(PHOTO SOURCE:CAMP PENDLETON) • Emergency hydroseeding and erosion control.
4.4.1.5. Fire Management
Goal: Maintain USMC mission-driven training needs while reducing ignitions/catastrophic wildfire and preventing CSS type conversions (aka Reduce Ignitions to Optimize Training [RIOT] – Wildland Fire Management).
Objective: Per Department of Defense Instruction 6055.06, Marine Corps Order P5090.2A, Base Order P111320.13, and the Sikes Act; the Base Fire Management Program is focused on achieving the USMC Mission while becoming a premier wildland fire management unit. The RIOT – Wildland Fire Management is driven by the Base Wildland Fire Management Plan, which was created, implemented and studied by the certified Base Wildland Fire Program Manager/Fire Ecologist.
Through the Base Fire Ecologist establishing RIOT precedence, warfare training will thrive and improve on fire safety, environmental security objectives will be met under federal compliance, and the longevity of military training will be secured by way of sustainable management practices. The overriding goal of fire management on Base is to: “protect life, property, and natural ecosystem functioning and diversity, while maximizing training opportunities and minimizing total cost (MCBCP 1998).” The Land Management Branch’s Fire Management program supports that goal. MCBCP has had an average of 300 fires per year since 1968, one of the highest ignition rates in the country (Tierra Data 2005). The high fire ignition frequency on Camp Pendleton (Munich 1983) likely represents the single greatest influence on natural resources on Base (MCBCP 1998). The frequency is influenced by three factors: 1) frequent ignition sources from weapons firing, explosions, and pyrotechnic devices; 2) biological and climatic conditions conducive to fire in the late summer and fall; and 3) large areas of open space with abundant vegetation.
To address fire management issues, Base Order P11320.13D (Fire Protection Regulations and Instructions) was implemented in 1992. Subsequently, a Fire Management Plan was developed jointly with the USFWS (entitled Wildland Fire Management Plan Update, MCBCP 1998). The Fire Management Plan is based on the development, implementation, and oversight of a proactive strategy focused on valuation and prioritization of Base resources. The 1998 Fire Management Plan strategy seeks to balance military training
requirements, with protection of natural resources in combination with fiscal considerations; all of which optimizes military training for the short and long term. Marine Corps Order P5090.2A, c11, s2-04, ss3 drives Program Authority of the certified Base Fire Ecologist whose responsibilities include, but are not limited to, fireline resource advising, firebreak and prescription burn plans, fire ecology, and wildland fire contract management. All of which are job functions required to maintain a sustainable and fire safe military training base.
Ecological effects of a fire can vary greatly with vegetation type, topography, and weather, as these and other factors will determine the severity of the fire. Grass and forbs-dominated vegetation types will generally have the lowest fire severities, while open scrublands may have intermediate severity fires, and dense coastal sage scrub and chaparral will often have the highest severity fires (Tierra Data 2005).
A mission-driven Wildland Fire Mapping Project was established in 1997 to map the perimeter, acreage and burn severity for wildland fires on Base. Fires over 5 ac are mapped, recorded in GIS and added to the Base’s fire geodatabase. Once completed, the Base Fire Ecologist analyzes the data and shapes the Base prescription burn (RXB) and firebreaks (FBX) plans using sound scientific assessment. Fire mapping is primarily conducted by contracted aerial photo flights. The digitized aerial photos are used to determine the perimeter of a fire in conjunction with fireline data collected by the Base Fire Ecologist. Fires occurring inside a restricted impact area are mapped using this same technique; GIS and high-resolution digital photos of the fire taken from low-flying aircraft within 21 days of the fire. Fire severity was based on the National Park Service (1992) definitions until mid-2005 when the estimates switched to the more-detailed severity matrix found in the National Park Service’s Fire Monitoring Handbook 2003 (National Park Service 2003). The geodatabase and revised fire severity mapping methodology is used with upland vegetation maps to determine if type conversion is taking place as a result of repeat fires and invasive annual grass invasion. Periodic vegetation mapping every five years allows the LMB to look at changes in habitat/vegetation cover. In FY07, the LMB began funding a GIS analysis to determine if any CSS, chaparral, CSS/chaparral, and/or perennial grassland have been type converted to another community. This analysis will also provide valuable information concerning the California gnatcatcher which is closely associated with CSS habitat (Bieber pers. comm. 2007).
In 2006, 8,068 ac burned on Base: 3,702 ac were burned in wildfires, 2,074 ac were burned as prescribed fires, and 2,292 ac were burned within the central impact areas. All fires caused by accident were classified as “wildfires”, or as burns occurring entirely within the borders of central impact areas Whiskey, Zulu, and Quebec. Annual or perennial grassland accounted for 66% of the ac burned by wildfire, shrublands accounted for 19%, Oak woodlands 11% and all other vegetation 4% (ITS 2007). Ninety-six percent (96%) of the wildfires in 2006 were classified as lightly or moderately burned. Such a high fire frequency precludes the buildup of heavy, woody fuels. Most fires burned over large grassy areas, where fuels were relatively light and often stopped at the interface between grassland and shrubland. Comparison of the 2005 data with previous years’ data (other than total ac burned) is difficult due to change in methodologies. Also, in contrast to 2005, the main method of data collection in 2006 was via aerial photography. Currently, an improved LTETM is being developed to establish which attributes to track in each vegetation community, and determine a health indicator. The LMB is also developing a “trigger” or threshold for when management action is required. At present, the Base is committed to maintaining its “regional commitment” of baseline occupied habitats (Bieber pers. comm. 2007). However, management considerations will be modified as necessary to reduce conversion where it is possible (outside of impact areas) and protect vegetation types in high fire-incidence areas. This will entail closer monitoring and greater communication with personnel responsible for operations and training activities and the Base Fire Department.
Table 4-11 summarizes the known fire history of the Base. An analysis of ignition sources was also compiled from fire department incident records between the years 1986-1988. These data revealed that fires can occur throughout the year on Base and that the large majority of fires are caused by training activities. Table 4-12 summarizes Wildfires, Wildland Fire Implementations (WFI), and Prescribed Burns (RXB) for each year. From