Development of the Armillaria Response Tool for Evaluating Fuels Treatments
Authored By: M. Kim, G. I. McDonald, T. M. Rice, D. E. Hall, J. E. Stewart, J. R. Tonn, P. D. Tanimoto, P. J. Zambino, N. B. Klopfenstein
Mee-Sook Kim, Geral I. McDonald, Thomas M. Rice, David E. Hall, Jane E. Stewart, Jonalea R. Tonn, Philip D. Tanimoto, Paul J. Zambino, and Ned B. Klopfenstein
USDA Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station (1-6,8,9) and University of Arkansas Department of Biological Sciences
When selecting fuels treatments to reduce the threat of catastrophic wildfire, impacts on root-rot disease, such as Armillaria root rot, warrant careful consideration. Armillaria species are widely distributed and their contribution to disease and mortality can increase greatly after natural and human-caused disturbances. Although some Armillaria species are beneficial decomposers of woody substrates, Armillaria ostoyae is a major pathogen of conifers in the western United States. In many environments, this pathogen causes reduced tree growth, increased mortality, and predisposition to bark-beetle attack. In addition, Armillaria root disease can increase wildfire risk by contributing to build up of fuels in affected stands. The Armillaria Response Tool (ART) is a web-based tool that can estimate the potential risk of Armillaria root disease in forests of the inland western USA. ART uses habitat type to estimate the likelihood that pathogenic Armillaria species can occur on a site. ART helps guide stand-level choices of appropriate fuels management plans that allow forest managers to minimize the impact of Armillaria root disease on sites with disease potential. Future refinements to ART could incorporate the influences of stand history and inoculum potential on risk of Armillaria disease. This tool is part of the Fuels Planning: Science Synthesis and Integration Project, a pilot project initiated by the USDA Forest Service to respond to the need for tools and information for planning site-specific fuels-treatment projects. More information and a functional version of the tool can be viewed at our web site: http://forest.moscowfsl.wsu.edu/fuels/art/.
corresponding author:
Mee-Sook Kim
USDA Forest Service
Rocky Mountain Research Station
1221 S. Main Street
Moscow, ID 83843
208-883-2362
mkim@fs.fed.us
