Description

The Fuel Model Guide to Alaska Vegetation (Cella et al. 2008) was developed by an interagency team of fire practitioners and vegetation mappers/specialists in 2008. It crosswalked vegetation types described in the Alaska Vegetation Classification (Viereck et al. 1992) with the following fuel models/fuel types: 1.40 Fire Behavior Fuel Models (FBFM40; Scott and Burgan 2005); 2.13 Fire Behavior Fuel Models (FBFM13; Anderson 1983); 3.Canadian Forest Fire Behavior Prediction System Fuel Types (CANFBP; Taylor et al. 1997). The original version served as the basis for assigning fuel models to vegetation classifications being developed for LANDFIRE (https://www.landfire.gov/). The first LANDFIRE landscape for Alaska was released in 2009 and it has been used in fire behavior models since then, mostly those embedded in the Wildland Fire Decision Support System (WFDSS; ttps://wfdss.usgs.gov/wfdss/WFDSS_Home.shtml). WFDSS fire behavior analyses typically use Scott and Burgan’s FBFM40, which had only been published a couple of years prior to initiation of the 2008 fuel model guide and was relatively new to Alaskan fire personnel. Since then, the LANDFIRE landscape has been periodically updated to reflect disturbance (primarily fire scars) and suggested changes in fuel model assignments. As fire behavior practitioners gained more experience comparing modeled to observed fire behavior under different conditions, they were able to fine tune fuel model assignments. These comparative observations were the primary driver for this review and revision to the 2008 Fuel Model Guide to Alaska Vegetation.