include:
■ Providing wildlife habitats
■ Carbon sinks
■ Affecting local climate patterns
■ Purifying air and water
■ Reducing soil erosion as they serve as a watershed, absorbing and
releasing controlled amounts of water
■ Providing energy and nutrient cycling
■ Producing oxygen
■ Producing humus, which increases the soil qualityFOREST FIRES (WILDFIRES)
A wildfire is defined as an uncontrolled fire that occurs in the wilderness. They
can be massive in size and have the ability to spread across vast distances,
jumping rivers, roads, and fire breaks in the process. Usually, wildfires occur in
hot and dry climates during the hottest months of spring and summer.
As many as 90% of wildland fires in the United States are caused by
humans, according to the U.S. Department of the Interior.
Ecological impacts of wildfires include:
■ Loss of habitat, which results in a dramatic decrease in the biodiversity of
the area. Loss of habitat also results in increased competition for
remaining resources and fewer nesting and breeding sites. Species that are
not able to migrate will most likely die due to the lack of food and other
resources.
■ More available sunlight is able to reach the ground, which can result in
higher ground temperatures. This has an impact on lake, river, and stream
temperatures and the amount of snowpack, which serves as a water
reservoir for the following year.
■ Significantly less vegetation and associated root systems that help to hold
soil together and absorb precipitation. This results in: (1) soil erosion that
causes nutrients to be washed away; (2) increased sedimentation, which
results in changes in the depth of rivers and streams; (3) a decrease in
water quality; and (4) increased flooding, which can cause death to
animals and vegetation (waterlogging).