Project Leader Alan York, University of Melbourne

For land managers, the implication of hazard reduction burning for Ecologically Sustainable Management is a significant issue. The ecologically sustainable management of forest ecosystems depends on understanding the processes involved in carbon and nutrient cycling, involvement of organisms in these processes, and how they contribute to biodiversity conservation.
Forests also play important roles in Australiaís carbon budget, through accumulation of carbon, above and below ground. Low intensity fires are used extensively in managed forests in Australia and there is a need to better estimate the impacts of repeated fire on plant and animal communities.  
This project focuses on nutrient fluxes under different fire regimes, investigates the roles played by mycorrhiza and decomposer fungi; their inter-relationships with plants and invertebrates and likely impacts on ecosystem processes and carbon cycling.
Knowledge will help land managers to protect life and property whilst maintaining ecological processes essential to ecosystem health and productivity, and improve awareness and understanding of the role of fire in biodiversity management.

Project Leader: Dr Alan York ph: 03 5321 4270 alan.york@unimelb.edu.au