Carbon Mineralization in Burned and Unburned
Coarse Woody Debris in the Eastern U.P.
Gregory M. Peterson
Department of Biology
Lake Superior State University
Decomposition of organic material in a forest is vital to living organisms and
new growth of a forest by providing essentials of life, food and shelter. Fires can be a
major disturbance to forests by increasing the amount of woody debris to the ground
and by affecting environmental conditions that affect decomposition rate. The
objective of this study is to quantify carbon dioxide efflux (respiration) of dead and
downed logs (coarse woody debris - CWD) and the forest floor in a forest fire site. In
August of 2000, CO2 efflux was measured in selected sites of high, moderate, low,
and zero burn intensity in the Camp Faunce fire site of the Hiawatha National Forest,
using the respiration chamber method. Respiration rate of CWD and the forest floor
was hypothesized to be significantly different among selected sites. CWD respired at
a significantly higher rate (p = .016) in burned sites than in the unburned site. The
forest floor respired at a significantly lower rate (p = .000) in burned sites than in the
unburned site. No differences were seen in respiration between fire intensities for
CWD or for the forest floor. These relationships suggest that fire does seem to
influence the decomposition of coarse woody debris.
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