LANDFIRE - Vegetation Condition Class (LANDFIRE.US_130VCC)
Dates
Publication Date
2010-01-01
Citation
U.S. Geological Survey, Customer Service Representative, 20100101, LANDFIRE.US_130VCC: , http://landfire.cr.usgs.gov/viewer/, http://www.landfire.gov.
Summary
Broad-scale alterations of historical fire regimes and vegetation dynamics have occurred in many landscapes in the U.S. through the combined influence of land management practices, fire exclusion, ungulate herbivory, insect and disease outbreaks, climate change, and invasion of non-native plant species. The LANDFIRE Project produces maps of simulated historical fire regimes and vegetation conditions using the LANDSUM landscape succession and disturbance dynamics model. The LANDFIRE Project also produces maps of current vegetation and measurements of current vegetation departure from simulated historical reference conditions. These maps support fire and landscape management planning outlined in the goals of the National Fire Plan, Federal [...]
Summary
Broad-scale alterations of historical fire regimes and vegetation dynamics have occurred in many landscapes in the U.S. through the combined influence of land management practices, fire exclusion, ungulate herbivory, insect and disease outbreaks, climate change, and invasion of non-native plant species. The LANDFIRE Project produces maps of simulated historical fire regimes and vegetation conditions using the LANDSUM landscape succession and disturbance dynamics model. The LANDFIRE Project also produces maps of current vegetation and measurements of current vegetation departure from simulated historical reference conditions. These maps support fire and landscape management planning outlined in the goals of the National Fire Plan, Federal Wildland Fire Management Policy, and the Healthy Forests Restoration Act. Data Summary: Vegetation Condition Class (VCC) is a reclassification of the Vegetation Departure layer. Refer to the Data Summary and metadata for the Vegetation Departure layer (VDEP) to review how that data is created. Vegetation Condition Classes are defined in two ways, the original 3 category system from Fire Regime Condition Class (FRCC), and a new 6 category system. For the original 3 category system, the VDEP value is reclassified as follows: Condition Class I: VDEP value from 0 to 33 (Low Departure), Class II: VDEP value between 34 - 66 (Moderate Departure), and Condition Class III: VDEP value from 67 to 100 (High Departure). The new 6 category system is defined to provide more resolution to VCC and be collapsible to the old 3 category system. New VCC categories are defined as follows: Condition Class I.A: VDEP between 0 and 16 (Very Low Departure), Condition Class I.B: VDEP between 17 and 33 (Low to Moderate Departure); Condition Class II.A: VDEP between 34 and 50 (Moderate to Low Departure); Condition Class II.B: VDEP between 51 and 66 (Moderate to High Departure); Condition Class III.A: VDEP between 67 and 83 (High to Moderate Departure), and Condition Class III.B: VDEP between 84 and 100 (High Departure).
LANDFIRE data products are designed to facilitate national- and regional-level strategic planning and reporting of management activities. Data products are created at a 30-meter grid spatial resolution raster data set; however, the applicability of data products varies by location and specific use. Principal purposes of the data products include providing, 1) national-level, landscape-scale geospatial products to support fire and fuels management planning, and, 2) consistent fuels data to support fire planning, analysis, and budgeting to evaluate fire management alternatives. Users are advised to evaluate the data carefully for their applications.