Abstract

BIANCHI, L et al. Dinámica de la humedad de los combustibles y su relación con la ecología y el manejo de fuego en la región chaqueña occidental (Argentina) I: conceptos básicos. RIA. Rev. investig. agropecu. [online]. 2014, vol.40, n.2, pp.154-164. ISSN 1669-2314.

Fire is one of the main natural disturbances that have shaped most of the world´s terrestrial ecosystems. In the Chaco region of Argentina, fire has also been used as a management tool for pastures improvement. Given an ignition source, for a fire to develop certain conditions must occur. Among them, the fuel moisture content (FMC) plays a very important role, since its values will affect the behavior of the fire and the consequences on the disturbed ecosystem. There are differences between live (LFMC) and dead (DFMC) fuel moisture content, mainly because the water content is governed by different processes. The LFMC depends on the species´ physiological and phenological characteristics, while DFMC varies according to universal physical laws that regulate the moisture content exchange between the fuels and their environment. Given its relevance, several methods have been proposed to measure and predict FMC. Also, the knowledge of their dynamics along the seasons allows to determine the most critical periods for fire occurrence. Up to the present, preliminary studies of FMC have been determined for some species of the Chaco region. However, for developing protocols for the implementation of prescribed burning, it is necessary to broaden this knowledge to comprise a wider number of species. For the accomplishment of these objectives, we analyzed the influence of the climatic seasons, the ecological site, and the characteristics of the fuel on the FMC. In this first part, we present the conceptual bases dealing with vegetation combustion and its relations with FMC, the characterization of the differences between LFMC and DFMC, the factors controlling their respective dynamics, and the main methodologies used in their determination. In the following chapters, we will present the dynamics of FMC of the different key species of the Chaco region of Argentina.

Keywords : Combustion; Vegetable fuels; Wildfires; Prescribed burning.

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