fred@geomorph.com
The past several years I have been working
on issues revolving around the effects of fire on the landscape: the magnitude
and distribution of erosion processes following wildfires; the effectiveness
of erosion control methods following wildfires; and runoff pathways on
recovering hillslopes following wildfires. Current research is focused
on validating Southern and Central California sediment yield models
for the California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection.
Late summer and fall wildfires in Southern California are often followed
by heavy winter rainstorms that generate post-fire flooding and debris
events which threaten life, property and infrastructure at the urban-wildland
interface. Prediction tools that can be used to anticipate the magnitude
and location of these post-fire impacts are needed by land managers and
resource protection agencies for identifying high risk areas, developing
mitigation and flood response planning. Currently, the only regional
model for estimating runoff and sediment production following wildfires
in Southern and Cental California is the U.S. Forest Service report authored
by P.B. Rowe, C.M. Countryman, and H.C. Storey (1954). This empirical
study used rainfall, runoff and reservoir siltation records to provide
information for 256 coastal Southern California drainage basins.
However, a potential flaw in the Rowe et al. Model is that sediment production
response was based on less than 15 years of reservoir data that did not
necessarily reflect the full spectrum of post-fire conditions. The
current study tests the Rowe et al. model against the additional 40 years
of sediment yield data that is now available.
Air photo of 1993 Kinneola fire, San Gabriel Mountains, California
Abstracts and Publications:
Booker, F.A. and W.E. Dietrich, 1999, Mechanisms controlling runoff and erosion on burned hillslopes at 9 sites in the Western United States over a 5 year period, Proceedings of the Geological Society of America, Denver, October 24,1999, Abstracts with Programs.
Booker, F.A., 1998, Landscape and management response to wildfires in California; Masters Thesis, University of California, Berkeley, p.436
Booker, F.A. and W.E. Dietrich, 1998, Effectiveness of erosion control mitigation following wildfires; Proceedings of International Association of Wildland Fire, Couer d’Alene, Idaho, Abstracts with Programs.
Brozovic, N., Booker, F.A., M.J. Bolander, and W.E. Dietrich, 1997, A seventy year record of erosion and sedimentation from the San Gabriel Mountains, Southern California; EOS, Transactions of the American Geophysical Union, San Francisco
Booker, F.A. and W.E. Dietrich, 1995, Erosion happens; Proceedings of International Association of Wildland Fire, Couer d’Alene, Idaho, Abstracts with Programs.
Zierholz, C., P. Hairsine, and F. Booker, 1995, Runoff and soil erosion following the Sydney bushfires; Australian Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, v. 8, no. 4, p. 28-37
Booker, F.A., W.E. Dietrich, and L. Collins, 1995, The Oakland Hills fire of October 20, 1991: an evaluation of post-fire response; in: Brushfires in California Wildlands; Ecology and Resource management, J.E. Keeley and T. Scott (eds.), Southern California Academy of Sciences Symposium, Irivine, California
Booker, F.A., W.E. Dietrich, and L. Collins, 1993, Runoff and erosion after the Oakland firestorm: expectations and observations; California Geology, v.46, no. 6, p 159-173
Booker, F.A., G. Pess, and W.E. Dietrich, 1992, Runoff and erosion in the Oakland Hills, following the firestorm of October 20, 1991: EOS, Transactions of the American Geophysical Union, v. 73 no. 43, p. 202