PhD Studentship: Heathland Flammability Responses to Environmental Change

More extreme weather events are being felt across the globe, driven by increased CO2 levels in the atmosphere. Shifts in regional climate and weather are a critical influence on wildfire occurrence and behaviour, influencing the spread and intensity of burning of vegetation. As we move into new climate extremes, we also face unknown territory in wildfire ignition and spread, and wildfire risk is increasing in ecosystems that have traditionally been considered less vulnerable to extreme wildfires, such as the temperate peatlands and heathlands of northwestern Europe. This means that we need to start building an understanding of how different plant types burn and respond to environmental change.  

Plants are the fuel for fires, and plant functions are intrinsically linked to their environment, such that changes in weather patterns, seasonality and periods of drought have the capability to influence both their growth form and biochemistry. These factors are also likely to impact their flammability, which may scale up to influence the ignitability and behaviour of fires in ecosystems. This project will focus on determining how climatic shifts might influence the flammability of temperate shrubland fuels, focusing on two core heathland species: Calluna vulgaris (heather) and Ulex europaeus (gorse).  

The aim of this project is to gain an understanding of how heathland vegetation responds to changing environmental conditions by assessing (i) whether heathland vegetation functional (e.g. morphology, phenology) and biochemical traits change under experimental heatwave, drought, and increased CO2 conditions (achieved using an experimental greenhouse), and (ii) whether these altered environmental conditions influence their flammability sufficiently to alter large scale wildfire behaviour (Figure 1). This knowledge is needed to be able to predict future wildfire risk in temperate shrub ecosystems and generate prediction systems. This will aid both land managers and fire and rescue services in preparing for and managing wildfires in these carbon dense and biodiverse ecosystems over the coming decades.  

For further information on this project and details of how to apply to it please click on the above 'Apply' button

Further information on how to apply for a CENTA studentship can be found on the CENTA website: https://centa.ac.uk/

This project is offered through the CENTA3 DTP, with funding from the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC). Funding covers an annual stipend, tuition fees (at home-fee level) and Research Training Support Grant.

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