Overview

In the last centuries, numerous forest fires devastated considerable parts of the subalpine krummholz and forest areas in the Northern Limestone Alps. Because of the downwash of the exposed soil, some of the affected slopes are still bare of vegetation today. Intensified slope processes, changed water balance and increased probability of avalanches lead to a disturbed equilibrium and thus, to an enhanced risk of natural hazards in the vicinity of the slopes. The aim of the applied project is to investigate the location, the temporal distribution and the recurrence interval of the fires. It is intended to work out the ecosystem's regeneration potential under varying topographical and geological settings. Furthermore, the consequences for the alpine timberline, slope hydrology, denudation processes and thus, for the long-term landscape development will be investigated. To bring these questions nearer to clarification, a comprehensive inquiry of the spatial and temporal distribution of historical fires will be carried out. The succession of the vegetation cover will be monitored by mapping of soils and vegetation. The changed sediment budget is to be quantified by erosion and denudation measurements. The loose sediment bodies accumulated under the disturbed slopes will be investigated by digging, to establish the existence, depth and age of black carbonic layers. The investigations are expected to highlight the role of the fire events as a part of the natural process system of the region, the impacts on the cultivated land, and the potential for a sustainable development.