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Fires are common and we usually just think of the effects it has on plants and structures, but what impact can it have on soil. I recently came across a guide book from the US Forest Service that addresses how to evaluate fire impact on soil. Following wildfires in the United States, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of the Interior mobilize Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) teams to assess immediate post-fire watershed conditions. BAER teams must determine threats from flooding, soil erosion, and instability. Developing a postfire soil burn severity map is an important first step in the rapid assessment process. It enables BAER teams to prioritize field reviews and locate burned areas that may pose a risk to critical values within or downstream of the burned area. By helping to identify indicators of soil conditions that differentiate soil burn severity classes, this field guide will help BAER teams to consistently interpret, field validate, and map soil burn severity.
The guide is here:
https://www.fs.usda.gov/rm/pubs/rmrs_gtr243.pdf
field guide to soil burn
