Removal of Invasive Fire-Prone Grasses to Increase Training Lands in the Pacific

摘要

This report represents the final deliverable for the 2007 Legacy Resource Management Program project number 07-362 (Cooperative agreement W912DY- 07-2-0008), titled 'Removal of Invasive Fire-prone Grasses to Increase Training Lands in the Pacific'. This project was developed and carried out by SWCA Environmental Consultants (SWCA) to determine the effectiveness of three different methods in reducing the surface fuel loads in a guinea grass (Panicum maximum) dominated community, thereby reducing susceptibly to sustained fires. Three control treatments were tested including mechanical removal, herbicide application and grazing using cattle to reduce the fuel loads at Marine Corps Training Area Bellows (MCTAB), on the island of O'ahu, Hawai'i. Information on the cost of the various control treatments and their long-term effectiveness in maintaining reduced fuel loads would also benefit land and resource managers in the Pacific Islands where guinea grass and frequent fires are problematic.