The effects of a controlled burn on the water quality of two east Texas streams in the Sabine National Forest

One of the management tools available to the United States Forest Service is prescribed fire. A prescribed fire was applied in February and March 2002 in order to reduce fuel loads and improve Red Cockaded Woodpecker habitat in the Sabine National Forest (SNF). This paper describes the physicochemical effects of a prescribed fire on two first order streams in the SNF near Shelbyville, TX. The two streams were monitored upstream of the fire and downstream to ascertain whether any effects could be determined. The only two parameters that showed a significant difference were on Brawley Creek. Iron values were significantly higher at the downstream site after the fire (F = 8.52, P = 0.043). Ammonium-nitrogen values were also significantly higher at the downstream site after the fire (F = 8.02, P = 0.047). All other sites and physicochemical parameters showed no significant differences other than seasonal differences.