Reduce Fuel Production

Management techniques can be used to shift species composition to vegetation types that produce less biomass per acre per year, or produce biomass that is less likely to burn or burns more efficiently with less smoke.

• Chemical treatments. Broad spectrum and selective herbicides can be used to reduce or remove live vegetation, or alter species diversity respectively. This often reduces or eliminates the need to use fire. Chemical production and application have their own emissions, environmental, and public relations problems. A NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) analysis is generally required prior to any chemical use on public lands and states often require similar analyses prior to chemical use on state or private lands.
• Site conversion. Natural site productivity can be decreased by changing the vegetation composition. For example, frequent ground fires in southern pine forests will convert an understory of flammable shrubs (such as palmetto and gallberry) to open woodlands with less total fuel but also with more grass and herbs. Grass and herbs tend to burn cleaner than shrubs. Total fuel loading can also be reduced through conversion to species that are less productive.
• Land use change. Changing wildlands to another land use category may result in elimination of the need to burn. Conversion of a wildland site to agriculture or an urbanized use significantly alters the ecological structure and function and presents numerous legal and philosophical issues. This alternative is probably not an option on Federally managed lands.