There is an urgent need to reduce fuels in grasslands to mitigate the severe threat that grassland wildfire poses to millions of people living near this ecosystem type in the western U.S. However,…

There is an urgent need to reduce fuels in grasslands to mitigate the severe threat that grassland wildfire poses to millions of people living near this ecosystem type in the western U.S. However, decisions concerning grassland fuel reduction methods pose unique challenges not shared by better-studied forest methods. Specifically, regrowth and shifts in species composition can be rapid in grasslands. Thus, while different fuel reduction methods may be comparably effective at reducing fuel loads in the near-term (i.e., 1 year), some methods could shift ecosystems to states that favor higher fuel accumulation and combustibility in the long-term (e.g., 2-5 years after treatment), creating a trade-off between short-term efficacy and long-term fire risk mitigation. Furthermore, we have a poor understanding of which fuel reduction methods are most effective for minimizing trade-offs between fire risk mitigation and conserving critical ecosystem services (ES) provided by grasslands. Such trade-offs could be minimized by guiding species composition through seeding species into treated areas.however, despite the potential of this approach, we have limited knowledge of which species can be seeded to both reduce fire risk and provision ES. To fill these gaps, we will pursue the following objectives by building on existing partnerships with land managers in boulder county, colorado. O1. Quantify the impacts of three candidate fuel reduction methods (burning, grazing, mowing), to answer the question: which fuel reduction method best reduces fire risk in the near- and long-term? O2. Assess impacts of fuel reduction methods on ES, to answer the question: which fuel reduction method best minimizes trade-offs between reducing fire risk and conserving ES? O3. Identify species that can be seeded into fuel reduction-treated areas to minimize fire risk and promote ES, to answer the question: which species can be added to shift species composition to minimize trade-offs?