Post Wildfire Treatments for Hot Burn Areas (Carr Fire) Using Successional Reclamation Principles

The Carr Fire, started July 27, 2018, was a large wildfire that burned in Shasta and Trinity Counties in California, United States. The fire burned 229,651 acres, and destroyed 1,077 homes, and killed 3 firefighters and 5 civilians before it was 100% contained late on August 30, 2018.

According to a Green Sheet report by CAL FIRE, the conditions that resulted in the entrapment of three dozers and the Redding Fire Department Fire Inspector that day were due to the fire tornado — a large rotating fire plume that was roughly 1,000 feet in diameter. The winds at the base were 136-165 mph (EF-3 tornado strength),
The wildfire conditions experienced, the hot dry winds and resulting "firenado", produced many "hot burn" areas. The west Redding area also had "fuel loading" referring to the extreme and un-natural buildup of fire-prone vegetation. At the turn of the century, the local Keswick Smelter produced a plume of toxic smoke released from the smelter chimneys which almost instantly killed whatever vegetation it touched, from grass to trees. The impacts were felt over twenty miles away.
Pre-smelter, the Carr fire area had been a late successional stage Ponderosa Pine forest. The forest was replaced by two or three resilient species, e.g., Knobcone Pine, Manzanita, and Yerba Santa are still predominate and highly fire prone. Prior to the fire the Middle Creek and Rock Creek watersheds were overgrown with Knobcone, all of even age, estimated at 37 years old. Fire history in the region reveals the last wildfire was 37 years prior.
This paper presents a couple of case studies where the “hot burn areas” were treated with mychorrizae, native grass seeds, and straw mulch. Can treating such burns with successional reclamation intent break the fire-vegetation cycles.