Fire is an essential ecological process and management tool for many forested landscapes, particularly the pine (Pinus spp.) forests of the southern USA. Within the Talladega National Forest in Alabama, where restoration and maintenance of pine ecosystems is a priority, fire frequency (both wild and prescribed) was assessed using a geographical process applied to a fire history database. Two methods for assessing fire frequency were employed: (1) a simple method that utilised the entire range of years acknowledged in the database and (2) a conservative method that was applied only the date of the first and last fires recorded at each location. Analyses were further separated by (a) method of mean fire return interval calculation (weighted by area or Weibull) and (b) fire season interval with analyses conducted on growing season and dormant season fires. Analyses of fire frequency for national forest planning purposes may help determine whether a prescribed fire program mimics ecological and historical fire frequencies and meets intended objectives. The estimated fire return interval was between ~5 and 6.5 years using common, straightforward (simple) methods. About one-third of the forest receives no fire management and about half of the balance has sufficiently managed fuels.

中文翻译：

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美国塔拉迪加国家森林火灾频率分析，1998-2018

对于许多森林景观，尤其是美国南部的松 (Pinus spp.) 森林，火是必不可少的生态过程和管理工具。在阿拉巴马州的塔拉迪加国家森林中，松树生态系统的恢复和维护是一个优先事项，使用应用于火灾历史数据库的地理过程评估了火灾频率（野生和规定）。采用了两种评估火灾频率的方法：(1) 一种利用数据库中确认的整个年份范围的简单方法；(2) 一种仅应用每个地点记录的第一次和最后一次火灾日期的保守方法。通过 (a) 平均火灾重现间隔计算方法（按面积或威布尔加权）和 (b) 火灾季节间隔进一步分离分析，对生长季节和休眠季节火灾进行分析。出于国家森林规划目的对火灾频率进行分析可能有助于确定规定的火灾计划是否模仿生态和历史火灾频率并满足预期目标。使用常见、直接（简单）的方法估计的火灾重现间隔在大约 5 到 6.5 年之间。大约三分之一的森林没有进行火灾管理，其余的大约一半有充分的燃料管理。使用常见、直接（简单）的方法估计的火灾重现间隔在大约 5 到 6.5 年之间。大约三分之一的森林没有进行火灾管理，其余的大约一半有充分的燃料管理。使用常见、直接（简单）的方法估计的火灾重现间隔在大约 5 到 6.5 年之间。大约三分之一的森林没有进行火灾管理，其余的大约一半有充分的燃料管理。