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Abstract
A significant impediment to forest managers has been the difficulty in obtaining large-area forest structure and fuel characteristics at useful resolutions and accuracies. This paper demonstrates how LIDAR data were used to predict canopy bulk density (CBD) and canopy base height (CBH) for an area in the Sierra National Forest. The LIDAR data were used to generate maps of canopy fuels for input into a fire behavior model (FARSITE). The results indicate that LIDAR metrics are significant predictors of both CBD (r? = 0.71) and CBH (r? = 0.59). In summary, LIDAR is no longer an experimental technique and has become accepted as a source of accurate and dependable data that are suitable for forest inventory and assessment.
Parent Publication
Citation
Peterson, Birgit; Dubayah, Ralph; Hyde, Peter; Hofton, Michelle; Blair, J. Bryan; Fites-Kaufman, JoAnn. 2007. Use of LIDAR for forest inventory and forest management application. In: McRoberts, Ronald E.; Reams, Gregory A.; Van Deusen, Paul C.; McWilliams, William H., eds. Proceedings of the seventh annual forest inventory and analysis symposium; October 3-6, 2005; Portland, ME. Gen. Tech. Rep. WO-77. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service: 193-202.
