Accelerating Science to Action Partnerships (ASAP): Implementing science-driven adaptation strategies in the 2-3-2 Landscape
Project Overview
In the Southwestern U.S., decades of wildfire suppression, drought, and climate-drive aridification have resulted in unnatural fuel-loading across forests and grasslands. With wildfire severity and frequency on the rise, communities and ecosystems are seeing more post-fire impacts such as flooding and debris flow as well. Researchers supported by this Southwest CASC project will inform land and resource managers by supporting existing partnerships with tools and research to effectively implement strategies to adapt to climate induced wildfire impacts and create a strong foundation for continued action.
Public Summary
The impacts of unnatural fuel-loading resulting from decades of wildfire suppression, extreme drought, and climate change-driven aridification have become obvious across the landscape of Southwestern United States. Forests and grasslands have become more vulnerable to insects, pests, and disease while the frequency, size, and severity of wildfires have increased significantly in recent decades. Post-fire impacts such as flooding and debris flows are further damaging ecosystems, infrastructure, economies, and communities, often more dramatically than the flames. In response, land managers are faced with the challenge of restoring forest resilience while balancing mounting social and environmental constraints.
The Accelerating Science to Action Partnerships Project (ASAP) team will build on the work of the Southwest FireCLIME project, a research partnership between scientists and resource managers to synthesize current knowledge of regional climate-fire-ecosystem dynamics, to accelerate climate adaptive strategies. The work will engage many stakeholders with deep regional knowledge and expertise through the existing and ever evolving 2-3-2 Partnership network. Where appropriate, the ASAP Project will spotlight Indigenous knowledge with the expertise of John Galvan, Daniel Denipah, and other Indigenous partners and collaborators of the 2-3-2. These efforts will be further supported by existing relationships with US Forest Service Tribal Relations staff on the Santa Fe, Carson, Rio Grande, and San Juan National Forests. This project will also track the gaps ASAP Project participants identify in available science, which will inform a report through the Southwest Fire Science Consortium on research needs.
The ASAP Project team will support the 2-3-2 Partnership in integrating the most appropriate models or tools into their existing landscape objectives. Generally, these objectives focus on promoting resilient landscapes that protect and improve water resources for communities, provide habitat for wildlife, and support the economic and cultural resilience of communities within and downstream of the 2-3-2 boundary. Though the funding and implementation of thinning, burning, planting, or other work in the woods is outside the scope of this project, it will be crucial to keep these sorts of field activities at the forefront of the team’s thinking and collaborative discussions, with the key product for this project being implementation of adaptation strategies on the ground. The research team will also present on the ASAP Project at one 2-3-2 Partnership meeting during the life of the project and engage in dialogue with the 2-3-2 Partnership executive committee regarding progress and applications twice per year.
- Source: USGS Sciencebase (id: 677d6b49d34e480c9507fc97)
Project Overview
In the Southwestern U.S., decades of wildfire suppression, drought, and climate-drive aridification have resulted in unnatural fuel-loading across forests and grasslands. With wildfire severity and frequency on the rise, communities and ecosystems are seeing more post-fire impacts such as flooding and debris flow as well. Researchers supported by this Southwest CASC project will inform land and resource managers by supporting existing partnerships with tools and research to effectively implement strategies to adapt to climate induced wildfire impacts and create a strong foundation for continued action.
Public Summary
The impacts of unnatural fuel-loading resulting from decades of wildfire suppression, extreme drought, and climate change-driven aridification have become obvious across the landscape of Southwestern United States. Forests and grasslands have become more vulnerable to insects, pests, and disease while the frequency, size, and severity of wildfires have increased significantly in recent decades. Post-fire impacts such as flooding and debris flows are further damaging ecosystems, infrastructure, economies, and communities, often more dramatically than the flames. In response, land managers are faced with the challenge of restoring forest resilience while balancing mounting social and environmental constraints.
The Accelerating Science to Action Partnerships Project (ASAP) team will build on the work of the Southwest FireCLIME project, a research partnership between scientists and resource managers to synthesize current knowledge of regional climate-fire-ecosystem dynamics, to accelerate climate adaptive strategies. The work will engage many stakeholders with deep regional knowledge and expertise through the existing and ever evolving 2-3-2 Partnership network. Where appropriate, the ASAP Project will spotlight Indigenous knowledge with the expertise of John Galvan, Daniel Denipah, and other Indigenous partners and collaborators of the 2-3-2. These efforts will be further supported by existing relationships with US Forest Service Tribal Relations staff on the Santa Fe, Carson, Rio Grande, and San Juan National Forests. This project will also track the gaps ASAP Project participants identify in available science, which will inform a report through the Southwest Fire Science Consortium on research needs.
The ASAP Project team will support the 2-3-2 Partnership in integrating the most appropriate models or tools into their existing landscape objectives. Generally, these objectives focus on promoting resilient landscapes that protect and improve water resources for communities, provide habitat for wildlife, and support the economic and cultural resilience of communities within and downstream of the 2-3-2 boundary. Though the funding and implementation of thinning, burning, planting, or other work in the woods is outside the scope of this project, it will be crucial to keep these sorts of field activities at the forefront of the team’s thinking and collaborative discussions, with the key product for this project being implementation of adaptation strategies on the ground. The research team will also present on the ASAP Project at one 2-3-2 Partnership meeting during the life of the project and engage in dialogue with the 2-3-2 Partnership executive committee regarding progress and applications twice per year.
- Source: USGS Sciencebase (id: 677d6b49d34e480c9507fc97)