.11 for jack pine. We identified thresholds in intensity below which there was a marked sensitivity of simulated fire severity to stand structure, and to interactions between intensity and structure. We found no evidence for a residual effect of pyrogeographic region on simulated severity, after the effects of stand structure and species composition were accounted for. The model presented here was able to produce variation in fire severity under a range of fire intensity conditions. This suggests that variation in stand structure is one of the factors causing the observed variation in boreal fire severity.

A Revised Historical Fire Regime Analysis in Tunisia (1985–2010 from a Critical Analysis of the National Fire Database and Remote Sensing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chiraz Belhadj-Khedher

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Long-term fire history reconstructions provide fruitful information in the context of global change. Global remotely-sensed burned areas offer a uniform estimate of fire regimes worldwide, but hardly capture small fire events and cover only the last 20 years. Burned areas from national statistics often lack credibility due to discrepancies in fire report protocols between countries, partial data records and uncertain burned area estimates from field observations. However, they constitute a unique and valuable alternative long-term key source of information. We provide here a detailed critical analysis of the fire database in Tunisia, on the southern boundary of the Mediterranean basin and with a contrasted socio-economic environment compared to the more studied European side. We analyzed the fire record database with a quality checking protocol, combined with remote sensing burned area characterization from Landsat images. The high uncertainties in fire numbers could not lead to any conclusion for an accurate trend estimate. The corrected burned area lead to an average yearly burned area of 1799 ha year−1 compared to previous estimates of 1017 ha year−1, leading to a fraction of burnable land affected by fires of 0.19%, on the lowest range of observations in the Mediterranean basin. From this corrected database, we revised the usually assumed burned area decrease in this region, with no significant trend detected over the 1985–2010 period. We conclude on the need for thorough assessment of data quality in fire history reconstruction from national statistics to prevent misleading conclusions, and for an increased credibility, in order to be further used in fire models benchmarking or fire weather analysis. Our results can contribute to the under-represented fire regime analysis on the southern boundary of the Mediterranean basin.

Adapting fire management to future fire regimes: impacts on boreal forest composition and carbon balance in Canadian National Parks

Science.gov (United States)

de Groot, W. J.; Flannigan, M. D.; Cantin, A.

2009-04-01

The effects of future fire regimes altered by climate change, and fire management in adaptation to climate change were studied in the boreal forest region of western Canada. Present (1975-90) and future (2080-2100) fire regimes were simulated for several National Parks using data from the Canadian (CGCM1) and Hadley (HadCM3) Global Climate Models (GCM) in separate simulation scenarios. The long-term effects of the different fire regimes on forests were simulated using a stand-level, boreal fire effects model (BORFIRE). Changes in forest composition and biomass storage due to future altered fire regimes were determined by comparing current and future simulation results. This was used to assess the ecological impact of altered fire regimes on boreal forests, and the future role of these forests as carbon sinks or sources. Additional future simulations were run using adapted fire management strategies, including increased fire suppression and the use of prescribed fire to meet fire cycle objectives. Future forest composition, carbon storage and emissions under current and adapted fire management strategies were also compared to determine the impact of various future fire management options. Both of the GCM's showed more severe burning conditions under future fire regimes. This includes fires with higher intensity, greater depth of burn, greater total fuel consumption and shorter fire cycles (or higher rates of annual area burned). The Canadian GCM indicated burning conditions more severe than the Hadley GCM. Shorter fire cycles of future fire regimes generally favoured aspen, birch, and jack pine because it provided more frequent regeneration opportunity for these pioneer species. Black spruce was only minimally influenced by future fire regimes, although white spruce declined sharply. Maintaining representation of pure and mixed white spruce ecosystems in natural areas will be a concern under future fire regimes. Active fire suppression is required in these areas. In

Prediction of future subsurface temperatures in Korea

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Y.; Kim, S. K.; Jeong, J.; SHIN, E.

2017-12-01

The importance of climate change has been increasingly recognized because it has had the huge amount of impact on social, economic, and environmental aspect. For the reason, paleoclimate change has been studied intensively using different geological tools including borehole temperatures and future surface air temperatures (SATs) have been predicted for the local areas and the globe. Future subsurface temperatures can have also enormous impact on various areas and be predicted by an analytical method or a numerical simulation using measured and predicted SATs, and thermal diffusivity data of rocks. SATs have been measured at 73 meteorological observatories since 1907 in Korea and predicted at same locations up to the year of 2100. Measured SATs at the Seoul meteorological observatory increased by about 3.0 K from the year of 1907 to the present. Predicted SATs have 4 different scenarios depending on mainly CO2 concentration and national action plan on climate change in the future. The hottest scenario shows that SATs in Korea will increase by about 5.0 K from the present to the year of 2100. In addition, thermal diffusivity values have been measured on 2,903 rock samples collected from entire Korea. Data pretreatment based on autocorrelation analysis was conducted to control high frequency noise in thermal diffusivity data. Finally, future subsurface temperatures in Korea were predicted up to the year of 2100 by a FEM simulation code (COMSOL Multiphysics) using measured and predicted SATs, and thermal diffusivity data in Korea. At Seoul, the results of predictions show that subsurface temperatures will increase by about 5.4 K, 3.0 K, 1.5 K, and 0.2 K from the present to 2050 and then by about 7.9 K, 4.8 K, 2.5 K, and 0.5 K to 2100 at the depths of 10 m, 50 m, 100 m, and 200 m, respectively. We are now proceeding numerical simulations for subsurface temperature predictions for 73 locations in Korea.

Controlling Subsurface Fractures and Fluid Flow: A Basic Research Agenda

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pyrak-Nolte, Laura J [Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, IN (United States); DePaolo, Donald J. [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States); Pietraß, Tanja [USDOE Office of Science, Washington, DC (United States)

2015-05-22

From beneath the surface of the earth, we currently obtain about 80-percent of the energy our nation consumes each year. In the future we have the potential to generate billions of watts of electrical power from clean, green, geothermal energy sources. Our planet’s subsurface can also serve as a reservoir for storing energy produced from intermittent sources such as wind and solar, and it could provide safe, long-term storage of excess carbon dioxide, energy waste products and other hazardous materials. However, it is impossible to underestimate the complexities of the subsurface world. These complexities challenge our ability to acquire the scientific knowledge needed for the efficient and safe exploitation of its resources. To more effectively harness subsurface resources while mitigating the impacts of developing and using these resources, the U.S. Department of Energy established SubTER – the Subsurface Technology and Engineering RD&D Crosscut team. This DOE multi-office team engaged scientists and engineers from the national laboratories to assess and make recommendations for improving energy-related subsurface engineering. The SubTER team produced a plan with the overall objective of “adaptive control of subsurface fractures and fluid flow.”This plan revolved around four core technological pillars—Intelligent Wellbore Systems that sustain the integrity of the wellbore environment; Subsurface Stress and Induced Seismicity programs that guide and optimize sustainable energy strategies while reducing the risks associated with subsurface injections; Permeability Manipulation studies that improve methods of enhancing, impeding and eliminating fluid flow; and New Subsurface Signals that transform our ability to see into and characterize subsurface systems. The SubTER team developed an extensive R&D plan for advancing technologies within these four core pillars and also identified several areas where new technologies would require additional basic research

Analysis of sodium pool fire in SFEF for assessing the limiting pool fire

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mangarjuna Rao, P.; Ramesh, S.S.; Nashine, B.K.; Kasinathan, N.; Chellapandi, P.

2011-01-01

Accidental sodium leaks and resultant sodium fires in Liquid Metal Fast Breeder Reactor (LMFBR) systems can create a threat to the safe operation of the plant. To avoid this defence-in depth approach is implemented from the design stage of reactor itself. Rapid detection of sodium leak and fast dumping of the sodium into the storage tank of a defective circuit, leak collection trays, adequate lining of load bearing structural concrete and extinguishment of the sodium fire are the important defensive measures in the design, construction and operation of a LMFBR for protection against sodium leaks and their resultant fires. Evaluation of sodium leak events and their consequences by conducting large scale engineering experiments is very essential for effective implementation of the above protection measures for sodium fire safety. For this purpose a Sodium Fire Experimental Facility (SFEF) is constructed at SED, IGCAR. SFEF is having an experimental hall of size 9 m x 6 m x 10 m with 540 m 3 volume and its design pressure is 50 kPa. It is a concrete structure and provided with SS 304 liner, which is fixed to the inside surfaces of walls, ceiling and floor. A leak tight door of size (1.8 m x 2.0 m) is provided to the experimental hall and the facility is provided with a sodium equipment hall and a control room. Experimental evaluation of sodium pool fire consequences is an important activity in the LMFBR sodium fire safety related studies. An experimental program has been planned for different types of sodium fire studies in SFEF. A prior to that numerical analysis have been carried out for enclosed sodium pool fires using SOFIRE-II sodium pool fire code for SFEF experimental hall configuration to evaluate the limiting pool fire. This paper brings out results of the analysis carried out for this purpose. Limiting pool fire of SFEF depends on the exposed surface area of the pool, amount of sodium in the pool, oxygen concentration and initial sodium temperature. Limiting

Investigation of the subsurface features of the basement complex of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

3D seismic reflection survey was recently carried out within the Zaria area of the basement complex of northern Nigeria, in order to investigate the complexity of the subsurface features within the basement. The geology of the survey area was characterized by gneisses and low grade meta-sedimentary rocks that form the ...

Recent fire history of the Table Mountain National Park and implications for fire management

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Forsyth, GG

2008-01-01

Full Text Available . In addition, not every fire record was complete. Not all fire records were accompanied by a full date (day, month and year), and fires covering 19.7% of the total area burnt were Figure 1 Mean fire return periods per decade in the Table Mountain National... to fire in the Table Mountain National Park (Bond, Le Roux & Erntzen 1990, Cowling & Gxaba 1990, Moll & Gubb 1981, Thuiller et al. 2007, Yeaton & Bond 1991). Of the 40 extant species of Proteaceae in the park, at least 9 (in the genera Protea...

Fires as a Form of Distructing of Geographical Environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Željka Šiljković

1997-01-01

Full Text Available The article considers the problem of fires, especially forest fires on the territory of the Republic of Croatia. It analyses the dangerous of fires in the country as a whole and particularly in its two antithetically endangered territories: continental zone and coastal-insular Mediterranean area. The article distinguishes fire mostly jeopardized and fire devastated areas and the most endangered forest communities.

A Preliminary Fire PSA on PGSFR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Kilyoo; Han, Sanghoon; Lee, KwiLim

2017-01-01

A Prototype Generation IV Sodium Fast Reactor (PGSFR) is under design with defense in depth concept with active, passive, and inherent safety features to acquire a design approval for PGSFR from Korean regulatory authority by around 2017. A preliminary fire PSA on PGSFR is done in 2016 and a final fire PSA of PGSFR will be done in 2017. The characteristics of the preliminary fire PSA on PGSFR are described in this paper. Since PGSFR is very safe reactor, it is not bad approach to use a conservative assumption in the preliminary PSA. In addition, several drawings including cable routing are not yet issued, a conservative calculation for CDF is performed. As shown in Table 2, the CDF caused by the fire in the control room takes 89% portion of total CDF. Thus, a detailed fire modeling for control room is necessary for the final fire PSA on PGSFR. Also, the increased ignition frequency due to sodium leak would be derived by considering the sodium piping complexity in the final fire PSA on PGSFR. The 4th column of Table 2 is derived the 3rd column by multiplying the factor (592/1177). The 5th column is the ignition frequency caused by the sodium leak. The 6th column is derived by summing the 4th column and the 5th column. The 7th column is the CDF portion of each fire area. The control room (fire area F-A404A) is the most important area since the control room fire takes 89% portion of total CDF.

Water quality concerns due to forest fires: polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) contamination of groundwater from mountain areas.

Science.gov (United States)

Mansilha, C; Carvalho, A; Guimarães, P; Espinha Marques, J

2014-01-01

Water quality alterations due to forest fires may considerably affect aquatic organisms and water resources. These impacts are cumulative as a result of pollutants mobilized from fires, chemicals used to fight fire, and postfire responses. Few studies have examined postfire transport into water resources of trace elements, including the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), which are organic pollutants produced during combustion and are considered carcinogenic and harmful to humans. PAH are also known to adversely affect survival, growth, and reproduction of many aquatic species. This study assessed the effects of forest wildfires on groundwater from two mountain regions located in protected areas from north and central Portugal. Two campaigns to collect water samples were performed in order to measure PAH levels. Fifteen of 16 studied PAH were found in groundwater samples collected at burned areas, most of them at concentrations significantly higher than those found in control regions, indicating aquifer contamination. The total sum of PAH in burned areas ranged from 23.1to 95.1 ng/L with a median of 62.9 ng/L, which is one- to sixfold higher than the average level measured in controls (16.2 ng/L). In addition, in control samples, the levels of light PAH with two to four rings were at higher levels than heavy PAH with five or six rings, thus showing a different profile between control and burned sites. The contribution of wildfires to groundwater contamination by PAH was demonstrated, enabling a reliable assessment of the impacts on water quality and preparation of scientifically based decision criteria for postfire forest management practices.

Subsurface Event Detection and Classification Using Wireless Signal Networks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Muhannad T. Suleiman

2012-11-01

Full Text Available Subsurface environment sensing and monitoring applications such as detection of water intrusion or a landslide, which could significantly change the physical properties of the host soil, can be accomplished using a novel concept, Wireless Signal Networks (WSiNs. The wireless signal networks take advantage of the variations of radio signal strength on the distributed underground sensor nodes of WSiNs to monitor and characterize the sensed area. To characterize subsurface environments for event detection and classification, this paper provides a detailed list and experimental data of soil properties on how radio propagation is affected by soil properties in subsurface communication environments. Experiments demonstrated that calibrated wireless signal strength variations can be used as indicators to sense changes in the subsurface environment. The concept of WSiNs for the subsurface event detection is evaluated with applications such as detection of water intrusion, relative density change, and relative motion using actual underground sensor nodes. To classify geo-events using the measured signal strength as a main indicator of geo-events, we propose a window-based minimum distance classifier based on Bayesian decision theory. The window-based classifier for wireless signal networks has two steps: event detection and event classification. With the event detection, the window-based classifier classifies geo-events on the event occurring regions that are called a classification window. The proposed window-based classification method is evaluated with a water leakage experiment in which the data has been measured in laboratory experiments. In these experiments, the proposed detection and classification method based on wireless signal network can detect and classify subsurface events.

Coal fires in Indonesia

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Whitehouse, Alfred E.; Mulyana, Asep A.S. [Office of Surface Mining/Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources Coal Fire Project, Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Agency for Training and Education, Jl. Gatot Subroto, Kav. 49, Jakarta 12950 (Indonesia)

2004-07-12

Indonesia's fire and haze problem is increasingly being ascribed to large-scale forest conversion and land clearing activities making way for pulpwood, rubber and oil palm plantations. Fire is the cheapest tool available to small holders and plantation owners to reduce vegetation cover and prepare and fertilize extremely poor soils. Fires that escaped from agricultural burns have ravaged East Kalimantan forests on the island of Borneo during extreme drought periods in 1982-1983, 1987, 1991, 1994 and 1997-1998. Estimates based on satellite data and ground observations are that more than five million hectares were burned in East Kalimantan during the 1997/1998 dry season. Not only were the economic losses and ecological damage from these surface fires enormous, they ignited coal seams exposed at the ground surface along their outcrops.Coal fires now threaten Indonesia's shrinking ecological resources in Kutai National Park and Sungai Wain Nature Reserve. Sungai Wain has one of the last areas of unburned primary rainforest in the Balikpapan-Samarinda area with an extremely rich biodiversity. Although fires in 1997/1998 damaged nearly 50% of this Reserve and ignited 76 coal fires, it remains the most valuable water catchment area in the region and it has been used as a reintroduction site for the endangered orangutan. The Office of Surface Mining provided Indonesia with the capability to take quick action on coal fires that presented threats to public health and safety, infrastructure or the environment. The US Department of State's Southeast Asia Environmental Protection Initiative through the US Agency for International Development funded the project. Technical assistance and training transferred skills in coal fire management through the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resource's Training Agency to the regional offices; giving the regions the long-term capability to manage coal fires. Funding was also included to extinguish coal fires as

Fire detection in warehouse facilities

CERN Document Server

Dinaburg, Joshua

2013-01-01

Automatic sprinklers systems are the primary fire protection system in warehouse and storage facilities. The effectiveness of this strategy has come into question due to the challenges presented by modern warehouse facilities, including increased storage heights and areas, automated storage retrieval systems (ASRS), limitations on water supplies, and changes in firefighting strategies. The application of fire detection devices used to provide early warning and notification of incipient warehouse fire events is being considered as a component of modern warehouse fire protection.Fire Detection i

Seasonal forecasting of fire over Kalimantan, Indonesia

Science.gov (United States)

Spessa, A. C.; Field, R. D.; Pappenberger, F.; Langner, A.; Englhart, S.; Weber, U.; Stockdale, T.; Siegert, F.; Kaiser, J. W.; Moore, J.

2015-03-01

Large-scale fires occur frequently across Indonesia, particularly in the southern region of Kalimantan and eastern Sumatra. They have considerable impacts on carbon emissions, haze production, biodiversity, health, and economic activities. In this study, we demonstrate that severe fire and haze events in Indonesia can generally be predicted months in advance using predictions of seasonal rainfall from the ECMWF System 4 coupled ocean-atmosphere model. Based on analyses of long, up-to-date series observations on burnt area, rainfall, and tree cover, we demonstrate that fire activity is negatively correlated with rainfall and is positively associated with deforestation in Indonesia. There is a contrast between the southern region of Kalimantan (high fire activity, high tree cover loss, and strong non-linear correlation between observed rainfall and fire) and the central region of Kalimantan (low fire activity, low tree cover loss, and weak, non-linear correlation between observed rainfall and fire). The ECMWF seasonal forecast provides skilled forecasts of burnt and fire-affected area with several months lead time explaining at least 70% of the variance between rainfall and burnt and fire-affected area. Results are strongly influenced by El Niño years which show a consistent positive bias. Overall, our findings point to a high potential for using a more physical-based method for predicting fires with several months lead time in the tropics rather than one based on indexes only. We argue that seasonal precipitation forecasts should be central to Indonesia's evolving fire management policy.

Learning fire-fighting lessons after Chernobyl

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1990-01-01

Fire protection measures in Soviet nuclear power plants were set out in November 1987, in the Nuclear Power Plant Design Fire Protection Standards (VSN 01-87, USSR Ministry of Atomic Energy). The most important of these measures are. Avoiding as far as possible the use of combustible materials in plant structures and equipment. Dividing buildings and areas into suitable fire-fighting zones. Ensuring reliable fire protection of the control and safety systems. Protecting technical personnel from the dangers of a fire while they are performing essential accident-repair work and facilitating evacuation procedures (providing at least two evacuation routes and exits, anti-smoke protection of evacuation routes and control panel areas etc). Installing automatic fire-extinguishing and fire alarm systems. Providing various stationary facilities and equipment to assist the use of mobile fire-fighting appliances. In addition, a special fire-fighting division is being set up in every nuclear power plant while the first unit is still being constructed. These divisions work in close co-operation with the technical personnel management of the plant and with the bodies responsible for monitoring nuclear safety. (author)

Analyzing subsurface drain network performance in an agricultural monitoring site with a three-dimensional hydrological model

Science.gov (United States)

Nousiainen, Riikka; Warsta, Lassi; Turunen, Mika; Huitu, Hanna; Koivusalo, Harri; Pesonen, Liisa

2015-10-01

Effectiveness of a subsurface drainage system decreases with time, leading to a need to restore the drainage efficiency by installing new drain pipes in problem areas. The drainage performance of the resulting system varies spatially and complicates runoff and nutrient load generation within the fields. We presented a method to estimate the drainage performance of a heterogeneous subsurface drainage system by simulating the area with the three-dimensional hydrological FLUSH model. A GIS analysis was used to delineate the surface runoff contributing area in the field. We applied the method to reproduce the water balance and to investigate the effectiveness of a subsurface drainage network of a clayey field located in southern Finland. The subsurface drainage system was originally installed in the area in 1971 and the drainage efficiency was improved in 1995 and 2005 by installing new drains. FLUSH was calibrated against total runoff and drain discharge data from 2010 to 2011 and validated against total runoff in 2012. The model supported quantification of runoff fractions via the three installed drainage networks. Model realisations were produced to investigate the extent of the runoff contributing areas and the effect of the drainage parameters on subsurface drain discharge. The analysis showed that better model performance was achieved when the efficiency of the oldest drainage network (installed in 1971) was decreased. Our analysis method can reveal the drainage system performance but not the reason for the deterioration of the drainage performance. Tillage layer runoff from the field was originally computed by subtracting drain discharge from the total runoff. The drains installed in 1995 bypass the measurement system, which renders the tillage layer runoff calculation procedure invalid after 1995. Therefore, this article suggests use of a local correction coefficient based on the simulations for further research utilizing data from the study area.

Satellite-Based Evaluation of the Post-Fire Recovery Process from the Worst Forest Fire Case in South Korea

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jae-Hyun Ryu

2018-06-01

Full Text Available The worst forest fire in South Korea occurred in April 2000 on the eastern coast. Forest recovery works were conducted until 2005, and the forest has been monitored since the fire. Remote sensing techniques have been used to detect the burned areas and to evaluate the recovery-time point of the post-fire processes during the past 18 years. We used three indices, Normalized Burn Ratio (NBR, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI, and Gross Primary Production (GPP, to temporally monitor a burned area in terms of its moisture condition, vegetation biomass, and photosynthetic activity, respectively. The change of those three indices by forest recovery processes was relatively analyzed using an unburned reference area. The selected unburned area had similar characteristics to the burned area prior to the forest fire. The temporal patterns of NBR and NDVI, not only showed the forest recovery process as a result of forest management, but also statistically distinguished the recovery periods at the regions of low, moderate, and high fire severity. The NBR2.1 for all areas, calculated using 2.1 μm wavelengths, reached the unburned state in 2008. The NDVI for areas with low and moderate fire severity levels became significantly equal to the unburned state in 2009 (p > 0.05, but areas with high severity levels did not reach the unburned state until 2017. This indicated that the surface and vegetation moisture conditions recovered to the unburned state about 8 years after the fire event, while vegetation biomass and health required a longer time to recover, particularly for high severity regions. In the case of GPP, it rapidly recovered after about 3 years. Then, the steady increase in GPP surpassed the GPP of the reference area in 2015 because of the rapid growth and high photosynthetic activity of young forests. Therefore, the concluding scientific message is that, because the recovery-time point for each component of the forest ecosystem is

Field experiments with subsurface releases of oil and and dyed water

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rye, H.; Brandvik, P.J.; Strom, T.

1998-01-01

A field experiment with a subsurface release of oil and air was carried out in June 1996 close to the Frigg Field in the North Sea area. One of the purposes of this sea trial was to increase the knowledge concerning the behaviour of the oil and gas during a subsurface blowout. This was done by releasing oil and air at 106 meters depth with a realistic gas oil ratio (GOR=67) and release velocity of the oil. In addition to the oil release, several releases with dyed water and gas (GOR=7 - 65) were performed. Important and unique data were collected during these subsurface releases. In particular, the experiments with the dyed water releases combined with air turned out to be an efficient way of obtaining field data for the behaviour of subsurface plumes. The main conclusions from analysis for the data collected are: the field methodology used to study blowout releases in the field appears to be appropriate. The use of dyed water to determine the performance of the subsurface plume proved out to be an efficient way to obtain reliable and useful data. The behaviour of the subsurface plume is very sensitive to gas flow rates. For low gas flow rates, the plume did not reach the sea surface at all due to the presence of stratification in the ambient water. Some discrepancies were found between a numerical model for subsurface releases and field results. These discrepancies are pointed out, and recommendations for possible model improvements are given. (author)

Fire regimes, past and present

Science.gov (United States)

Carl N. Skinner; Chiru Chang

1996-01-01

Fire has been an important ecosystem process in the Sierra Nevada for thousands of years. Before the area was settled in the 1850s, fires were generally frequent throughout much of the range. The frequency and severity of these fires varied spatially and temporally depending upon climate, elevation, topography, vegetation, edaphic conditions, and human cultural...

36 CFR 2.13 - Fires.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Fires. 2.13 Section 2.13... PROTECTION, PUBLIC USE AND RECREATION § 2.13 Fires. (a) The following are prohibited: (1) Lighting or maintaining a fire, except in designated areas or receptacles and under conditions that may be established by...

Subsurface structure identification uses derivative analyses of the magnetic data in Candi Umbul-Telomoyo geothermal prospect area

Science.gov (United States)

Septyasari, U.; Niasari, S. W.; Maghfira, P. D.

2018-04-01

Telomoyo geothermal prospect area is located in Central Java, Indonesia. One of the manifestations around Telomoyo is a warm spring, called Candi Umbul. The hydrothermal fluids from the manifestation could be from the subsurface flowing up through geological structures. The previous research about 2D magnetic modeling in Candi Umbul showed that there was a normal fault with strike/dip N60°E/45° respectively. This research aims to know the distance boundary and the kind of the geological structure in the study area. We also compared the geological structure direction based on the geologic map and the derivative maps. We used derivative analyses of the magnetic data, i.e. First Horizontal Derivative (FHD) which is the rate of change of the horizontal gradient in the horizontal direction. FHD indicates the boundaries of the geological structure. We also used Second Vertical Derivative (SVD) which is the rate of change of the vertical gradient in the vertical direction. SVD can reveal normal fault or thrust fault. The FHD and SVD maps show that the geological structure boundary has the same direction with the north west-south east geological structure. The geological structure boundary is in 486 m of the local distance. Our result confirms that there is a normal fault in the study area.

Subsurface damage mechanism of high speed grinding process in single crystal silicon revealed by atomistic simulations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Jia; Fang, Qihong; Zhang, Liangchi; Liu, Youwen

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Molecular dynamic model of nanoscale high speed grinding of silicon workpiece has been established. • The effect of grinding speed on subsurface damage and grinding surface integrity by analyzing the chip, dislocation movement, and phase transformation during high speed grinding process are thoroughly investigated. • Subsurface damage is studied by the evolution of surface area at first time for more obvious observation on transition from ductile to brittle. • The hydrostatic stress and von Mises stress by the established analytical model are studied subsurface damage mechanism during nanoscale grinding. - Abstract: Three-dimensional molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are performed to investigate the nanoscale grinding process of single crystal silicon using diamond tool. The effect of grinding speed on subsurface damage and grinding surface integrity by analyzing the chip, dislocation movement, and phase transformation are studied. We also establish an analytical model to calculate several important stress fields including hydrostatic stress and von Mises stress for studying subsurface damage mechanism, and obtain the dislocation density on the grinding subsurface. The results show that a higher grinding velocity in machining brittle material silicon causes a larger chip and a higher temperature, and reduces subsurface damage. However, when grinding velocity is above 180 m s −1 , subsurface damage thickness slightly increases because a higher grinding speed leads to the increase in grinding force and temperature, which accelerate dislocation nucleation and motion. Subsurface damage is studied by the evolution of surface area at first time for more obvious observation on transition from ductile to brittle, that provides valuable reference for machining nanometer devices. The von Mises stress and the hydrostatic stress play an important role in the grinding process, and explain the subsurface damage though dislocation mechanism under high

Detection of coal mine fires in the Jharia coal field using NOAA/AVHRR data

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Agarwal, R.; Singh, D.; Chauhan, D.S.; Singh, K.P. [Harcourt Butler Technological Institute, Kanpur (India)

2006-09-15

Coal fires represent a major problem in most coal producing countries. The Jharia coal field (JCF) has been affected by surface and sub-surface coal fires since the beginning of mining in the region in the mid 1800s. Currently research is focused on using freely available satellite data such as NOAA/AVHRR, MODIS (moderate resolution imaging spectrometer) etc for various applications. The potential of National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) images for detecting coal fires and monitoring their progress and associated environmental hazards and risks to the local communities in the JCF has been reviewed. Three models, namely the thresholding model, the contextual model and the fuel mask model have been used to determine the potential fire pixels. Due to the coarse resolution of the NOAA/AVHRR data it was essential to determine sub-pixel fires as well. Results of this study have been verified using the MODIS active fires product, MOD14 (Terra). We have used ten images of NOAA/AVHRR for the year 2004 in this study, and the results are in broad agreement with the ground truth data.

Fire hazard analysis for the fuel supply shutdown storage buildings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

REMAIZE, J.A.

2000-01-01

The purpose of a fire hazards analysis (FHA) is to comprehensively assess the risk from fire and other perils within individual fire areas in a DOE facility in relation to proposed fire protection so as to ascertain whether the objectives of DOE 5480.7A, Fire Protection, are met. This Fire Hazards Analysis was prepared as required by HNF-PRO-350, Fire Hazards Analysis Requirements, (Reference 7) for a portion of the 300 Area N Reactor Fuel Fabrication and Storage Facility

The economics of fire protection

CERN Document Server

Ramachandran, Ganapathy

2003-01-01

This important new book, the first of its kind in the fire safety field, discusses the economic problems faced by decision-makers in the areas of fire safety and fire precautions. The author considers the theoretical aspects of cost-benefit analysis and other relevant economic problems with practical applications to fire protection systems. Clear examples are included to illustrate these techniques in action. The work covers: * the performance and effectiveness of passive fire protection measures such as structural fire resistance and means of escape facilities, and active systems such as sprinklers and detectors * the importance of educating for better understanding and implementation of fire prevention through publicity campaigns and fire brigade operations * cost-benefit analysis of fire protection measures and their combinations, taking into account trade-offs between these measures. The book is essential reading for consultants and academics in construction management, economics and fire safety, as well ...

FIRE HAZARDS ANALYSIS - BUSTED BUTTE

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Longwell, R.; Keifer, J.; Goodin, S.

2001-01-01

The purpose of this fire hazards analysis (FHA) is to assess the risk from fire within individual fire areas at the Busted Butte Test Facility and to ascertain whether the DOE fire safety objectives are met. The objective, identified in DOE Order 420.1, Section 4.2, is to establish requirements for a comprehensive fire and related hazards protection program for facilities sufficient to minimize the potential for: (1) The occurrence of a fire related event. (2) A fire that causes an unacceptable on-site or off-site release of hazardous or radiological material that will threaten the health and safety of employees. (3) Vital DOE programs suffering unacceptable interruptions as a result of fire and related hazards. (4) Property losses from a fire and related events exceeding limits established by DOE. Critical process controls and safety class systems being damaged as a result of a fire and related events

33 CFR 127.615 - Fires.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Fires. 127.615 Section 127.615... Facilities Handling Liquefied Natural Gas Firefighting § 127.615 Fires. In the marine transfer area for LNG, the operator shall ensure that there are no fires when there is LNG present. [CGD 78-038, 53 FR 3376...

Post Fire Safe Shutdown Analysis Using a Fault Tree Logic Model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yim, Hyun Tae; Park, Jun Hyun

2005-01-01

Every nuclear power plant should have its own fire hazard analysis including the fire safe shutdown analysis. A safe shutdown (SSD) analysis is performed to demonstrate the capability of the plant to safely shut down for a fire in any given area. The basic assumption is that there will be fire damage to all cables and equipment located within a common fire area. When evaluating the SSD capabilities of the plant, based on a review of the systems, equipment and cables within each fire area, it should be determined which shutdown paths are either unaffected or least impacted by a postulated fire within the fire area. Instead of seeking a success path for safe shutdown given all cables and equipment damaged by a fire, there can be an alternative approach to determine the SSD capability: fault tree analysis. This paper introduces the methodology for fire SSD analysis using a fault tree logic model

Conceptual geohydrological model of the separations area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Root, R.W.; Marine, I.W.

1977-01-01

Subsurface drilling in and around the Separations Areas (F-Area and H-Area of the Savannah River Plant) is providing detailed information for a conceptual model of the geology and hydrology underlying these areas. This conceptual model will provide the framework needed for a mathematical model of groundwater movement beneath these areas. Existing information substantiates the presence of two areally extensive clay layers and several discontinuous clay and sandy-clay layers. These layers occur in and between beds of clayey and silty sand that make up most of the subsurface material. Within these sand beds are geologic units of differing hydraulic conductivity. For the present scale of the model, the subsurface information is considered adequate in H-Area, but additional drilling is planned in F-Area

Highlighting biome-specific sensitivity of fire size distributions to time-gap parameter using a new algorithm for fire event individuation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Oom, Duarte; Silva, Pedro C.; Bistinas, Ioannis; Pereira, José M.C.

2016-01-01

Detailed spatial-temporal characterization of individual fire dynamics using remote sensing data is important to understand fire-environment relationships, to support landscape-scale fire risk management, and to obtain improved statistics on fire size distributions over broad areas. Previously,

Subsurface Conditions Description of the B and BX and BY Waste Management Area

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

WOOD, M.I.

2000-03-13

This document provides a discussion of the subsurface conditions relevant to the occurrence and migration of contaminants in the vadose zone and groundwater underlying the 241-B, -BX, and -BY tank farms. This document provides a concise summary of existing information in support of characterization planning. This document includes a description of the available environmental contamination data and a limited, qualitative interpretation of these data.

Subsurface Conditions Description of the B and BX and BY Waste Management Area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

WOOD, M.I.

2000-01-01

This document provides a discussion of the subsurface conditions relevant to the occurrence and migration of contaminants in the vadose zone and groundwater underlying the 241-B, -BX, and -BY tank farms. This document provides a concise summary of existing information in support of characterization planning. This document includes a description of the available environmental contamination data and a limited, qualitative interpretation of these data

Gis-Based Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis for Forest Fire Risk Mapping

Science.gov (United States)

Akay, A. E.; Erdoğan, A.

2017-11-01

The forested areas along the coastal zone of the Mediterranean region in Turkey are classified as first-degree fire sensitive areas. Forest fires are major environmental disaster that affects the sustainability of forest ecosystems. Besides, forest fires result in important economic losses and even threaten human lives. Thus, it is critical to determine the forested areas with fire risks and thereby minimize the damages on forest resources by taking necessary precaution measures in these areas. The risk of forest fire can be assessed based on various factors such as forest vegetation structures (tree species, crown closure, tree stage), topographic features (slope and aspect), and climatic parameters (temperature, wind). In this study, GIS-based Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) method was used to generate forest fire risk map. The study was implemented in the forested areas within Yayla Forest Enterprise Chiefs at Dursunbey Forest Enterprise Directorate which is classified as first degree fire sensitive area. In the solution process, "extAhp 2.0" plug-in running Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method in ArcGIS 10.4.1 was used to categorize study area under five fire risk classes: extreme risk, high risk, moderate risk, and low risk. The results indicated that 23.81 % of the area was of extreme risk, while 25.81 % was of high risk. The result indicated that the most effective criterion was tree species, followed by tree stages. The aspect had the least effective criterion on forest fire risk. It was revealed that GIS techniques integrated with MCDA methods are effective tools to quickly estimate forest fire risk at low cost. The integration of these factors into GIS can be very useful to determine forested areas with high fire risk and also to plan forestry management after fire.

Quantitative analysis of forest fire extinction efficiency

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miguel E. Castillo-Soto

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Aim of study: Evaluate the economic extinction efficiency of forest fires, based on the study of fire combat undertaken by aerial and terrestrial means. Area of study, materials and methods: Approximately 112,000 hectares in Chile. Records of 5,876 forest fires that occurred between 1998 and 2009 were analyzed. The area further provides a validation sector for results, by incorporating databases for the years 2010 and 2012. The criteria used for measuring extinction efficiency were economic value of forestry resources, Contraction Factor analysis and definition of the extinction costs function. Main results: It is possible to establish a relationship between burnt area, extinction costs and economic losses. The method proposed may be used and adapted to other fire situations, requiring unit costs for aerial and terrestrial operations, economic value of the property to be protected and speed attributes of fire spread in free advance. Research highlights: The determination of extinction efficiency in containment works of forest fires and potential projection of losses, different types of plant fuel and local conditions favoring the spread of fire broaden the admissible ranges of a, φ and Ce considerably.

Topographic and fire weather controls of fire refugia in forested ecosystems of northwestern North America

Science.gov (United States)

Krawchuk, Meg A.; Haire, Sandra L.; Coop, Jonathan D.; Parisien, Marc-Andre; Whitman, Ellen; Chong, Geneva W.; Miller, Carol

2016-01-01

Fire refugia, sometimes referred to as fire islands, shadows, skips, residuals, or fire remnants, are an important element of the burn mosaic, but we lack a quantitative framework that links observations of fire refugia from different environmental contexts. Here, we develop and test a conceptual model for how predictability of fire refugia varies according to topographic complexity and fire weather conditions. Refugia were quantified as areas unburned or burned at comparatively low severity based on remotely sensed burn severity data. We assessed the relationship between refugia and a suite of terrain-related explanatory metrics by fitting a collection of boosted regression tree models. The models were developed

Characterization of the Fire Regime and Drivers of Fires in the West African Tropical Forest

Science.gov (United States)

Dwomoh, F. K.; Wimberly, M. C.

2016-12-01

The Upper Guinean forest (UGF), encompassing the tropical regions of West Africa, is a globally significant biodiversity hotspot and a critically important socio-economic and ecological resource for the region. However, the UGF is one of the most human-disturbed tropical forest ecosystems with the only remaining large patches of original forests distributed in protected areas, which are embedded in a hotspot of climate stress & land use pressures, increasing their vulnerability to fire. We hypothesized that human impacts and climate interact to drive spatial and temporal variability in fire, with fire exhibiting distinctive seasonality and sensitivity to drought in areas characterized by different population densities, agricultural practices, vegetation types, and levels of forest degradation. We used the MODIS active fire product to identify and characterize fire activity in the major ecoregions of the UGF. We used TRMM rainfall data to measure climatic variability and derived indicators of human land use from a variety of geospatial datasets. We employed time series modeling to identify the influences of drought indices and other antecedent climatic indicators on temporal patterns of active fire occurrence. We used a variety of modeling approaches to assess the influences of human activities and land cover variables on the spatial pattern of fire activity. Our results showed that temporal patterns of fire activity in the UGF were related to precipitation, but these relationships were spatially heterogeneous. The pattern of fire seasonality varied geographically, reflecting both climatological patterns and agricultural practices. The spatial pattern of fire activity was strongly associated with vegetation gradients and anthropogenic activities occurring at fine spatial scales. The Guinean forest-savanna mosaic ecoregion had the most fires. This study contributes to our understanding of UGF fire regime and the spatio-temporal dynamics of tropical forest fires in

Fuel buildup and potential fire behavior after stand-replacing fires, logging fire-killed trees and herbicide shrub removal in Sierra Nevada forests

Science.gov (United States)

McGinnis, Thomas W.; Keeley, Jon E.; Stephens, Scott L.; Roller, Gary B.

2010-01-01

Typically, after large stand-replacing fires in mid-elevation Sierra Nevada forests, dense shrub fields occupy sites formerly occupied by mature conifers, until eventually conifers overtop and shade out shrubs. Attempting to reduce fuel loads and expedite forest regeneration in these areas, the USDA Forest Service often disrupts this cycle by the logging of fire-killed trees, replanting of conifers and killing of shrubs. We measured the effects of these treatments on live and dead fuel loads and alien species and modeled potential fire behavior and fire effects on regenerating forests. Sampling occurred in untreated, logged and herbicide-treated stands throughout the Sierra Nevada in four large fire areas 4–21 years after stand-replacing fires. Logging fire-killed trees significantly increased total available dead fuel loads in the short term but did not affect shrub cover, grass and forb cover, alien species cover or alien species richness. Despite the greater available dead fuel loads, fire behavior was not modeled to be different between logged and untreated stands, due to abundant shrub fuels in both logged and untreated stands. In contrast, the herbicide treatment directed at shrubs resulted in extremely low shrub cover, significantly greater alien species richness and significantly greater alien grass and forb cover. Grass and forb cover was strongly correlated with solar radiation on the ground, which may be the primary reason that grass and forb cover was higher in herbicide treated stands with low shrub and tree cover. Repeat burning exacerbated the alien grass problem in some stands. Although modeled surface fire flame lengths and rates of spread were found to be greater in stands dominated by shrubs, compared to low shrub cover conifer plantations, surface fire would still be intense enough to kill most trees, given their small size and low crown heights in the first two decades after planting.

Co-firing biomass and fossil fuels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Junge, D.C.

1991-01-01

In June 1989, the Alaska Energy Authority and the University of Alaska Anchorage published a monograph summarizing the technology of co-firing biomass and fossil fuels. The title of the 180 page monograph is 'Use of Mixed Fuels in Direct Combustion Systems'. Highlights from the monograph are presented in this paper with emphasis on the following areas: (1) Equipment design and operational experience co-firing fuels; (2) The impact of co-firing on efficiency; (3) Environmental considerations associated with co-firing; (4) Economic considerations in co-firing; and (5) Decision making criteria for co-firing

Development of a comprehensive source term model for the Subsurface Disposal Area at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-01-01

The first detailed comprehensive simulation study to evaluate fate and transport of wastes disposed in the Subsurface Disposal Area (SDA), at the Radioactive Waste Management Complex (RWMC), Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) has recently been conducted. One of the most crucial parts of this modeling was the source term or release model. The current study used information collected over the last five years defining contaminant specific information including: the amount disposed, the waste form (physical and chemical properties) and the type of container used for each contaminant disposed. This information was used to simulate the release of contaminants disposed in the shallow subsurface at the SDA. The DUST-MS model was used to simulate the release. Modifications were made to allow the yearly disposal information to be incorporated. The modeling includes unique container and release rate information for each of the 42 years of disposal. The results from this simulation effort are used for both a groundwater and a biotic uptake evaluation. As part of this modeling exercise, inadequacies in the available data relating to the release of contaminants have been identified. The results from this modeling study have been used to guide additional data collection activities at the SDA for purposes of increasing confidence in the appropriateness of model predictions

Preliminary report of biological intrusion studies at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory subsurface disposal area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reynolds, T.D.; Arthur, W.J.

1983-01-01

As part of a larger study on the effects of biological intrusion of plants and animals into the soil cover placed over low-level radioactive wastes stored at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory Subsurface Disposal Area (SDA), research was initiated in the summer of 1982 to determine the burrow characteristics and movement patterns of several small mammal species, and the rooting depths of various plants. The depth, length, and volume of burrows were determined for four small mammal species: deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus), Ord's kangaroo rat (Dipodomys ordii), montane vole (Microtus montanus), and Townsend's ground squirrel (Spermophilis townsendii). The latter species excavated the greatest mean burrow depth (39 cm), length (404 cm), and volume (14.8 1). Movement patterns of three species were determined by radiotelemetry. The mean area of use for P. maniculatus, D. ordii, and M. montanus was 2.3, 1.5, and 1.2 ha respectively. Limited data on rooting depths of various native and introduced plant species at the SDA were obtained by literature review and excavation. During FY-83, experiments will be conducted, using the information obtained from the first year of this study, to evaluate the impact of burrowing mammals and root intrusion on the integrity of the soil cover currently existing at the SDA. Details of these experimental studies are presented

Subsurface clade of Geobacteraceae that predominates in a diversity of Fe(III)-reducing subsurface environments

Science.gov (United States)

Holmes, Dawn E.; O'Neil, Regina A.; Vrionis, Helen A.; N'Guessan, Lucie A.; Ortiz-Bernad, Irene; Larrahondo, Maria J.; Adams, Lorrie A.; Ward, Joy A.; Nicoll , Julie S.; Nevin, Kelly P.; Chavan, Milind A.; Johnson, Jessica P.; Long, Philip E.; Lovely, Derek R.

2007-01-01

There are distinct differences in the physiology of Geobacter species available in pure culture. Therefore, to understand the ecology of Geobacter species in subsurface environments, it is important to know which species predominate. Clone libraries were assembled with 16S rRNA genes and transcripts amplified from three subsurface environments in which Geobacter species are known to be important members of the microbial community: (1) a uranium-contaminated aquifer located in Rifle, CO, USA undergoing in situ bioremediation; (2) an acetate-impacted aquifer that serves as an analog for the long-term acetate amendments proposed for in situ uranium bioremediation and (3) a petroleum-contaminated aquifer in which Geobacter species play a role in the oxidation of aromatic hydrocarbons coupled with the reduction of Fe(III). The majority of Geobacteraceae 16S rRNA sequences found in these environments clustered in a phylogenetically coherent subsurface clade, which also contains a number of Geobacter species isolated from subsurface environments. Concatamers constructed with 43 Geobacter genes amplified from these sites also clustered within this subsurface clade. 16S rRNA transcript and gene sequences in the sediments and groundwater at the Rifle site were highly similar, suggesting that sampling groundwater via monitoring wells can recover the most active Geobacter species. These results suggest that further study of Geobacter species in the subsurface clade is necessary to accurately model the behavior of Geobacter species during subsurface bioremediation of metal and organic contaminants.

MERIS burned area algorithm in the framework of the ESA Fire CCI Project

Science.gov (United States)

Oliva, P.; Calado, T.; Gonzalez, F.

2012-04-01

The Fire-CCI project aims at generating long and reliable time series of burned area (BA) maps based on existing information provided by European satellite sensors. In this context, a BA algorithm is currently being developed using the Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS) sensor. The algorithm is being tested over a series of ten study sites with a area of 500x500 km2 each, for the period of 2003 to 2009. The study sites are located in Canada, Colombia, Brazil, Portugal, Angola, South Africa, Kazakhstan, Borneo, Russia and Australia and include a variety of vegetation types characterized by different fire regimes. The algorithm has to take into account several limiting aspects that range from the MERIS sensor characteristics (e.g. the lack of SWIR bands) to the noise presented in the data. In addition the lack of data in some areas caused either because of cloud contamination or because the sensor does not acquire full resolution data over the study area, provokes a limitation difficult to overcome. In order to overcome these drawbacks, the design of the BA algorithm is based on the analysis of maximum composites of spectral indices characterized by low values of temporal standard deviation in space and associated to MODIS hot spots. Accordingly, for each study site and year, composites of maximum values of BAI are computed and the corresponding Julian day of the maximum value and number of observations in the period are registered by pixel . Then we computed the temporal standard deviation for pixels with a number of observations greater than 10 using spatial matrices of 3x3 pixels. To classify the BAI values as burned or non-burned we extract statistics using the MODIS hot spots. A pixel is finally classified as burned if it satisfies the following conditions: i) it is associated to hot spots; ii) BAI maximum is higher than a certain threshold and iii) the standard deviation of the Julian day is less than a given number of days.

Time-Lapse Electrical Resistivity Investigations for Imaging the Grouting Injection in Shallow Subsurface Cavities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Muhammad Farooq

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The highway of Yongweol-ri, Muan-gun, south-western part of the South Korean Peninsula, is underlain by the abandoned of subsurface cavities, which were discovered in 2005. These cavities lie at shallow depths with the range of 5∼15 meters below the ground surface. Numerous subsidence events have repeatedly occurred in the past few years, damaging infrastructure and highway. As a result of continuing subsidence issues, the Korean Institute of Geosciences and Mineral Resources (KIGAM was requested by local administration to resolve the issue. The KIGAM used geophysical methods to delineate subsurface cavities and improve more refined understanding of the cavities network in the study area. Cement based grouting has been widely employed in the construction industry to reinforce subsurface ground. In this research work, time-lapse electrical resistivity surveys were accomplished to monitor the grouting injection in the subsurface cavities beneath the highway, which have provided a quasi-real-time monitoring for modifying the subsurface cavities related to ground reinforcement, which would be difficult with direct methods. The results obtained from time-lapse electrical resistivity technique have satisfactory imaged the grouting injection experiment in the subsurface cavities beneath the highway. Furthermore, the borehole camera confirmed the presence of grouting material in the subsurface cavities, and hence this procedure increases the mechanical resistance of subsurface cavities below the highway.

The Serpentinite Subsurface Microbiome

Science.gov (United States)

Schrenk, M. O.; Nelson, B. Y.; Brazelton, W. J.

2011-12-01

Microbial habitats hosted in ultramafic rocks constitute substantial, globally-distributed portions of the subsurface biosphere, occurring both on the continents and beneath the seafloor. The aqueous alteration of ultramafics, in a process known as serpentinization, creates energy rich, high pH conditions, with low concentrations of inorganic carbon which place fundamental constraints upon microbial metabolism and physiology. Despite their importance, very few studies have attempted to directly access and quantify microbial activities and distributions in the serpentinite subsurface microbiome. We have initiated microbiological studies of subsurface seeps and rocks at three separate continental sites of serpentinization in Newfoundland, Italy, and California and compared these results to previous analyses of the Lost City field, near the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. In all cases, microbial cell densities in seep fluids are extremely low, ranging from approximately 100,000 to less than 1,000 cells per milliliter. Culture-independent analyses of 16S rRNA genes revealed low-diversity microbial communities related to Gram-positive Firmicutes and hydrogen-oxidizing bacteria. Interestingly, unlike Lost City, there has been little evidence for significant archaeal populations in the continental subsurface to date. Culturing studies at the sites yielded numerous alkaliphilic isolates on nutrient-rich agar and putative iron-reducing bacteria in anaerobic incubations, many of which are related to known alkaliphilic and subsurface isolates. Finally, metagenomic data reinforce the culturing results, indicating the presence of genes associated with organotrophy, hydrogen oxidation, and iron reduction in seep fluid samples. Our data provide insight into the lifestyles of serpentinite subsurface microbial populations and targets for future quantitative exploration using both biochemical and geochemical approaches.

Microbial activity in the terrestrial subsurface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaiser, J.P.; Bollag, J.M.

1990-01-01

Little is known about the layers under the earth's crust. Only in recent years have techniques for sampling the deeper subsurface been developed to permit investigation of the subsurface environment. Prevailing conditions in the subsurface habitat such as nutrient availability, soil composition, redox potential, permeability and a variety of other factors can influence the microflora that flourish in a given environment. Microbial diversity varies between geological formations, but in general sandy soils support growth better than soils rich in clay. Bacteria predominate in subsurface sediments, while eukaryotes constitute only 1-2% of the microorganisms. Recent investigations revealed that most uncontaminated subsurface soils support the growth of aerobic heteroorganotrophic bacteria, but obviously anaerobic microorganisms also exist in the deeper subsurface habitat. The microorganisms residing below the surface of the earth are capable of degrading both natural and xenobiotic contaminants and can thereby adapt to growth under polluted conditions. (author) 4 tabs, 77 refs

Human influence on California fire regimes.

Science.gov (United States)

Syphard, Alexandra D; Radeloff, Volker C; Keeley, Jon E; Hawbaker, Todd J; Clayton, Murray K; Stewart, Susan I; Hammer, Roger B

2007-07-01

Periodic wildfire maintains the integrity and species composition of many ecosystems, including the mediterranean-climate shrublands of California. However, human activities alter natural fire regimes, which can lead to cascading ecological effects. Increased human ignitions at the wildland-urban interface (WUI) have recently gained attention, but fire activity and risk are typically estimated using only biophysical variables. Our goal was to determine how humans influence fire in California and to examine whether this influence was linear, by relating contemporary (2000) and historic (1960-2000) fire data to both human and biophysical variables. Data for the human variables included fine-resolution maps of the WUI produced using housing density and land cover data. Interface WUI, where development abuts wildland vegetation, was differentiated from intermix WUI, where development intermingles with wildland vegetation. Additional explanatory variables included distance to WUI, population density, road density, vegetation type, and ecoregion. All data were summarized at the county level and analyzed using bivariate and multiple regression methods. We found highly significant relationships between humans and fire on the contemporary landscape, and our models explained fire frequency (R2 = 0.72) better than area burned (R2 = 0.50). Population density, intermix WUI, and distance to WUI explained the most variability in fire frequency, suggesting that the spatial pattern of development may be an important variable to consider when estimating fire risk. We found nonlinear effects such that fire frequency and area burned were highest at intermediate levels of human activity, but declined beyond certain thresholds. Human activities also explained change in fire frequency and area burned (1960-2000), but our models had greater explanatory power during the years 1960-1980, when there was more dramatic change in fire frequency. Understanding wildfire as a function of the

Lab Fire Extinguishers: Here Today, Gone Tomorrow?

Science.gov (United States)

Roy, Ken

2010-01-01

When renovations or new construction occur, fire extinguishers sometimes get lost in the mix. Unfortunately, whether to save money or because the fire code is misinterpreted, some schools do not install fire extinguishers in laboratories and other areas of the building. Let's set the record straight! If flammables are present, the fire code…

Fire barrier evaluation of the wall between spent nuclear fuel storage basins and reactor areas, 105KE and 105KW

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Johnson, B.H.

1994-01-01

This evaluation is intended to provide a comprehensive assessment of the risks from fire and fire related perils for the fire barriers between spent nuclear fuel storage basins and reactor areas, 105KE and 105KW. As a result of this fire barrier evaluation the present walls and the components thereof are not a true listed fire rated assembly. However, due to the construction of these barriers and the components thereof, these barriers will provide an equivalent level of protection provided the recommendations in Section 8.0 of this report are completed. These recommended upgrades are based upon sound engineering practice by a Registered Fire Protection Engineer. The construction of the barrier are substantial enough to provide the required 2-hr fire resistance rating. The primary concern is the numerous penetrations in the barrier. There are many penetrations that are adequate and no additional work is required. These penetrations are the ones that were poured-in-place at the time of construction. The penetrations that are of concern are some of the doors, the HVAC ducts, and the unsealed piping and conduit penetrations. There are several metal doors that should be replaced because the existing doors have either a non-approved window or louver that will not limit the spread of fire to one side of the barrier. All unsealed piping and conduit penetrations should be firestopped with an approved firestopping material. The existing non-active ducts that pass through the barrier should be disconnected at the barrier and the opening sealed with an approved firestopping method

Fire management strategies to maintain species population processes in a fragmented landscape of fire-interval extremes.

Science.gov (United States)

Tulloch, Ayesha I T; Pichancourt, Jean-Baptiste; Gosper, Carl R; Sanders, Angela; Chadès, Iadine

2016-10-01

Changed fire regimes have led to declines of fire-regime-adapted species and loss of biodiversity globally. Fire affects population processes of growth, reproduction, and dispersal in different ways, but there is little guidance about the best fire regime(s) to maintain species population processes in fire-prone ecosystems. We use a process-based approach to determine the best range of fire intervals for keystone plant species in a highly modified Mediterranean ecosystem in southwestern Australia where current fire regimes vary. In highly fragmented areas, fires are few due to limited ignitions and active suppression of wildfire on private land, while in highly connected protected areas fires are frequent and extensive. Using matrix population models, we predict population growth of seven Banksia species under different environmental conditions and patch connectivity, and evaluate the sensitivity of species survival to different fire management strategies and burning intervals. We discover that contrasting, complementary patterns of species life-histories with time since fire result in no single best fire regime. All strategies result in the local patch extinction of at least one species. A small number of burning strategies secure complementary species sets depending on connectivity and post-fire growing conditions. A strategy of no fire always leads to fewer species persisting than prescribed fire or random wildfire, while too-frequent or too-rare burning regimes lead to the possible local extinction of all species. In low landscape connectivity, we find a smaller range of suitable fire intervals, and strategies of prescribed or random burning result in a lower number of species with positive growth rates after 100 years on average compared with burning high connectivity patches. Prescribed fire may reduce or increase extinction risk when applied in combination with wildfire depending on patch connectivity. Poor growing conditions result in a significantly

46 CFR 28.820 - Fire pumps, fire mains, fire hydrants, and fire hoses.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 46 Shipping 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Fire pumps, fire mains, fire hydrants, and fire hoses... REQUIREMENTS FOR COMMERCIAL FISHING INDUSTRY VESSELS Aleutian Trade Act Vessels § 28.820 Fire pumps, fire mains, fire hydrants, and fire hoses. (a) Each vessel must be equipped with a self-priming, power driven fire...

Reduced frequency and severity of residential fires following delivery of fire prevention education by on-duty fire fighters: cluster randomized controlled study.

Science.gov (United States)

Clare, Joseph; Garis, Len; Plecas, Darryl; Jennings, Charles

2012-04-01

In 2008, Surrey Fire Services, British Columbia, commenced a firefighter-delivered, door-to-door fire-prevention education and smoke alarm examination/installation initiative with the intention of reducing the frequency and severity of residential structure fires in the City of Surrey. High-risk zones within the city were identified and 18,473 home visits were undertaken across seven temporal delivery cohorts (13.8% of non-apartment dwellings in the city). The frequency and severity of fires pre- and post- the home visit intervention was examined in comparison to randomized high-risk cluster controls. Overall, the frequency of fires was found to have reduced in the city overall, however, the reduction in the intervention cohorts was significantly larger than for controls. Furthermore, when fires did occur within the intervention cohorts, smoke detectors were activated more frequently and the fires were confined to the object of origin more often post-home visits. No equivalent pattern was observed for the cluster control. On-duty fire fighters can reduce the frequency and severity of residential fires through targeted, door-to-door distribution of fire prevention education in high-risk areas. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Large urban fire environment: trends and model city predictions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Larson, D.A.; Small, R.D.

1983-01-01

The urban fire environment that would result from a megaton-yield nuclear weapon burst is considered. The dependence of temperatures and velocities on fire size, burning intensity, turbulence, and radiation is explored, and specific calculations for three model urban areas are presented. In all cases, high velocity fire winds are predicted. The model-city results show the influence of building density and urban sprawl on the fire environment. Additional calculations consider large-area fires with the burning intensity reduced in a blast-damaged urban center

A Review of distribution and quantity of lingering subsurface oil from the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill

Science.gov (United States)

Nixon, Zachary; Michel, Jacqueline

2018-01-01

Remaining lingering subsurface oil residues from the Exxon Valdez oil spill (EVOS) are, at present, patchily distributed across the geologically complex and spatially extensive shorelines of Prince William Sound and the Gulf of Alaska. We review and synthesize previous literature describing the causal geomorphic and physical mechanisms for persistence of oil in the intertidal subsurface sediments of these areas. We also summarize previous sampling and modeling efforts, and refine previously presented models with additional data to characterize the present-day linear and areal spatial extent, and quantity of lingering subsurface oil. In the weeks after the spill in March of 1989, approximately 17,750 t of oil were stranded along impacted shorelines, and by October of 1992, only 2% of the mass of spilled oil was estimated to remain in intertidal areas. We estimate that lingering subsurface residues, generally between 5 and 20 cm thick and sequestered below 10-20 cm of clean sediment, are present over 30 ha of intertidal area, along 11.4 km of shoreline, and represent approximately 227 t or 0.6% of the total mass of spilled oil. These residues are typically located in finer-grained sand and gravel sediments, often under an armor of cobble- or boulder-sized clasts, in areas with limited groundwater flow and porosity. Persistence of these residues is correlated with heavy initial oil loading together with localized sheltering from physical disturbance such as wave energy within the beach face. While no longer generally bioavailable and increasingly chemically weathered, present removal rates for these remaining subsurface oil residues have slowed to nearly zero. The only remaining plausible removal mechanisms will operate over time scales of decades.

A brief analysis and description of transuranic wastes in the subsurface disposal area of the radioactive waste management complex at INEL

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arrenholz, D.A.; Knight, J.L.

1991-02-01

This document presents a brief summary of the wastes and waste types disposed of in the transuranic contaminated portions of the Subsurface Disposal Area during the period 1954 through 1970. Wastes included in this summary are organics, inorganics, metals, radionuclides, and special-case wastes. In addition to summarizing amounts of wastes disposed and describing the wastes, the document also provides information on disposal pit and trench dimensions and contaminated soil volumes. The report also points out discrepancies that exist in available documentation regarding waste and soil volumes and makes recommendations for future efforts at waste characterization. 20 refs., 3 figs., 17 tabs

Subsurface geology off Bombay with paleoclimatic inferences interpreted from shallow seismic profiles

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Bhattacharya, G.C.; Almeida, F.; Vora, K.H.; Siddiquie, H.N.

High resolution seismic reflection profiles nearshore areas off Bombay provide information on subsurface geology and permit certain paleoclimatic inferences. Three sedimentary units overlie the acoustic basement: late Pleistocene consolidated...

Predicting fire severity using surface fuels and moisture

Science.gov (United States)

Pamela G. Sikkink; Robert E. Keane

2012-01-01

Fire severity classifications have been used extensively in fire management over the last 30 years to describe specific environmental or ecological impacts of fire on fuels, vegetation, wildlife, and soils in recently burned areas. New fire severity classifications need to be more objective, predictive, and ultimately more useful to fire management and planning. Our...

Recent land-use and land-cover changes and its driving factors in a fire-prone area of southwestern Turkey.

Science.gov (United States)

Viedma, Olga; Moreno, José M; Güngöroglu, Cumhur; Cosgun, Ufuk; Kavgacı, Ali

2017-07-15

During the last decades, contrasted trends in forest fires among countries around the Mediterranean basin have been observed. In the northern/western countries, Land Use-Land Cover (LULC) changes led to more hazardous landscapes, with consequent increases in fires. This contrasted with fire trends in southern/eastern countries. The recent incidence of large fires in some of the latter prompted the question of whether they are now following the path of their neighbors decades earlier. In this study, we investigated recent LULC changes in southwestern Turkey, focusing on those that could affect fire, and the factors driving them. To this end, LULC maps at different time steps (1975, 1990, 2000 and 2010) were obtained from Landsat images, together with relevant socioeconomic data. Generalized linear mixed models (GLMMs) were applied to assess the effects of socioeconomic and geophysical factors on the dominant LULC changes over time. Over the whole period studied, the most important LULC changes were deforestation followed by afforestation. Deforestation was positively related to high livestock density and proximity to villages and increased forest interfaces with other LULC types. We found no evidence that LULC changes were making the landscape more hazardous as there was a net decrease in fuels biomass and the landscape became more fragmented over time. However, despite the area being heavily used and relatively fragmented, large fires can occur driven by severe weather. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A conceptual framework for formulating a focused and cost-effective fire protection program based on analyses of risk and the dynamics of fire effects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dey, M.K.

1999-01-01

This paper proposes a conceptual framework for developing a fire protection program at nuclear power plants based on probabilistic risk analysis (PRA) of fire hazards, and modeling the dynamics of fire effects. The process for categorizing nuclear power plant fire areas based on risk is described, followed by a discussion of fire safety design methods that can be used for different areas of the plant, depending on the degree of threat to plant safety from the fire hazard. This alternative framework has the potential to make programs more cost-effective, and comprehensive, since it will allow a more systematic and broader examination of fire risk, and provide a means to distinguish between high and low risk fire contributors. (orig.)

Variable carbon losses from recurrent fires in drained tropical peatlands.

Science.gov (United States)

Konecny, Kristina; Ballhorn, Uwe; Navratil, Peter; Jubanski, Juilson; Page, Susan E; Tansey, Kevin; Hooijer, Aljosja; Vernimmen, Ronald; Siegert, Florian

2016-04-01

Tropical peatland fires play a significant role in the context of global warming through emissions of substantial amounts of greenhouse gases. However, the state of knowledge on carbon loss from these fires is still poorly developed with few studies reporting the associated mass of peat consumed. Furthermore, spatial and temporal variations in burn depth have not been previously quantified. This study presents the first spatially explicit investigation of fire-driven tropical peat loss and its variability. An extensive airborne Light Detection and Ranging data set was used to develop a prefire peat surface modelling methodology, enabling the spatially differentiated quantification of burned area depth over the entire burned area. We observe a strong interdependence between burned area depth, fire frequency and distance to drainage canals. For the first time, we show that relative burned area depth decreases over the first four fire events and is constant thereafter. Based on our results, we revise existing peat and carbon loss estimates for recurrent fires in drained tropical peatlands. We suggest values for the dry mass of peat fuel consumed that are 206 t ha(-1) for initial fires, reducing to 115 t ha(-1) for second, 69 t ha(-1) for third and 23 t ha(-1) for successive fires, which are 58-7% of the current IPCC Tier 1 default value for all fires. In our study area, this results in carbon losses of 114, 64, 38 and 13 t C ha(-1) for first to fourth fires, respectively. Furthermore, we show that with increasing proximity to drainage canals both burned area depth and the probability of recurrent fires increase and present equations explaining burned area depth as a function of distance to drainage canal. This improved knowledge enables a more accurate approach to emissions accounting and will support IPCC Tier 2 reporting of fire emissions. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

THE REACTION TO FIRE TEST FOR FIRE RETARDANT AND FOR COMBUSTIBLE MATERIAL

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adelaida FANFAROVÁ

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Currently the natural materials become popular building material for houses, buildings and recreational property. The risk of fires in residential timber construction or eco houses cannot be completely ruled out, therefore there is a need for proper and correct implementing preventive measures and application of all available solutions, which may reduce the risk of fire as far as possible, to slow down the combustion process, to protect the life of people, animals and also the building itself until arrival members of the Fire and Rescue Services. Fireproofing of combustible materials is a specific area of fire protection. For scientific research as well as for real-life practice, not only their structural and physical properties, but also fire-technical characteristics are really important. The present researchers mostly focus on fire-retardant treatment of wood that is why the authors of this contribution focused on a different combustible material. This research article presents the experimental testing and examination of the reaction to fire test of the selected thermal insulation of hemp fiber that was impregnated by the selected fire retardant in laboratory conditions.

Charts for interpreting wildland fire behavior characteristics

Science.gov (United States)

Patricia L. Andrews; Richard C. Rothermel

1982-01-01

The fire characteristics chart is proposed as a graphical method ofpresenting two primary characteristics of fire behavior – spread rate and intensity. Its primary use is communicating and interpreting either site-specific predictions of fire behavior or National Fire-Danger Rating System (NFDRS) indexes and components. Rate of spread, heat per unit area, flame length...

Subsurface material identification and sensor selection

Science.gov (United States)

T, H.; Reghunadh, R.; Ramesh, M. V.

2017-12-01

In India, most of the landslides occur during monsoon season and causes huge loss of life and property. Design of an early warning system for highly landslide prone area will reduce losses to a great extent. The in-situ monitoring systems needs deployment of several sensors inside a borehole for monitoring a particular slope. Amrita Center for Wireless Networks and Applications (AmritaWNA), Amrita University has designed, developed and deployed a Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) for real time landslide monitoring using geotechnical instruments and sensors like rain gauge, moisture sensor, piezometer, strain gauge, tilt meter and geophone inside a Deep Earth Probe (DEP) at different locations. These sensors provide point measurements of the subsurface at a higher accuracy. Every landslide prone terrain is unique with respect to its geology, hydrological conditions, meteorological conditions, velocity of movement etc. The decision of installing different geotechnical instruments in a landslide prone terrain is a crucial step to be considered. Rain gauge, moisture sensor, and piezometer are usually used in clay rich areas to sense the moisture and pore pressure values. Geophone and Crack meter are instruments used in rocky areas to monitor cracks and vibrations associated with a movement. Inclinometer and Strain gauge are usually placed inside a casing and can be used in both rocky and soil areas. In order to place geotechnical instruments and sensors at appropriate places Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) method can be used. Variation in electrical resistivity values indicate the changes in composition, layer thickness, or contaminant levels. The derived true resistivity image can be used for identifying the type of materials present in the subsurface at different depths. We have used this method for identifying the type of materials present in our site at Chandmari (Sikkim). Fig 1 shows the typical resistivity values of a particular area in Chandmari site. The

Nuclear power plant fire protection: philosophy and analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berry, D.L.

1980-05-01

This report combines a fire severity analysis technique with a fault tree methodology for assessing the importance to nuclear power plant safety of certain combinations of components and systems. Characteristics unique to fire, such as propagation induced by the failure of barriers, have been incorporated into the methodology. By applying the resulting fire analysis technique to actual conditions found in a representative nuclear power plant, it is found that some safety and nonsafety areas are both highly vulnerable to fire spread and impotant to overall safety, while other areas prove to be of marginal importance. Suggestions are made for further experimental and analytical work to supplement the fire analysis method

Optimal fire histories for biodiversity conservation.

Science.gov (United States)

Kelly, Luke T; Bennett, Andrew F; Clarke, Michael F; McCarthy, Michael A

2015-04-01

Fire is used as a management tool for biodiversity conservation worldwide. A common objective is to avoid population extinctions due to inappropriate fire regimes. However, in many ecosystems, it is unclear what mix of fire histories will achieve this goal. We determined the optimal fire history of a given area for biological conservation with a method that links tools from 3 fields of research: species distribution modeling, composite indices of biodiversity, and decision science. We based our case study on extensive field surveys of birds, reptiles, and mammals in fire-prone semi-arid Australia. First, we developed statistical models of species' responses to fire history. Second, we determined the optimal allocation of successional states in a given area, based on the geometric mean of species relative abundance. Finally, we showed how conservation targets based on this index can be incorporated into a decision-making framework for fire management. Pyrodiversity per se did not necessarily promote vertebrate biodiversity. Maximizing pyrodiversity by having an even allocation of successional states did not maximize the geometric mean abundance of bird species. Older vegetation was disproportionately important for the conservation of birds, reptiles, and small mammals. Because our method defines fire management objectives based on the habitat requirements of multiple species in the community, it could be used widely to maximize biodiversity in fire-prone ecosystems. © 2014 Society for Conservation Biology.

46 CFR 28.315 - Fire pumps, fire mains, fire hydrants, and fire hoses.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 46 Shipping 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Fire pumps, fire mains, fire hydrants, and fire hoses... After September 15, 1991, and That Operate With More Than 16 Individuals on Board § 28.315 Fire pumps, fire mains, fire hydrants, and fire hoses. (a) Each vessel 36 feet (11.8 meters) or more in length must...

Reserves protect against deforestation fires in the Amazon.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J Marion Adeney

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Reserves are the principal means to conserve forests and biodiversity, but the question of whether reserves work is still debated. In the Amazon, fires are closely linked to deforestation, and thus can be used as a proxy for reserve effectiveness in protecting forest cover. We ask whether reserves in the Brazilian Amazon provide effective protection against deforestation and consequently fires, whether that protection is because of their location or their legal status, and whether some reserve types are more effective than others. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Previous work has shown that most Amazonian fires occur close to roads and are more frequent in El Niño years. We quantified these relationships for reserves and unprotected areas by examining satellite-detected hot pixels regressed against road distance across the entire Brazilian Amazon and for a decade with 2 El Niño-related droughts. Deforestation fires, as measured by hot pixels, declined exponentially with increasing distance from roads in all areas. Fewer deforestation fires occurred within protected areas than outside and the difference between protected and unprotected areas was greatest near roads. Thus, reserves were especially effective at preventing these fires where they are known to be most likely to burn; but they did not provide absolute protection. Even within reserves, at a given distance from roads, there were more deforestation fires in regions with high human impact than in those with low impact. The effect of El Niño on deforestation fires was greatest outside of reserves and near roads. Indigenous reserves, limited-use reserves, and fully protected reserves all had fewer fires than outside areas and did not appear to differ in their effectiveness. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Taking time, regional factors, and climate into account, our results show that reserves are an effective tool for curbing destructive burning in the Amazon.

Reserves Protect against Deforestation Fires in the Amazon

Science.gov (United States)

Adeney, J. Marion; Christensen, Norman L.; Pimm, Stuart L.

2009-01-01

Background Reserves are the principal means to conserve forests and biodiversity, but the question of whether reserves work is still debated. In the Amazon, fires are closely linked to deforestation, and thus can be used as a proxy for reserve effectiveness in protecting forest cover. We ask whether reserves in the Brazilian Amazon provide effective protection against deforestation and consequently fires, whether that protection is because of their location or their legal status, and whether some reserve types are more effective than others. Methodology/Principal Findings Previous work has shown that most Amazonian fires occur close to roads and are more frequent in El Niño years. We quantified these relationships for reserves and unprotected areas by examining satellite-detected hot pixels regressed against road distance across the entire Brazilian Amazon and for a decade with 2 El Niño-related droughts. Deforestation fires, as measured by hot pixels, declined exponentially with increasing distance from roads in all areas. Fewer deforestation fires occurred within protected areas than outside and the difference between protected and unprotected areas was greatest near roads. Thus, reserves were especially effective at preventing these fires where they are known to be most likely to burn; but they did not provide absolute protection. Even within reserves, at a given distance from roads, there were more deforestation fires in regions with high human impact than in those with low impact. The effect of El Niño on deforestation fires was greatest outside of reserves and near roads. Indigenous reserves, limited-use reserves, and fully protected reserves all had fewer fires than outside areas and did not appear to differ in their effectiveness. Conclusions/Significance Taking time, regional factors, and climate into account, our results show that reserves are an effective tool for curbing destructive burning in the Amazon. PMID:19352423

Effects of post-fire logging on California spotted owl occupancy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chad T. Hanson

2018-01-01

Full Text Available In fire-adapted forest ecosystems around the world, there has been growing concern about adverse impacts of post-fire logging on native biodiversity and ecological processes. This is also true in conifer forests of California, U.S.A. which are home to a rare and declining owl subspecies, the California spotted owl (Strix occidentalis occidentalis. While there has been recent concern about the California spotted owl occupancy in large fire areas where some territories have substantial high-severity fire effects, the influence of post-fire logging on the California spotted owl occupancy has been investigated very little, leading to some uncertainty about interpretation of conflicting results in different large fires. Research has found these owls preferentially select high-severity fire areas, characterised by high levels of snags and native shrubs, for foraging in forests that were not logged after fire, suggesting that removal of this foraging habitat might impact occupancy. The authors assessed the effect of post-fire logging and high-severity fire, on occupancy of this subspecies in eight large fire areas, within spotted owl sites with two different levels of high-severity fire effects. They found a significant adverse effect of such logging and no effect of high-severity fire alone. These results indicate it is post-fire logging, not large fires themselves, that poses a conservation threat to this imperilled species.

Integrated surface-subsurface water flow modelling of the Laxemar area. Application of the hydrological model ECOFLOW

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sokrut, Nikolay; Werner, Kent; Holmen, Johan

2007-01-01

Since 2002, the Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Co (SKB) performs site investigations in the Simpevarp area, for the siting of a deep geological repository for spent nuclear fuel. The site descriptive modelling includes conceptual and quantitative modelling of surface-subsurface water interactions, which are key inputs to safety assessment and environmental impact assessment. Such modelling is important also for planning of continued site investigations. In this report, the distributed hydrological model ECOFLOW is applied to the Laxemar subarea to test the ability of the model to simulate surface water and near-surface groundwater flow, and to illustrate ECOFLOW's advantages and drawbacks. The ECOFLOW model area is generally characterised by large areas of exposed or shallow bedrock. The ECOFLOW modelling results are compared to previous results produced by MIKE SHE-MIKE 11 and PCRaster-POLFLOW, in order to check whether non-calibrated surface and subsurface water flows computed by ECOFLOW are consistent with these previous results. The analyses include quantification and comparison of inflow and outflow terms of the water balance, as well as analyses of groundwater recharge-discharge patterns. ECOFLOW is used to simulate a one-year non calibrated period, considering seven catchments (including three areas with direct runoff to the sea) within the Laxemar subarea. The modelling results show the ability of the model to produce reasonable results for a model domain including both porous media (Quaternary deposits) and discontinuous media (bedrock). The results demonstrate notable differences in the specific discharge between the considered catchments, with specific discharge values in the range 157-212 mm/year; the lowest value (the Lake Frisksjoen catchment) may however be erroneous due to numerical instability in the model. Overall, these results agree with specific discharge values computed by MIKE SHE-MIKE 11 and PCRaster-POLFLOW (190 and 128-186 mm

Integrated surface-subsurface water flow modelling of the Laxemar area. Application of the hydrological model ECOFLOW

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sokrut, Nikolay; Werner, Kent; Holmen, Johan [Golder Associates AB, Uppsala (Sweden)

2007-01-15

Since 2002, the Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Co (SKB) performs site investigations in the Simpevarp area, for the siting of a deep geological repository for spent nuclear fuel. The site descriptive modelling includes conceptual and quantitative modelling of surface-subsurface water interactions, which are key inputs to safety assessment and environmental impact assessment. Such modelling is important also for planning of continued site investigations. In this report, the distributed hydrological model ECOFLOW is applied to the Laxemar subarea to test the ability of the model to simulate surface water and near-surface groundwater flow, and to illustrate ECOFLOW's advantages and drawbacks. The ECOFLOW model area is generally characterised by large areas of exposed or shallow bedrock. The ECOFLOW modelling results are compared to previous results produced by MIKE SHE-MIKE 11 and PCRaster-POLFLOW, in order to check whether non-calibrated surface and subsurface water flows computed by ECOFLOW are consistent with these previous results. The analyses include quantification and comparison of inflow and outflow terms of the water balance, as well as analyses of groundwater recharge-discharge patterns. ECOFLOW is used to simulate a one-year non calibrated period, considering seven catchments (including three areas with direct runoff to the sea) within the Laxemar subarea. The modelling results show the ability of the model to produce reasonable results for a model domain including both porous media (Quaternary deposits) and discontinuous media (bedrock). The results demonstrate notable differences in the specific discharge between the considered catchments, with specific discharge values in the range 157-212 mm/year; the lowest value (the Lake Frisksjoen catchment) may however be erroneous due to numerical instability in the model. Overall, these results agree with specific discharge values computed by MIKE SHE-MIKE 11 and PCRaster-POLFLOW (190 and 128

Analyzing post-fire topography at the hillslope-channel interface with terrestrial LiDAR: contrasting geomorphic responses from the 2012 Waldo Canyon Fire of Colorado and the 2013 Springs Fire of California

Science.gov (United States)

Storesund, R.; Chin, A.; Florsheim, J. L.; O'Hirok, L.; Williams, K.; Austin, K. E.

2014-12-01

Mountains areas are increasingly susceptible to wildfires because of warming climates. Although knowledge of the hydro-geomorphological impacts of wildfire has advanced in recent years, much is still unknown regarding how environmental fluxes move through burned watersheds. Because of the loss of vegetation and hydrophobic soils, flash floods often accompany elevated runoff events from burned watersheds, making direct process measurements challenging. Direct measurements are also only partly successful at capturing the spatial variations of post-fire effects. Coupled with short temporal windows for observing such responses, opportunities are often missed for collecting data needed for developing predictive models. Terrestrial LiDAR scanning (TLS) of burned areas allows detailed documentation of the post-fire topography to cm-level accuracy, providing pictures of geomorphic responses not previously possible. This paper reports a comparative study of hillslope-channel interactions, using repeat TLS, in two contrasting environments. Burned by the 2012 Waldo Canyon Fire and 2013 Springs Fire, in Colorado and California respectively, the study sites share many similarities including steep erosive slopes, small drainage areas, and step-pool channel morphologies. TLS provided a tool to test the central hypothesis that, dry ravel, distinct in the California Mediterranean environment, would prompt a greater sedimentological response from the Springs Fire compared to the Waldo Canyon Fire. At selected sites in each area, TLS documented baseline conditions immediately following the fire. Repeat scanning after major storms allowed detection of changes in the landscape. Results show a tendency for sedimentation in river channels in the study sites interacting with dry ravel on hillslopes, whereas erosion dominated the response from the Waldo Canyon Fire with an absence of dry ravel. These data provide clues to developing generalizations for post-fire effects at regional scales

Climate, lightning ignitions, and fire severity in Yosemite National Park, California, USA

Science.gov (United States)

Lutz, J.A.; van Wagtendonk, J.W.; Thode, A.E.; Miller, J.D.; Franklin, J.F.

2009-01-01

Continental-scale studies of western North America have attributed recent increases in annual area burned and fire size to a warming climate, but these studies have focussed on large fires and have left the issues of fire severity and ignition frequency unaddressed. Lightning ignitions, any of which could burn a large area given appropriate conditions for fire spread, could be the first indication of more frequent fire. We examined the relationship between snowpack and the ignition and size of fires that occurred in Yosemite National Park, California (area 3027 km2), between 1984 and 2005. During this period, 1870 fires burned 77 718 ha. Decreased spring snowpack exponentially increased the number of lightning-ignited fires. Snowpack mediated lightning-ignited fires by decreasing the proportion of lightning strikes that caused lightning-ignited fires and through fewer lightning strikes in years with deep snowpack. We also quantified fire severity for the 103 fires >40 ha with satellite fire-severity indices using 23 years of Landsat Thematic Mapper data. The proportion of the landscape that burned at higher severities and the complexity of higher-severity burn patches increased with the log10 of annual area burned. Using one snowpack forecast, we project that the number of lightning-ignited fires will increase 19.1% by 2020 to 2049 and the annual area burned at high severity will increase 21.9%. Climate-induced decreases in snowpack and the concomitant increase in fire severity suggest that existing assumptions may be understated-fires may become more frequent and more severe. ?? IAWF 2009.

Ten Years of Post-Fire Vegetation Recovery following the 2007 Zaca Fire using Landsat Satellite Imagery

Science.gov (United States)

Hallett, J. K. E.; Miller, D.; Roberts, D. A.

2017-12-01

Forest fires play a key role in shaping eco-systems. The risk to vegetation depends on the fire regime, fuel conditions (age and amount), fire temperature, and physiological characteristics such as bark thickness and stem diameter. The 2007 Zaca Fire (24 kilometers NE of Buellton, Santa Barbara County, California) burned 826.4 km2 over the course of 2 months. In this study, we used a time series of Landsat 5 Thematic Mapper and Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager imagery, to evaluate plant burn severity and post fire recovery as defined into classes of above average recovery, normal recovery, and below average recovery. We spectrally unmixed the images into green vegetation (GV), non-photosynthetic vegetation (NPV), soil surface (SOIL), and ash with a spectral library developed using Constrained Reference Endmember Selection (CRES). We delineated the fire perimeter using the differenced Normalized Burn Ratio (dNBR) and evaluated changes in this index and the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index through time. The results showed an immediate decline in GV and NPV fractions, with a rise in soil and ash fractions directly following the fire, with a slow recovery in GV fraction and a loss of bare soil cover. The was a sharp increase in the ash fraction following the fire and gradual decrease in the year after. Most areas have recovered as of 2017, with prominent recovery in the center of the burn scar and reduced recovery in areas to the south. These results indicate how post-fire vegetation varies based on initial burn severity and pre-fire GV and NPV fractions.

Biogenic volatile organic compound emissions from vegetation fires.

Science.gov (United States)

Ciccioli, Paolo; Centritto, Mauro; Loreto, Francesco

2014-08-01

The aim of this paper was to provide an overview of the current state of the art on research into the emission of biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) from vegetation fires. Significant amounts of VOCs are emitted from vegetation fires, including several reactive compounds, the majority belonging to the isoprenoid family, which rapidly disappear in the plume to yield pollutants such as secondary organic aerosol and ozone. This makes determination of fire-induced BVOC emission difficult, particularly in areas where the ratio between VOCs and anthropogenic NOx is favourable to the production of ozone, such as Mediterranean areas and highly anthropic temperate (and fire-prone) regions of the Earth. Fire emissions affecting relatively pristine areas, such as the Amazon and the African savannah, are representative of emissions of undisturbed plant communities. We also examined expected BVOC emissions at different stages of fire development and combustion, from drying to flaming, and from heatwaves coming into contact with unburned vegetation at the edge of fires. We conclude that forest fires may dramatically change emission factors and the profile of emitted BVOCs, thereby influencing the chemistry and physics of the atmosphere, the physiology of plants and the evolution of plant communities within the ecosystem. © 2014 The Authors. Plant, Cell & Environment published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Subsurface information for risk-sensitive urban spatial planning in Dhaka Metropolitan City, Bangladesh

Science.gov (United States)

Günther, Andreas; Aziz Patwary, Mohammad Abdul; Bahls, Rebecca; Asaduzzaman, Atm; Ludwig, Rüdiger; Ashraful Kamal, Mohammad; Nahar Faruqa, Nurun; Jabeen, Sarwat

2016-04-01

Dhaka Metropolitan City (including Dhaka and five adjacent municipal areas) is one of the fastest developing urban regions in the world. Densely build-up areas in the developed metropolitan area of Dhaka City are subject to extensive restructuring as common six- or lower storied buildings are replaced by higher and heavier constructions. Additional stories are built on existing houses, frequently exceeding the allowable bearing pressure on the subsoil as supported by the foundations. In turn, newly developing city areas are projected in marshy terrains modified by extensive, largely unengineered landfills. In most areas, these terrains bear unfavorable building ground conditions within 30 meters. Within a collaborative technical cooperation project between Bangladesh and Germany, BGR supports GSB in the provision of geo-information for the Capital Development Authority (RAJUK). For general urban planning, RAJUK successively develops a detailed area plan (DAP) at scale 1 : 50000 for the whole Dhaka Metropolitan City area (approx. 1700 km2). Geo-information have not been considered in the present DAP. Within the project, geospatial information in form of a geomorphic map, a digital terrain model and a 3-D subsurface model covering the whole city area have been generated at a scale of 1 : 50000. An extensive engineering geological data base consisting of more than 2200 borehole data with associated Standard Penetration Testing (SPT) and lab data has been compiled. With the field testing (SPT) and engineering geological lab data, the 3-D subsurface model can be parameterized to derive important spatial subsurface information for urban planning like bearing capacity evaluations for different foundation designs or soil liquefaction potential assessments for specific earthquake scenarios. In conjunction with inundation potential evaluations for different flooding scenarios, comprehensive building ground suitability information can be derived to support risk

Forest fire risk zonation mapping using remote sensing technology

Science.gov (United States)

Chandra, Sunil; Arora, M. K.

2006-12-01

Forest fires cause major losses to forest cover and disturb the ecological balance in our region. Rise in temperature during summer season causing increased dryness, increased activity of human beings in the forest areas, and the type of forest cover in the Garhwal Himalayas are some of the reasons that lead to forest fires. Therefore, generation of forest fire risk maps becomes necessary so that preventive measures can be taken at appropriate time. These risk maps shall indicate the zonation of the areas which are in very high, high, medium and low risk zones with regard to forest fire in the region. In this paper, an attempt has been made to generate the forest fire risk maps based on remote sensing data and other geographical variables responsible for the occurrence of fire. These include altitude, temperature and soil variations. Key thematic data layers pertaining to these variables have been generated using various techniques. A rule-based approach has been used and implemented in GIS environment to estimate fuel load and fuel index leading to the derivation of fire risk zonation index and subsequently to fire risk zonation maps. The fire risk maps thus generated have been validated on the ground for forest types as well as for forest fire risk areas. These maps would help the state forest departments in prioritizing their strategy for combating forest fires particularly during the fire seasons.

Decreasing Fires in Mediterranean Europe.

Science.gov (United States)

Turco, Marco; Bedia, Joaquín; Di Liberto, Fabrizio; Fiorucci, Paolo; von Hardenberg, Jost; Koutsias, Nikos; Llasat, Maria-Carmen; Xystrakis, Fotios; Provenzale, Antonello

2016-01-01

Forest fires are a serious environmental hazard in southern Europe. Quantitative assessment of recent trends in fire statistics is important for assessing the possible shifts induced by climate and other environmental/socioeconomic changes in this area. Here we analyse recent fire trends in Portugal, Spain, southern France, Italy and Greece, building on a homogenized fire database integrating official fire statistics provided by several national/EU agencies. During the period 1985-2011, the total annual burned area (BA) displayed a general decreasing trend, with the exception of Portugal, where a heterogeneous signal was found. Considering all countries globally, we found that BA decreased by about 3020 km2 over the 27-year-long study period (i.e. about -66% of the mean historical value). These results are consistent with those obtained on longer time scales when data were available, also yielding predominantly negative trends in Spain and France (1974-2011) and a mixed trend in Portugal (1980-2011). Similar overall results were found for the annual number of fires (NF), which globally decreased by about 12600 in the study period (about -59%), except for Spain where, excluding the provinces along the Mediterranean coast, an upward trend was found for the longer period. We argue that the negative trends can be explained, at least in part, by an increased effort in fire management and prevention after the big fires of the 1980's, while positive trends may be related to recent socioeconomic transformations leading to more hazardous landscape configurations, as well as to the observed warming of recent decades. We stress the importance of fire data homogenization prior to analysis, in order to alleviate spurious effects associated with non-stationarities in the data due to temporal variations in fire detection efforts.

Decreasing Fires in Mediterranean Europe.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marco Turco

Full Text Available Forest fires are a serious environmental hazard in southern Europe. Quantitative assessment of recent trends in fire statistics is important for assessing the possible shifts induced by climate and other environmental/socioeconomic changes in this area. Here we analyse recent fire trends in Portugal, Spain, southern France, Italy and Greece, building on a homogenized fire database integrating official fire statistics provided by several national/EU agencies. During the period 1985-2011, the total annual burned area (BA displayed a general decreasing trend, with the exception of Portugal, where a heterogeneous signal was found. Considering all countries globally, we found that BA decreased by about 3020 km2 over the 27-year-long study period (i.e. about -66% of the mean historical value. These results are consistent with those obtained on longer time scales when data were available, also yielding predominantly negative trends in Spain and France (1974-2011 and a mixed trend in Portugal (1980-2011. Similar overall results were found for the annual number of fires (NF, which globally decreased by about 12600 in the study period (about -59%, except for Spain where, excluding the provinces along the Mediterranean coast, an upward trend was found for the longer period. We argue that the negative trends can be explained, at least in part, by an increased effort in fire management and prevention after the big fires of the 1980's, while positive trends may be related to recent socioeconomic transformations leading to more hazardous landscape configurations, as well as to the observed warming of recent decades. We stress the importance of fire data homogenization prior to analysis, in order to alleviate spurious effects associated with non-stationarities in the data due to temporal variations in fire detection efforts.

The development of fire detection robot

OpenAIRE

Sucuoğlu, Hilmi Saygın

2015-01-01

The aim of this thesis is to design and manufacture a fire detection robot that especially operates in industrial areas for fire inspection and early detection. Robot is designed and implemented to track prescribed paths with obstacle avoidance function through obstacle avoidance and motion planning units and to scan the environment in order to detect fire source using fire detection unit. Robot is able to track patrolling routes using virtual lines that defined to the motion planning unit. ...

Burned Area Detection and Burn Severity Assessment of a Heathland Fire in Belgium Using Airborne Imaging Spectroscopy (APEX

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lennert Schepers

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Uncontrolled, large fires are a major threat to the biodiversity of protected heath landscapes. The severity of the fire is an important factor influencing vegetation recovery. We used airborne imaging spectroscopy data from the Airborne Prism Experiment (APEX sensor to: (1 investigate which spectral regions and spectral indices perform best in discriminating burned from unburned areas; and (2 assess the burn severity of a recent fire in the Kalmthoutse Heide, a heathland area in Belgium. A separability index was used to estimate the effectiveness of individual bands and spectral indices to discriminate between burned and unburned land. For the burn severity analysis, a modified version of the Geometrically structured Composite Burn Index (GeoCBI was developed for the field data collection. The field data were collected in four different vegetation types: Calluna vulgaris-dominated heath (dry heath, Erica tetralix-dominated heath (wet heath, Molinia caerulea (grass-encroached heath, and coniferous woodland. Discrimination between burned and unburned areas differed among vegetation types. For the pooled dataset, bands in the near infrared (NIR spectral region demonstrated the highest discriminatory power, followed by short wave infrared (SWIR bands. Visible wavelengths performed considerably poorer. The Normalized Burn Ratio (NBR outperformed the other spectral indices and the individual spectral bands in discriminating between burned and unburned areas. For the burn severity assessment, all spectral bands and indices showed low correlations with the field data GeoCBI, when data of all pre-fire vegetation types were pooled (R2 maximum 0.41. Analysis per vegetation type, however, revealed considerably higher correlations (R2 up to 0.78. The Mid Infrared Burn Index (MIRBI had the highest correlations for Molinia and Erica (R2 = 0.78 and 0.42, respectively. In Calluna stands, the Char Soil Index (CSI achieved the highest correlations, with R2 = 0

Area balance method for calculation of air interchange in fire-resesistance testing laboratory for building products and constructions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sargsyan Samvel Volodyaevich

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Fire-resistance testing laboratory for building products and constructions is a production room with a substantial excess heat (over 23 W/m . Significant sources of heat inside the aforementioned laboratory are firing furnace, designed to simulate high temperature effects on structures and products of various types in case of fire development. The excess heat production in the laboratory during the tests is due to firing furnaces. The laboratory room is considered as an object consisting of two control volumes (CV, in each of which there may be air intake and air removal, pollutant absorption or emission. In modeling air exchange conditions the following processes are being considered: the processes connected with air movement in the laboratory room: the jet stream in a confined space, distribution of air parameters, air motion and impurity diffusion in the ventilated room. General upward ventilation seems to be the most rational due to impossibility of using local exhaust ventilation. It is connected with the peculiarities of technological processes in the laboratory. Air jets spouted through large-perforated surface mounted at the height of 2 m from the floor level, "flood" the lower control volume, entrained by natural convective currents from heat sources upward and removed from the upper area. In order to take advantage of the proposed method of the required air exchange calculation, you must enter additional conditions, taking into account the provision of sanitary-hygienic characteristics of the current at the entrance of the service (work area. Exhaust air containing pollutants (combustion products, is expelled into the atmosphere by vertical jet discharge. Dividing ventilated rooms into two control volumes allows describing the research process in a ventilated room more accurately and finding the air exchange in the lab room during the tests on a more reasonable basis, allowing to provide safe working conditions for the staff without

Account for fire induced loss of room cooling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

He Wei; Lin, J.

2005-01-01

A recent fire PRA, which evaluated equipment operability in relation to its ambient temperature, revealed that the operational temperature limit assumed in the internal events PRA was exceeded in selected fire scenarios. For the plant assessed, the environmental qualification (EQ) temperature (between 100 degree F to 120 degree F) was adopted as the operational temperature limit for internal events PRA, which was exceeded based on stringent criteria used in the internal events PRA. Using the HVAC dependency assumptions modeled in the internal events PRA and the EQ temperatures as the equipment failure limits, six fire areas were shown to have significant fire-induced risk largely because of the loss of cooling to certain areas and/or heat addition from a challenging fire. These fire areas included Control Room (122 A), Relay Room (100 A), 4 kV Switchgear Room (64 A), 480 V Switchgear Room (84 A), Electrical Penetration Area (78C), and Auxiliary Equipment Area (84B). This is due to 1) loss of HVAC caused by closing of the fire damper and other isolation mechanisms at the fire location, 2) loss of HVAC caused by closing of the fire damper and other isolation mechanisms outside the fire location, and 3) direct heat addition introduced by the fire. In comparison, it appeared that the fire PRA performed for IPEEE (PSE and G, 1996), and the majority of the IPEEE fire analyses, accounted for heat addition and HVAC loss associated with the fire location. However, potential accident scenarios caused by the fire-induced loss of HVAC outside the fire location were not carefully reviewed. This paper discusses modeling of the fire-induced loss of HVAC, equipment reliability at elevated temperatures, aggregated failure rates used in the fire PRA, and impact of HVAC failure on mitigation capability. Sensitivity analyses were performed for elevated ambient temperatures and the results show that the CDF/LERF are sensitive to: 1) temperature differences between the actual operating

The potential of imaging subsurface heterogeneities by local, natural earthquakes

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nishitsuji, Y.; Doi, I.; Draganov, D.S.

2014-01-01

We have developed a new imaging technique of subsurface heterogeneities that uses Sp-waves from natural earthquakes. This technique can be used as a first screening tool in frontier exploration areas before conventional active exploration. Analyzing Sp-waves from 28 earthquakes (Mj 2.0 to 4.2)

Postwildfire preliminary debris flow hazard assessment for the area burned by the 2011 Las Conchas Fire in north-central New Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Tillery, Anne C.; Darr, Michael J.; Cannon, Susan H.; Michael, John A.

2011-01-01

The Las Conchas Fire during the summer of 2011 was the largest in recorded history for the state of New Mexico, burning 634 square kilometers in the Jemez Mountains of north-central New Mexico. The burned landscape is now at risk of damage from postwildfire erosion, such as that caused by debris flows and flash floods. This report presents a preliminary hazard assessment of the debris-flow potential from 321 basins burned by the Las Conchas Fire. A pair of empirical hazard-assessment models developed using data from recently burned basins throughout the intermountain western United States was used to estimate the probability of debris-flow occurrence and volume of debris flows at the outlets of selected drainage basins within the burned area. The models incorporate measures of burn severity, topography, soils, and storm rainfall to estimate the probability and volume of debris flows following the fire. In response to a design storm of 28.0 millimeters of rain in 30 minutes (10-year recurrence interval), the probabilities of debris flows estimated for basins burned by the Las Conchas Fire were greater than 80 percent for two-thirds (67 percent) of the modeled basins. Basins with a high (greater than 80 percent) probability of debris-flow occurrence were concentrated in tributaries to Santa Clara and Rio del Oso Canyons in the northeastern part of the burned area; some steep areas in the Valles Caldera National Preserve, Los Alamos, and Guaje Canyons in the east-central part of the burned area; tributaries to Peralta, Colle, Bland, and Cochiti canyons in the southwestern part of the burned area; and tributaries to Frijoles, Alamo, and Capulin Canyons in the southeastern part of the burned area (within Bandelier National Monument). Estimated debris-flow volumes ranged from 400 cubic meters to greater than 72,000 cubic meters. The largest volumes (greater than 40,000 cubic meters) were estimated for basins in Santa Clara, Los Alamos, and Water Canyons, and for two

Los Alamos Before and After the Fire

Science.gov (United States)

2002-01-01

On May 4, 2000, a prescribed fire was set at Bandelier National Monument, New Mexico, to clear brush and dead and dying undergrowth to prevent a larger, subsequent wildfire. Unfortunately, due to high winds and extremely dry conditions in the surrounding area, the prescribed fire quickly raged out of control and, by May 10, the blaze had spread into the nearby town of Los Alamos. In all, more than 20,000 people were evacuated from their homes and more than 200 houses were destroyed as the flames consumed about 48,000 acres in and around the Los Alamos area. The pair of images above were acquired by the Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) sensor, flying aboard NASA's Landsat 7 satellite, shortly before the Los Alamos fire (top image, acquired April 14) and shortly after the fire was extinguished (lower image, June 17). The images reveal the extent of the damage caused by the fire. Combining ETM+ channels 7, 4, and 2 (one visible and two infrared channels) results in a false-color image where vegetation appears as bright to dark green. Forested areas are generally dark green while herbaceous vegetation is light green. Rangeland or more open areas appear pink to light purple. Areas with extensive pavement or urban development appear light blue or white to purple. Less densely-developed residential areas appear light green and golf courses are very bright green. In the lower image, the areas recently burned appear bright red. Landsat 7 data courtesy United States Geological Survey EROS DataCenter. Images by Robert Simmon, NASA GSFC.