Prescribed burning is a standard method used by land managers to
reduce potential fire hazards and to maintain ecological processes.
This project aims to assess the effect of prescribed fires on
sediment movement in the Mount Lofty Ranges near Adelaide. Land
managers need to consider both erosion and sedimentation that may
result from excessive sediment movement.
This research will assess and apply existing erosion models to
identify areas of high erosion potential following fire. A network
of erosion pins and sediment plots will be installed to monitor
sediment movement both before, after, within and adjoining proposed
prescribed burns. The co-variables of slope, vegetation cover and
biotransfer will be recorded and analysed at the hillslope
scale.
