Recent fire regime (1945-1998) in the boreal forest of western Quebec

The forest fire regime was characterized for the boreal forest of western Quebec using the provincial government's digital databases (1945-1998). Lightning- and human-caused fires account for 71% and 29% of the total area burned, respectively. With regard to ignition sources, lightning was responsible for 38% of the fires while humans were the ignition agent for 62% of fires. The fire regime parameters (burn rate, fire occurrence, and size) were subjected to a stepwise regression analysis on the basis of regional landscape units. Models indicate that climatic factors, particularly summer precipitation and maximum temperatures, play a primary role in forest fire dynamics, regardless of the ignition source. Fire occurrence models were the most predictable with R-2 values of 0.79 and 0.60 for lightning fires and human-caused fires, respectively. Models of burned areas reached an R-2 value of 0.63 for lightning but only 0.22 for human-caused fires; on the other hand, the fire-size model for human-caused fires showed an R-2 value of 0.57 but only 0.24 for lightning fires. In the case of human-induced fires, the density of the road network and sand deposits were important in fire occurrence and burned areas models. Once characterized, landscape units tend to group together naturally, forming extensive areas in which the fire regime is relatively homogeneous. The results of the regionalization based on lightning fire regimes are discussed from the standpoint of sustainable forest management.