HVRA - Air Quality

Overview

Air Quality is part of the Highly Valued Resource or Asset (HVRA) data used in the National Wildfire Risk Assessment for Forest Service Lands (NaWRA, Dillon 2020). Air Quality classes can be used as Sub-HVRAs within the Map Values, Exposure Analysis and Quantitative Wildfire Risk Assessment functionality within the Interagency Fuel Treatment Decision Support System (IFTDSS).

Data Details

Air Quality represents the potential for fine particulate matter (PM2.5) from wildfire emissions. The First Order Fire Effects (FOFEM, https://www.fs.fed.us/rmrs/tools/first-order-fire-effects-model-fofem) model was used to predict point source emission potential. Inputs for FOFEM came from, LANDFIRE (https://www.landfire.gov/) and Forest Inventory Analysis (FIA, https://www.fia.fs.fed.us/). Modeling was completed by the USDA Forest Service Pacific Northwest and Rocky Mountain Research Stations. The emission potential does not include smoke dispersion or impact to populations.

Air Quality was summarized into three emission potential classes for use in IFTDSS. Classification used the distribution of the data and divided it into thirds:

• Low PM2.5 Emission Potential

• Moderate PM2.5 Emission Potential

• High PM2.5 Emission Potential

Citations

Dillon, Gregory K. 2020. Results and application of the National Wildfire Risk Assessment. In: Hood, Sharon M.; Drury, Stacy; Steelman, Toddi; and Steffens, Ron, eds. Proceedings of the Fire Continuum—Preparing for the future of wildland fire; 2018 May 21-24; Missoula, MT. Proceedings RMRS-P-78. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. Pgs 252-257.

Terms of Use: Neither the U.S. Government, the Department of Interior, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the National Interagency Fire Center, nor any of their employees, contractors, or subcontractors, shall be held liable for improper or incorrect use of the data described and/or contained herein. These data and related graphics (i.e. GIF or JPG format files) are not legal documents and are not intended to be used as such. The information contained in these data is dynamic and may change over time. The data are not better than the original sources from which they were derived. It is the responsibility of the data user to use the data appropriately and consistent within the limitations of geospatial data in general and these data in particular. Neither the U.S. Government, the Department of Interior, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the National Interagency Fire Center, nor any of their employees, contractors, or subcontractors, make any warranty, express or implied, nor assume any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of any data described and/or contained herein. No warranty expressed or implied is made regarding the utility of the data on other systems for general or scientific purposes, nor shall the act of distribution constitute any such warranty. This disclaimer applies both to individual use of the data and aggregate use with other data.

Last Updated 6-3-2024