FFT Webtool: User Documentation

Selecting/Adding Fuelbeds

Step 1 of every FFT run is adding fuelbed(s) to the viewer/editor (currently server constraints limit the number of fuelbeds per run in the webtool to 5). Use the given filters to quickly winnow down the list of hundreds of fuelbeds in library to ones applicable to your use case.

Search Filters

The FCCS reference fuelbeds were named according to preset rules designed to convey dominant species and vegetation form. To help users find fuelbeds of interest, each fuelbed is assigned to various ecological classifications (given in the General > Other attributes section of the fuelbed editor). Use the drop-down boxes in the ‘Filter fuelbeds by’ section to narrow the Fuelbed library listbox to fuelbeds meeting selected criteria.

Fuelbed set
Select from:

• FCCS Reference Fuelbeds: FCCS's 460 standard fuelbeds, with fuelbed numbers 0-1299. See FCCS Reference Fuelbed Descriptions for full annotated list.
• Region 6 (PNW) Disturbance Pathway Fuelbeds: All the fuelbeds appearing in the disturbance pathways developed for Region 6. See Appendix Table for documentation.
• Natural Fuels Photo Series: Fuelbeds created to represent each site from the USFS FERA Lab's Natural Fuels Photo Series. Browse by volume at the Digitial Photo Series website.
• User-only: previously uploaded custom user fuelbeds (see Saving and Uploading User Fuelbeds)

Species
An exception to the explicitly-assigned ecological classification types, the species filter searches the reference fuelbeds for those in which the given species occurs, across all strata. The list contains over a thousand species and is searchable by scientific and common names.

Ecoregion
All FCCS reference fuelbeds are organized geographically according to Bailey’s 14 ecoregion divisions (Bailey 1989). Fuelbeds may span multiple ecoregions and have more than one ecoregion assigned to them. Select from the drop-down box or click the linked text to open a clickable map.

Vegetation Form
Each fuelbed is assigned to one of the following vegetation forms: broadleaf forest, conifer forest, mixed forest, savanna, shrubland, grassland, or slash. Mixed forests are defined as forests in which evergreen and deciduous species each contribute 25 to 75 percent of total tree cover in both overstory and midstory layers. Select from the drop-down box or click the linked text to open a clickable graphic.

Cover Type
Cover types represent the existing vegetation of an area based on the Society of American Foresters forest cover types (Eyre 1980) and the Society for Range Management rangeland cover types (Shiflet 1994). More than one cover type may apply to each fuelbed.

Structural Class
Fuelbeds with canopy layers are assigned one of seven stand structural classes (O'Hara et al. 1996). Select from the drop-down box or click the linked text to open a clickable graphic.

Change Agents
Change agents are natural or anthropogenic disturbances or management actions that affect fuelbed structure and composition, such as a clear cut or insects and disease. Multiple change agents may apply to a single fuelbed.

Adding Selected Fuelbed(s) to a Run

Once you've selected your fuelbed, add it to the run using one of the three buttons under the Fuelbed Library listbox:

• View
  Clicking 'View' adds the given fuelbed to the view/edit tables as read-only. The fuelbed's number/name will appear in the outputs unchanged.
• Add
  For user-fuelbeds only, this adds the fuelbed as-is to be edited and overwritten.
• Add a copy to edit
  To tailor the selected fuelbed to your site of interest, click 'Add a copy to edit', which will open a form for you to enter a new fuelbed number (prefilled with a suggestion using the parent fuelbed's number as a base) before adding an editable copy to the tables.
  
   
• Add disturbance
  
  
  To add a post-disturbance version of the given fuelbed click 'Add disturbance' to open a form to specify disturbance type, severity, and time since disturbance. Select from among the following disturbances:
  • Fire
    Fuelbed values will be altered to simulate the effects of wildfire.
  • Low severity: light burn over total area or patchy burn resulting in < 25% mortality of aboveground vegetation.
  • Moderate severity: >25 to < 75% mortality of aboveground vegetation including mixed severity sites.
  • High severity: >75% aboveground mortality including some mixed and stand-replacement sites.
  • Mechanical add
    Mechanical thinning effectively reduces crown fuels and raises canopy base height or in shrublands, reduces overall shrub cover. Surface slash is left on site and results in low, moderate and high continuity of dispersed logging residues.
  • Mechanical remove
    Mechanical thinning effectively reduces crown fuels and raises canopy base height or in shrublands, reduces overall shrub cover. Surface slash is then either pile burned or underburned and results in low surface fuel accumulations.
  • Windthrow
    Fuelbed values will be altered to simulate the aftermath of a blowdown event (applicable to treed sites only)
  • Insect/disease
    Fuelbed values will be altered to simulate mortality due to bark beetles/borers.
  
  The suggested new fuelbed number will be the parent's fuelbed number + the disturbance code, a 3 digit code representing disturbance/severity/time since event.
  

  DisturbanceCode	TypeCode	DisturbanceType	SeverityCode	Severity	TimeCode	TimeSinceDisturbance
  111	1	Wildfire	1	Low	1	≤ 1 year
  112	1	Wildfire	1	Low	2	2-5 years
  113	1	Wildfire	1	Low	3	5-10 years
  121	1	Wildfire	2	Moderate	1	≤ 1 year
  122	1	Wildfire	2	Moderate	2	2-5 years
  123	1	Wildfire	2	Moderate	3	5-10 years
  131	1	Wildfire	3	High	1	≤ 1 year
  132	1	Wildfire	3	High	2	2-5 years
  133	1	Wildfire	3	High	3	5-10 years
  211	2	Mechanical Thinning - Add fuels (slash left)	1	Low	1	≤ 1 year
  212	2	Mechanical Thinning - Add fuels (slash left)	1	Low	2	2-5 years
  213	2	Mechanical Thinning - Add fuels (slash left)	1	Low	3	5-10 years
  221	2	Mechanical Thinning - Add fuels (slash left)	2	Moderate	1	≤ 1 year
  222	2	Mechanical Thinning - Add fuels (slash left)	2	Moderate	2	2-5 years
  223	2	Mechanical Thinning - Add fuels (slash left)	2	Moderate	3	5-10 years
  231	2	Mechanical Thinning - Add fuels (slash left)	3	High	1	≤ 1 year
  232	2	Mechanical Thinning - Add fuels (slash left)	3	High	2	2-5 years
  233	2	Mechanical Thinning - Add fuels (slash left)	3	High	3	5-10 years
  311	3	Mechanical Thinning - Remove fuels (slash extracted/burned)	1	Low	1	≤ 1 year
  312	3	Mechanical Thinning - Remove fuels (slash extracted/burned)	1	Low	2	2-5 years
  313	3	Mechanical Thinning - Remove fuels (slash extracted/burned)	1	Low	3	5-10 years
  321	3	Mechanical Thinning - Remove fuels (slash extracted/burned)	2	Moderate	1	≤ 1 year
  322	3	Mechanical Thinning - Remove fuels (slash extracted/burned)	2	Moderate	2	2-5 years
  323	3	Mechanical Thinning - Remove fuels (slash extracted/burned)	2	Moderate	3	5-10 years
  331	3	Mechanical Thinning - Remove fuels (slash extracted/burned)	3	High	1	≤ 1 year
  332	3	Mechanical Thinning - Remove fuels (slash extracted/burned)	3	High	2	2-5 years
  333	3	Mechanical Thinning - Remove fuels (slash extracted/burned)	3	High	3	5-10 years
  411	4	Windstorm (blow down)	1	Low	1	1 year
  412	4	Windstorm (blow down)	1	Low	2	2-5 years
  413	4	Windstorm (blow down)	1	Low	3	5-10 years
  421	4	Windstorm (blow down)	2	Moderate	1	≤ 1 year
  422	4	Windstorm (blow down)	2	Moderate	2	2-5 years
  423	4	Windstorm (blow down)	2	Moderate	3	5-10 years
  431	4	Windstorm (blow down)	3	High	1	≤ 1 year
  432	4	Windstorm (blow down)	3	High	2	2-5 years
  433	4	Windstorm (blow down)	3	High	3	5-10 years
  511	5	Insect Damage (bark beetle/wood borer)	1	Low	1	≤ 1 year
  512	5	Insect Damage (bark beetle/wood borer)	1	Low	2	2-5 years
  513	5	Insect Damage (bark beetle/wood borer)	1	Low	3	5-10 years
  521	5	Insect Damage (bark beetle/wood borer)	2	Moderate	1	≤ 1 year
  522	5	Insect Damage (bark beetle/wood borer)	2	Moderate	2	2-5 years
  523	5	Insect Damage (bark beetle/wood borer)	2	Moderate	3	5-10 years
  531	5	Insect Damage (bark beetle/wood borer)	3	High	1	≤ 1 year
  532	5	Insect Damage (bark beetle/wood borer)	3	High	2	2-5 years
  533	5	Insect Damage (bark beetle/wood borer)	3	High	3	5-10 years