FIRE EFFECTS GUIDE - National Wildfire Coordinating Group

absence of individuals of a species in a population; the ratio between the
number of sample units that contain a species and the total number of
sample units.
fuel: combustible plant material, both living and dead that is capable of
burning in a wildland situation.
fuel arrangement: the spatial distribution and orientation of fuel
particles within a fuel bed.
fuel bed: an array of fuels usually constructed with specific loading,
depth, and particle size, to meet experimental requirements; also
commonly used to describe the fuel composition in natural settings.
fuel bed depth: average height of surface fuels contained in the
combustion zone of a spreading fire front.
fuel continuity: the degree or extent of continuous or uninterrupted
distribution of fuel particles in a fuel bed, a critical influence on a fire's
ability to sustain combustion and spread. This applies both to aerial fuels
and surface fuels.
fuel depth: see fuel bed depth.
fuel loading: the weight of fuels in a given area, usually expressed in
tons per acre, pounds per acre, or kilograms per square meter.
fuel model: a characterization of fuel properties of a typical field
situation. A fuel model contains a complete set of inputs for the fire
spread model.
fuel moisture content: the amount of water in a particle of fuel, usually
expressed as a percentage of the oven dry weight of the fuel particle.
fuel size class: a category used to describe the diameter of down dead
woody fuels. Fuels within the same size class are assumed to have
similar wetting and drying properties, and to preheat and ignite at similar
rates during the combustion process.
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