Linking post-fire stream responses to watershed characteristics across the Pacific Northwest
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Wildfire can have dramatic effects on stream ecosystems. These changes may be beneficial or detrimental to human uses of streams. The inherent variability in watershed controls on stream properties can complicate efforts to generalize the net effects of wildfire on stream ecosystems. We have developed a watershed classification with the express goal of characterizing and leveraging variability in post-fire responses of aquatic systems. The classification approach assigns all sub-catchments in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho to a biophysical sensitivity class. The assignments are made using more than 350 biophysical watershed-scale metrics. In addition to the biophysical classification, watersheds are further stratified according to their burn characteristics. Burned watersheds from each biophysical class were then compared to a regional dataset of compiled stream quality measurements to quantify hypothesized variability in watershed responses. This spatially explicit classification is intended to provide a useful tool for tailoring post-fire interventions and monitoring approaches for assessing intervention efficacy. Additionally, by explicitly accounting for nuances in watershed-level drivers of stream response to wildfire, this framework should enable improved flexibility in the decision-making process facing those tasked with overseeing post-fire recovery.