Canadian Forest Service Publications
Development of a national fuel-type map for Canada using fuzzy logic. 2005. Nadeau, L.B.; McRae, D.J.; Jin, J-Z. Natural Resources Canada, Canadian Forest Service, Northern Forestry Centre, Edmonton, Alberta. Information Report NOR-X-406. 26 p.
Available from: Northern Forestry Centre
Catalog ID: 25912
The Canadian Forest Fire Danger Rating System (CFFDRS) is used by fire management agencies across Canada in evaluating daily forest fire danger. Fuel-type information is essential for the prediction of fire behavior with CFFDRS. To provide this information, a fuel-type map (FTM) for Canada with 1-km resolution was produced with inputs derived from remote sensing and forest inventory data. The relationships (rules) between inputs and fuel types were established by expert opinion and incorporated into a computer program through fuzzy set methodology. The new national FTM was compared with provincial and territorial FTMs produced and used by fire management agencies in the Yukon, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario, and Quebec. A challenging aspect of comparing fuel types between the provincial and territorial FTMs and the national FTM was the interpretation of fuel-type categories not included in the CFFDRS that appeared in the provincial and territorial maps. Overall data point agreement between the provincial and territorial and the national FTMs was 60%. A map of possibility values was also produced. The low overall possibility value reflects the confidence of the fire scientists who produced the rules and the low number of inputs used to produce the national FTM. Given the heterogeneous nature of fuels across Canada, it is noteworthy that a small number of inputs produced a national FTM that had reasonable agreement with the provincial and territorial FTMs. The national FTM will be useful in fire behavior prediction in a national fire management information system.
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