Wildfire Risk Assessment Western Travis County Texas Integrating

Wildfire Risk Assessment: Western Travis County, Texas Integrating GIS and Fire Modeling Jennifer Perry CE 394 K GIS

Fire Simulator Ø Ø Spatially and temporally simulate the spread and behavior of fires. GIS based data input Simulate weather, fuels, heterogeneous terrain Simulate attack scenarios

Required GIS Raster Files Ø Digital Elevation Model Ø Slope Ø Aspect Ø Fuels Ø Canopy Density . LCP file

Required GIS Raster Files Ø Digital Elevation Models Ø Ø Ø Downloaded from TNRIS – Digital Data site USGS Mansfield Dam Quadrangle 30 meter resolution UTM – NAD 27 projection

Required GIS Raster Files Ø Slope Ø Ø Ø Derived from DEM using Arc. View Spatial Analyst USGS Mansfield Dam Quadrangle 30 meter resolution UTM – NAD 27 projection

Required GIS Raster Files Ø Aspect Ø Ø Ø Derived from DEM using Arc. View Spatial Analyst USGS Mansfield Dam Quadrangle 30 meter resolution UTM – NAD 27 projection

Required GIS Raster Files Ø Fuels

Required GIS Raster Files Ø Fuels Ø USGS LULC vector file in digital degrees Ø Clipped against Mansfield Dam quad Ø Projected into UTM – NAD 27 Ø Converted to grid based on DEM

Required GIS Raster Files Ø Canopy Cover Ø Interpolated from LULC grid Ø Expressed as percent density Ø Projected into UTM – NAD 27 Ø Converted to grid based on DEM

Field Site 5 -6 acre brush fire Ø September 4, 2000 Ø Record high of 1100 F Ø

Extent of Fire Lake Travis

FARSITE Simulation Ignition conditions: Closed Timber Litter Exposed Rock Short grass 1 ft Southern Rough Chaparral 500 m Chagoopa. LCP Elevation = 2208 m Slope = 290 Aspect = 1350 Fuel = 7 Southern Rough Chaparral (2 -6 ft) Canopy Cover = 1

FARSITE Simulation Fire characteristics: Duration: 1 day T = 800 F, no wind Time step: 30 minutes Visible time step: 2 hours 500 m

What’s Left? Ø Ø Compile Mansfield Dam raster files into. LCP file Use FARSITE to convert Fuel Model from standard Anderson criteria to Fire Behavior Fuel Model Run simulation based on Labor Day Fire Overlay roads. shp and hydrants. shp to determine effectiveness of attack

Thanks to Brian Quinlan, Hudson Bend Fire Department, for access to GIS files