Effects of Fire Retardant Chemical and Fire Suppressant Foam on Shrub Steppe Vegetation in Northern Nevada
Diane L. Larson, Wesley E. Newton, Patrick J. Anderson, and Steven J. Stein
Abstract: The objectives of this study were to determine the effects of fire retardant chemical (Phos-Chek G75-F*) and fire suppressant foam (Silv-Ex) application, alone and in combination with fire, on Great Basin shrub steppe vegetation. We measured growth, resprouting, flowering, and incidence of galling insects on Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus and Artemisia tridentata. These characteristics were not affected by any chemical treatment. We measured community characteristics, including species richness, evenness, and diversity, and number of stems of woody and herbaceous plants in riparian and upland plots. Of these characteristics, only species richness and number of stems/m2 clearly responded to the chemical treatments, and the response was modified by fire. In general, species richness declined, especially after Phos-Chek application. However, by the end of the growing season,
species richness did not differ between treated and control plots. A canonical variate analysis suggested that burning had a greater influence on community composition than did the chemical treatments. In general, riparian areas showed more
significant responses to the treatments than did upland areas, and June applications produced greater changes in species
richness and stem density than did July applications.
* Use of Trade Names does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.
Keywords: Fire retardant, Class A foam, Great Basin, Shrub steppe, Wildland fire.
This resource is based on the following source (Northern Prairie Publication 1111):
Larson, Diane L., Wesley E. Newton, Patrick J. Anderson, and Steven J.
Stein. 1999. Effects of fire retardant chemical and fire
suppressant foam on shrub steppe vegetation in northern Nevada.
International Journal of Wildland Fire 9(2):115-127.
This resource should be cited as:
Larson, Diane L., Wesley E. Newton, Patrick J. Anderson, and Steven J.
Stein. 1999. Effects of fire retardant chemical and fire
suppressant foam on shrub steppe vegetation in northern Nevada.
International Journal of Wildland Fire 9(2):115-127. Jamestown,
ND: Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center Online.
http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/habitat/chemfoam/chemfoam.htm
(Version 30MAY2001).
Table of Contents
Tables and Figures
- Table 1 -- Plant species and the number of plot-sample period combinations on which they occurred in riparian and upland habitat at Cabin Creek and North Fork study areas in Nevada.
- Table 2 -- Results of analysis of variance for characteristics of Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus plants after burning followed by treatment with water, Silv-Ex, or Phos-Chek.
- Table 3 -- Results of analysis of variance for change in species diversity and evenness between pre- and post-treatment on riparian and upland plots.
- Table 4 -- Results of analysis of variance for characteristics of Artemisia tridentata after application of water, Silv-Ex, or Phos-Chek.
- Figure 1 -- Change in stems/m2 between pre- and post-treatment on unburned and burned riparian vegetation plots.
- Figure 2 -- Change in species richness between pre- and post-treatment on unburned and burned vegetation plots.
- Figure 3 -- Results of canonical variate analysis for burned and unburned riparian vegetation treated with Silv-Ex, Phos-Chek, or water.
- Figure 4 -- Results of canonical variate analysis for burned and unburned upland vegetation treated with Silv-Ex, Phos-Chek, or water.
Download the entire resource in PDF format (recommended for best printable version of this resource)
Diane L. Larson, U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, 100 Ecology Building, 1987 Upper Buford Circle, St. Paul, MN 55108, USA. Phone: +1 612 625 9271; Fax: +1 612 624 6777; email: dlarson@biosci.umn.edu
Wesley E. Newton, U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, 8711 37th St. SE, Jamestown, ND 58401, USA. Phone: +1 701 253 5523; Fax: +1 701 253 5553; email: wesley_newton@usgs.gov
Patrick J. Anderson, U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, 8711 37th St. SE, Jamestown, ND 58401, USA. Current address: U.S. Geological Survey, 4512 McMurry Ave., Fort Collins, CO 80525, USA. Phone: +1 970 226 9488; email: patrick_anderson@usgs.gov
Steven J. Stein, Department of Biology, Eastern Washington University, Cheney, WA 99004, USA. Phone: +1 509 359 7006; Fax: +1 509 359 6867; email: sstein@ewu.edu
Downloading Instructions -- Instructions on downloading and extracting files from this site.
chemfoam.zip (625K bytes) -- Effects of Fire Retardant Chemical and Fire Suppressant Foam on Shrub Steppe Vegetation in Northern Nevada
Installation: Extract all files and open chemfoam.htm in a web browser.
