The current study presents a statistical model for assessing the skill of fire danger indices and for forecasting the distribution of the expected numbers of large fires over a given region and for the upcoming week. The procedure permits development of daily maps that forecast, for the...

Information on current forest condition is essential to assess and characterize resources and to support resource management and policy decisions. The 1998 Farm Bill mandates the US Forest Service to conduct annual inventories to provide annual updates of each state's forest. In annual...

Information on current forest condition is essential to assess and characterize resources and to support resource management and policy decisions. The 1998 Farm Bill mandates the US Forest Service to conduct annual inventories to provide annual updates of each state's forest. In annual...

Current estimators of variance for the k nearest neighbours (kNN) technique are designed for estimates of population totals. Their efficiency in small-area estimation problems can be poor. In this study, we propose a modified balanced repeated replication estimator of variance (BRR) of a kNN...

National forest inventory programs are tasked to produce timely and accurate estimates for a wide range of forest resource variables for a variety of users and applications. Time, cost, and precision constraints cause these programs to seek technological innovations that contribute to...

Bayesian belief networks (BBNs) are useful tools for modeling ecological predictions and aiding resource-management decision-making. We provide practical guidelines for developing, testing, and revising BBNs. Primary steps in this process include creating influence diagrams of the hypothesized...

The extreme cost of fighting wildland fires has brought fire suppression expenditures to the forefront of budgetary and policy debate in the United States. Inasmuch as large fires are responsible for the bulk of fire suppression expenditures, understanding fire characteristics that influence...