Journal of Geographical Sciences ›› 2023, Vol. 33 ›› Issue (8): 1631-1659.doi: 10.1007/s11442-023-2146-2

• Special Issue: Human-environment interactions and Ecosystems • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Quantitative assessment of fire occurrence Dead Fuel Index threshold and spatio-temporal variation in different grassland types of China-Mongolia border area

CHAO Lumen1,2(), BAO Yulong1,3,*(), ZHANG Jiquan4,5, BAO Yuhai1,3, MEI Li1, YUAN Zhihui1   

  1. 1. College of Geographic Science, Inner Mongolia Normal University, Hohhot 010022, China
    2. College of Resources and Environment, Baotou Normal College, Science and Technology University of Inner Mongolia, Baotou 014030, Inner Mongolia, China
    3. Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems, Inner Mongolia Normal University, Hohhot 010022, China
    4. School of Environment, Northeast Normal University, Changchun 130024, China
    5. Key Laboratory for Vegetation Ecology, Ministry of Education, Changchun 130024, China
  • Received:2022-06-13 Accepted:2023-03-22 Online:2023-08-25 Published:2023-08-29
  • Contact: * Bao Yulong (1982-), Associate Professor, E-mail: baoyulong@imnu.edu.cn
  • About author:Chao Lumen (1990-), PhD Candidate, E-mail: huiyouyitian654@126.com
  • Supported by:
    The International (Regional) Cooperation and Exchange Programs of National Natural Science Foundation of China(41961144019);The International (Regional) Cooperation and Exchange Programs of National Natural Science Foundation of China(4191101037);The Inner Mongolia Natural Science Foundation(2021MS04016)

Abstract:

Climate change is manifesting rapidly in the form of fires, droughts, floods, resource scarcity, and species loss, and remains a global risk. Owing to the disaster risk management, there is a need to determine the Dead Fuel Index (DFI) threshold of the fire occurrence area and analyze the spatio-temporal variation of DFI to apply prevention measures efficiently and facilitate sustainable fire risk management. This study used the MODIS Burned Area Monthly L3 (MCD64A1), Landsat Global Burned Area (BA) products, and MODIS Surface Reflectance 8-Day L3 (MOD09A1) data from 2001 to 2020 to calculate the values of the DFI in the study area before the occurrence of fire. The results showed that: (1) The inversion of the meadow steppe DFI values in the fire area was distributed in the range of 14-26, and the fire rate was the highest in the range of 20-22. The inversion of the typical steppe DFI values in the fire area was distributed in the range of 12-26, and the fire rate was the highest in the range of 16-22. (2) Areas with high fire DFI values included Khalkhgol, Matad, Erdenetsagaan, Bayandun, Gurvanzagal, Dashbalbar in Mongolia, and scattered areas of the Greater Khingan Mountains (forest edge meadow steppe area), East and West Ujumqin Banner, and Xin Barag Right Banner. The highest fire probability of fire occurred during October and April. (3) The DFI values were sensitive to changes in altitude. The results of this study may provide useful information on surface energy balance, grassland carbon storage, soil moisture, grassland health, land desertification, and grazing in the study area, especially for fire risk management.

Key words: Dead Fuel Index (DFI), grassland fire, withered grass, China-Mongolia border