Year: 2001
Type: report
Abstract: The Cerro Grande Fire of May 2000 burned almost 43,000 acres of forested land within the Pajarito Plateau watershed in northern New Mexico. Runoff events after the fire were monitored and sampled by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Changes in the composition of runoff water were noted when compared to runoff water composition of the previous 20 years. In order to understand the chemical water quality changes noted in runoff water after the Cerro Grande Fire, a summary of the reported effects of fire on runoff water chemistry and on soils that contribute to runoff water chemistry was compiled. The focus of this report is chemical water quality, so it does not address changes in sediment transport or water quantity associated with fires. Within the general inorganic parameters, increases of dissolved calcium, magnesium, nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium and pH in runoff water have been observed as a result of fire. However, the dissolved sodium, carbon, and sulfate have been observed to increase and decrease as a result of fire. Metals have been much less studied, but manganese, copper, zinc, and cesium-137 have been observed to increase as a result of fire.
DOI: 10.2172/781455
Authors: Kelly Bitner, Bruce Gallaher, Ken Mullen
Institution: University of New Mexico
Language: English
Topic: Fire effects on ecosystems
Subfield: Global and Planetary Change
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
Funder: University of California
OpenAlex ID: W168311214