DOE OSTI · 3002761
Postfire Biogeochemical Processes: Implications to Source Water Quality in Fire-Influenced Watersheds
Abstract
Forested watersheds are instrumental in providing purified and reliable water to millions of people worldwide. The changing climate has increased the frequency and severity of global fire events. Forested watersheds and their ecosystem functions are greatly disrupted during fire activity. Postfire concerns in forested watersheds include unpredictable and potentially simultaneous alterations in source water quality and hydro-biogeochemical processes. Here, the degree of fire severity can complexly modify water quality through the production of fire-transformed constituents on the burned forest floor (i.e., nutrients, metal(loid)s, dissolved organic matter, and the formation of disinfection byproducts). Correspondingly, fire severity and postfire rainfall patterns can refine hydro-biogeochemical processes that influence the transport of the fire-transformed constituents (i.e., vegetation function, soil structure, hydrological pathways, and microbial communities). Postfire alterations to water quality and hydro-biogeochemical processes introduce further complexity with varying temporal influence, which ranges from months to decades. As postfire water quality and watershed response research progresses, it is essential to homogenize interdisciplinary expertise to bridge knowledge gaps between fields ranging from forest ecology, hydrology, microbiology, and geochemistry. A multidisciplinary approach in wildfire research will facilitate a comprehensive perception of the diverse water quality risks associated with fire activity and mitigate fire concerns on a global level.
Explore related subjects
Keep this discovery
Explore connections, maps & timelines
Gleasman, Gavin [Salem State University, MA (United States); Clemson University, SC (United States)], Mo, Xiaohan [The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Ma Liu Shui, Shatin (Hong Kong)] (ORCID:0009000103603953), Atkins, Jeff W. [USDA Forest Service, New Ellenton, SC (United States)], Hagan, Donald [Clemson University, SC (United States)], Campbell, Barbara J. [Clemson University, SC (United States)], Patabandige, Dinuka Lakmali Jayasuriya [Clemson University, SC (United States)] (ORCID:000000033172168X), Bourbonnais, Annie [University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC (United States)], Baalousha, Mohammed [University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC (United States)] (ORCID:0000000174914954), Brooks, Scott C. [Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)] (ORCID:0000000284379788), Ku, Peijia [Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)] (ORCID:0000000328139269), Santos, Fernanda [Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)] (ORCID:0000000191555623), Richardson, Susan D. [University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC (United States)] (ORCID:0000000162074513), Du, Penghui [The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Ma Liu Shui, Shatin (Hong Kong)] (ORCID:0000000174090983), Chow, Alex Tat-Shing [The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Ma Liu Shui, Shatin (Hong Kong)] (ORCID:0000000174418934). 2025-07-16. Postfire Biogeochemical Processes: Implications to Source Water Quality in Fire-Influenced Watersheds. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.4c11860
Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.