Table 1.
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Potential fire-initiated feedback loops influencing accumulation, combustion, transport, and propagation.

Initiating e ventFeedbackExamples
Combustion of belowground biomass reduces soil stabilityDecreased soil stability slows recovery of vegetation, leading to more soil erosionOne of the most commonly observed post-fire feedbacks particularly on steeper slopes (for a review, see Shakesby and Doerr 2006), but elevated erosion rates can be successfully mitigated (Girona-García et al. 2021) allowing for the re-establishment of vegetation.
Combustion of aboveground biomass decreases shading by the vegetation canopy and increases evaporationLack of canopy increases solar radiation resulting in earlier snowmelt, which dries soils and slows regrowth of vegetationFollowing a fire in the Oregon Cascades, more snow accumulated in a burned forest, but the snowpack disappeared 23 days earlier and had twice the ablation rate than in an unburned forest, resulting in drier soils (Gleason et al. 2019).
Combustion of aboveground biomass results in reduced nutrient uptake by plantsDecreased vegetation increases lateral export of nutrients, reducing soil nutrient pools, and decreasing vegetation growthSoil carbon and nitrogen declined by more than 35% after 64 years of frequent burning compared with unburned plots (Pellegrini et al. 2018).
Exposed soils were vulnerable to leaching at the onset of autumn rains in chaparral ecosystems before recovering plants and microbes could access available nitrogen (Hanan et al. 2016).
Combustion of aboveground biomass reduces the population of fire-avoidant plant species, allowing fire-adapted species to establishDominance by fire-adapted vegetation increases susceptibility to combustion and thereby competitive advantage for fire-adapted speciesIn the Great Basin, Landsat images revealed that burned areas had higher annual herbaceous cover (e.g., cheatgrass) relative to sagebrush cover than unburned areas, suggesting that once annual grasses establish they increase the likelihood of fire (Barker et al. 2019). Alternatively, Tepley and colleagues (2018) suggested that flammable, early-successional vegetation regrowth amplifies risk of future fires, whereas less flammable early colonizers can reduce future fire risk.
Fire-damaged biomass transported to stream-riparian corridorAccumulation of organic debris in riparian zones following fires and subsequent floods increases fuel load and fire hazardPettit and Naiman (2007) suggested a lagged feedback between fire, flood frequency, and forestry practices that determines the accumulation of woody debris and litter in riparian corridors that could serve as fuel for subsequent fires.
Fire-damaged biomass transported to upland swales or stream-riparian corridorAccumulation of organic debris can sequester nutrients and retain water, increasing microbial retention of nutrients and reducing exportTransported sediments accumulated behind erosion-control structures in burned watersheds and collected sediments enhance microbial activity (Callegary et al. 2021).
Postfire contamination of drinking water by combustion byproducts increases expenses for cleaning water and can reduce access to clean drinking waterDiminished access to drinking water or expense of treating contaminated water quality leads to change in fire management within the contributing watershedFeedbacks between fire management and downstream water quality have been incorporated into the Rio Grande Water Fund governance structure (Morgan et al. 2023).
Regrowth of herbaceous vegetation (accumulation) after a fireHerbaceous vegetation promotes nutrient turnover that supports subsequent shrub growth and fuel loadsGoodridge and colleagues (2018) hypothesized that herbaceous plants are more easily decomposed, promoting soil microbial growth and organic nitrogen uptake, and subsequent nitrogen mineralization and nitrification that enhance shrub regrowth.
Initiating e ventFeedbackExamples
Combustion of belowground biomass reduces soil stabilityDecreased soil stability slows recovery of vegetation, leading to more soil erosionOne of the most commonly observed post-fire feedbacks particularly on steeper slopes (for a review, see Shakesby and Doerr 2006), but elevated erosion rates can be successfully mitigated (Girona-García et al. 2021) allowing for the re-establishment of vegetation.
Combustion of aboveground biomass decreases shading by the vegetation canopy and increases evaporationLack of canopy increases solar radiation resulting in earlier snowmelt, which dries soils and slows regrowth of vegetationFollowing a fire in the Oregon Cascades, more snow accumulated in a burned forest, but the snowpack disappeared 23 days earlier and had twice the ablation rate than in an unburned forest, resulting in drier soils (Gleason et al. 2019).
Combustion of aboveground biomass results in reduced nutrient uptake by plantsDecreased vegetation increases lateral export of nutrients, reducing soil nutrient pools, and decreasing vegetation growthSoil carbon and nitrogen declined by more than 35% after 64 years of frequent burning compared with unburned plots (Pellegrini et al. 2018).
Exposed soils were vulnerable to leaching at the onset of autumn rains in chaparral ecosystems before recovering plants and microbes could access available nitrogen (Hanan et al. 2016).
Combustion of aboveground biomass reduces the population of fire-avoidant plant species, allowing fire-adapted species to establishDominance by fire-adapted vegetation increases susceptibility to combustion and thereby competitive advantage for fire-adapted speciesIn the Great Basin, Landsat images revealed that burned areas had higher annual herbaceous cover (e.g., cheatgrass) relative to sagebrush cover than unburned areas, suggesting that once annual grasses establish they increase the likelihood of fire (Barker et al. 2019). Alternatively, Tepley and colleagues (2018) suggested that flammable, early-successional vegetation regrowth amplifies risk of future fires, whereas less flammable early colonizers can reduce future fire risk.
Fire-damaged biomass transported to stream-riparian corridorAccumulation of organic debris in riparian zones following fires and subsequent floods increases fuel load and fire hazardPettit and Naiman (2007) suggested a lagged feedback between fire, flood frequency, and forestry practices that determines the accumulation of woody debris and litter in riparian corridors that could serve as fuel for subsequent fires.
Fire-damaged biomass transported to upland swales or stream-riparian corridorAccumulation of organic debris can sequester nutrients and retain water, increasing microbial retention of nutrients and reducing exportTransported sediments accumulated behind erosion-control structures in burned watersheds and collected sediments enhance microbial activity (Callegary et al. 2021).
Postfire contamination of drinking water by combustion byproducts increases expenses for cleaning water and can reduce access to clean drinking waterDiminished access to drinking water or expense of treating contaminated water quality leads to change in fire management within the contributing watershedFeedbacks between fire management and downstream water quality have been incorporated into the Rio Grande Water Fund governance structure (Morgan et al. 2023).
Regrowth of herbaceous vegetation (accumulation) after a fireHerbaceous vegetation promotes nutrient turnover that supports subsequent shrub growth and fuel loadsGoodridge and colleagues (2018) hypothesized that herbaceous plants are more easily decomposed, promoting soil microbial growth and organic nitrogen uptake, and subsequent nitrogen mineralization and nitrification that enhance shrub regrowth.
Table 1.
Open in new tab

Potential fire-initiated feedback loops influencing accumulation, combustion, transport, and propagation.

Initiating e ventFeedbackExamples
Combustion of belowground biomass reduces soil stabilityDecreased soil stability slows recovery of vegetation, leading to more soil erosionOne of the most commonly observed post-fire feedbacks particularly on steeper slopes (for a review, see Shakesby and Doerr 2006), but elevated erosion rates can be successfully mitigated (Girona-García et al. 2021) allowing for the re-establishment of vegetation.
Combustion of aboveground biomass decreases shading by the vegetation canopy and increases evaporationLack of canopy increases solar radiation resulting in earlier snowmelt, which dries soils and slows regrowth of vegetationFollowing a fire in the Oregon Cascades, more snow accumulated in a burned forest, but the snowpack disappeared 23 days earlier and had twice the ablation rate than in an unburned forest, resulting in drier soils (Gleason et al. 2019).
Combustion of aboveground biomass results in reduced nutrient uptake by plantsDecreased vegetation increases lateral export of nutrients, reducing soil nutrient pools, and decreasing vegetation growthSoil carbon and nitrogen declined by more than 35% after 64 years of frequent burning compared with unburned plots (Pellegrini et al. 2018).
Exposed soils were vulnerable to leaching at the onset of autumn rains in chaparral ecosystems before recovering plants and microbes could access available nitrogen (Hanan et al. 2016).
Combustion of aboveground biomass reduces the population of fire-avoidant plant species, allowing fire-adapted species to establishDominance by fire-adapted vegetation increases susceptibility to combustion and thereby competitive advantage for fire-adapted speciesIn the Great Basin, Landsat images revealed that burned areas had higher annual herbaceous cover (e.g., cheatgrass) relative to sagebrush cover than unburned areas, suggesting that once annual grasses establish they increase the likelihood of fire (Barker et al. 2019). Alternatively, Tepley and colleagues (2018) suggested that flammable, early-successional vegetation regrowth amplifies risk of future fires, whereas less flammable early colonizers can reduce future fire risk.
Fire-damaged biomass transported to stream-riparian corridorAccumulation of organic debris in riparian zones following fires and subsequent floods increases fuel load and fire hazardPettit and Naiman (2007) suggested a lagged feedback between fire, flood frequency, and forestry practices that determines the accumulation of woody debris and litter in riparian corridors that could serve as fuel for subsequent fires.
Fire-damaged biomass transported to upland swales or stream-riparian corridorAccumulation of organic debris can sequester nutrients and retain water, increasing microbial retention of nutrients and reducing exportTransported sediments accumulated behind erosion-control structures in burned watersheds and collected sediments enhance microbial activity (Callegary et al. 2021).
Postfire contamination of drinking water by combustion byproducts increases expenses for cleaning water and can reduce access to clean drinking waterDiminished access to drinking water or expense of treating contaminated water quality leads to change in fire management within the contributing watershedFeedbacks between fire management and downstream water quality have been incorporated into the Rio Grande Water Fund governance structure (Morgan et al. 2023).
Regrowth of herbaceous vegetation (accumulation) after a fireHerbaceous vegetation promotes nutrient turnover that supports subsequent shrub growth and fuel loadsGoodridge and colleagues (2018) hypothesized that herbaceous plants are more easily decomposed, promoting soil microbial growth and organic nitrogen uptake, and subsequent nitrogen mineralization and nitrification that enhance shrub regrowth.
Initiating e ventFeedbackExamples
Combustion of belowground biomass reduces soil stabilityDecreased soil stability slows recovery of vegetation, leading to more soil erosionOne of the most commonly observed post-fire feedbacks particularly on steeper slopes (for a review, see Shakesby and Doerr 2006), but elevated erosion rates can be successfully mitigated (Girona-García et al. 2021) allowing for the re-establishment of vegetation.
Combustion of aboveground biomass decreases shading by the vegetation canopy and increases evaporationLack of canopy increases solar radiation resulting in earlier snowmelt, which dries soils and slows regrowth of vegetationFollowing a fire in the Oregon Cascades, more snow accumulated in a burned forest, but the snowpack disappeared 23 days earlier and had twice the ablation rate than in an unburned forest, resulting in drier soils (Gleason et al. 2019).
Combustion of aboveground biomass results in reduced nutrient uptake by plantsDecreased vegetation increases lateral export of nutrients, reducing soil nutrient pools, and decreasing vegetation growthSoil carbon and nitrogen declined by more than 35% after 64 years of frequent burning compared with unburned plots (Pellegrini et al. 2018).
Exposed soils were vulnerable to leaching at the onset of autumn rains in chaparral ecosystems before recovering plants and microbes could access available nitrogen (Hanan et al. 2016).
Combustion of aboveground biomass reduces the population of fire-avoidant plant species, allowing fire-adapted species to establishDominance by fire-adapted vegetation increases susceptibility to combustion and thereby competitive advantage for fire-adapted speciesIn the Great Basin, Landsat images revealed that burned areas had higher annual herbaceous cover (e.g., cheatgrass) relative to sagebrush cover than unburned areas, suggesting that once annual grasses establish they increase the likelihood of fire (Barker et al. 2019). Alternatively, Tepley and colleagues (2018) suggested that flammable, early-successional vegetation regrowth amplifies risk of future fires, whereas less flammable early colonizers can reduce future fire risk.
Fire-damaged biomass transported to stream-riparian corridorAccumulation of organic debris in riparian zones following fires and subsequent floods increases fuel load and fire hazardPettit and Naiman (2007) suggested a lagged feedback between fire, flood frequency, and forestry practices that determines the accumulation of woody debris and litter in riparian corridors that could serve as fuel for subsequent fires.
Fire-damaged biomass transported to upland swales or stream-riparian corridorAccumulation of organic debris can sequester nutrients and retain water, increasing microbial retention of nutrients and reducing exportTransported sediments accumulated behind erosion-control structures in burned watersheds and collected sediments enhance microbial activity (Callegary et al. 2021).
Postfire contamination of drinking water by combustion byproducts increases expenses for cleaning water and can reduce access to clean drinking waterDiminished access to drinking water or expense of treating contaminated water quality leads to change in fire management within the contributing watershedFeedbacks between fire management and downstream water quality have been incorporated into the Rio Grande Water Fund governance structure (Morgan et al. 2023).
Regrowth of herbaceous vegetation (accumulation) after a fireHerbaceous vegetation promotes nutrient turnover that supports subsequent shrub growth and fuel loadsGoodridge and colleagues (2018) hypothesized that herbaceous plants are more easily decomposed, promoting soil microbial growth and organic nitrogen uptake, and subsequent nitrogen mineralization and nitrification that enhance shrub regrowth.
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