PI-GRIMM: Fire is an important component of the functioning of ecosystems. Fire also is currently being used extensively by human populations worldwide in the conversion of forest to pasture and agricultural land. The historic role of fire and the frequency of fire in different ecosystem types is important in assessing present-day management decisions. This project looks at 6,000 years of fire history in changing landscapes of the boreal forests and grasslands of North America. Pollen records and charcoal records will be combined to examine interplay between vegetation and fire. This will provide a comparison of how modern emissions from modern fires differ from those of the past. This research is important because it places the role of fire in a regional perspective. Methods are to be developed and tested which will allow fire history from individual lakes to be extended to a regional view of how fire structures and affects ecosystems.
