Post-fire environmental assessment: a participatory multi-criteria approach for estimating soil erosion risk and vegetation recovery potential.

ABSTRACT: Although often perceived as destructive, wildfires play a vital ecological role in maintaining the function and biodiversity of fire-adapted ecosystems. However, increasing frequency, intensity, and altered seasonality of fires impede ecosystem recovery by depleting seed banks and disrupting plant maturation cycles. Post-fire soil erosion, usually triggered by the first rains after a fire event, exacerbates these challenges by accelerating nutrient loss and hindering vegetation regeneration, which can lead to ecosystem degradation. To address this risk, it is important to understand the ecosystems' responses to fire. Here, we outline a post-fire ecosystem assessment framework that applies geo-spatial data and participatory multi-criteria analysis (MCA) based on expert judgement and local k

SUBMITTER: Cristal I 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12538923 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature