FUEL INVENTORY REPORT FOR MONTANA DE ORO STATE PARK

Within the last century anthropogenic effects have shifted fire resilient habitats that are adapted to thousands of years of frequent low intensity fires to landscapes that are susceptible to extreme fire behavior which threaten human assets and sensitive natural resources. Entities that manage forests will need to prioritize fuel reduction as a management tool to promote forest health and mitigate hazardous fire conditions. A fuel inventory of a eucalyptus forest at Montana De Oro State Park in Los Osos, CA was collected using a combination of Brown’s 1973 and Brown’s 1982 methods. The fuel inventory revealed the eucalyptus forest yielded 8.51 tons per acre of downed woody material, 17.1 tons per acre of leaf litter, and 14.3 tons per acre of duff. The data collected in this report will serve as baseline data for a comprehensive fuel management plan. Furthermore, the customization of a fuel model number that best represents the eucalyptus forest at Montana De Oro State Park coupled with data from this report could pave the way for fire behavior modeling