RAPID Collaborative Proposal: Characterization of upland watershed contamination from wildland-urban burning

多机构团队将描述2018年11月营地火灾对流域水质的影响。这是加州历史上最具破坏性的野火，导致15,000座建筑物和数千辆汽车被烧毁。大量的燃烧碎片导致人们担心灰烬会将有毒金属和有机污染物带入周围的水道。高地流域直接排入奥罗维尔湖，这是加州州水项目中最大的水库。这个水库为数百万用户提供饮用水和灌溉用水。动员的可能性很高，因为在清理工作开始之前，降雨引起的侵蚀将火灾碎片动员到下游的小溪和水库中。这项研究将有助于我们了解火灾后流域污染物的浓度和持久性。这种信息对于查明对人类和生态健康的潜在威胁是必要的。对社会的更广泛影响来自对高地火灾对供水影响的进一步了解。2018年11月发生的坎普大火是加州历史上最具破坏性的火灾，导致15,000座建筑物和数千辆汽车被烧毁。人们担心，燃烧的建筑物、汽车和其他建筑物的灰烬和碎片的陆上流动可能会将砷、铜、镉、汞、铅等有毒金属以及多环芳烃、多氯联苯、溴化阻燃剂、二恶英和其他污染物等有毒有机化学品带入周围的水道。这一点尤其重要，因为该流域直接排入奥罗维尔湖，奥罗维尔湖是加州州水项目中最大的水库，为数百万用户提供饮用水和灌溉水。除了对奥罗维尔湖的威胁外，布特溪还是加州最后一个稳定的奇努克鲑鱼春季游的地方。营地火灾后污染物流动的可能性很大，因为在紧急清理之前发生了降水，导致火灾碎片被冲入下游的小溪和水库。为了更好地描述这些潜在的威胁，一个在环境化学和运输方面具有互补专业知识的多机构团队将评估火灾后12个月内这些和许多其他重金属和有机污染物在Camp Fire流域的浓度。研究小组将利用这些信息来评估烧伤地区污染物的命运和运输。具体的研究将试图了解1）燃烧，灰烬沉积和降雨如何影响城市地区和下游沃茨中的污染物移动，2）火灾后污染物在流域中持续多久，以及3）与污染物移动到周围地表沃茨相关的对人类和水生健康的急性和慢性威胁是什么。这项研究的结果将提高我们的污染物的命运，持久性和运输燃烧后的理解。这些信息将帮助城市/农村规划者以及森林和流域管理者更好地识别、减轻和减少森林火灾对水质造成的威胁。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The multi-institutional team will characterize the effects of the November 2018 Camp fire on watershed water quality. This was the most destructive wildfire in California history, resulting in 15,000 structures and thousands of vehicles burnt. The extensive amount of burned debris has resulted in concerns that the ash can transport toxic metals and organic contaminants into the surrounding waterways. The upland watershed drains directly into Lake Oroville, the largest reservoir in the California State Water Project. This reservoir provides drinking and irrigation water to millions of users. The potential for mobilization is high because precipitation-induced erosion mobilized fire debris into downstream creeks and reservoirs before clean-up could begin. This research will help us understand the concentrations and persistence of contaminants in the watershed post-fire. Such information is necessary to identify potential threats to human and ecological health. Broader impacts to society result from an increased understanding of upland fire impacts on water supplies. Such information can lead to better management strategies to protect water quality.The Camp fire in November 2018 was the most destructive fire in California history, resulting in 15,000 structures and thousands of vehicles being burnt. There is concern that overland flow of ash and debris from burned structures, cars, and other buildings may transport toxic metals such as arsenic, copper, cadmium, mercury, lead, as well as toxic organic chemicals such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, polychlorinated biphenyls, brominated fire retardants, dioxins and other contaminants into the surrounding waterways. This is particularly important given that the watershed drains directly into Lake Oroville, the largest reservoir in the California State Water Project that provides drinking and irrigation water to millions of users. In addition to the threats to Lake Oroville, Butte Creek hosts the last stable spring run of Chinook Salmon population in all of California. The potential for contaminant mobilization following the Camp Fire is strong because precipitation occurred prior to emergency clean up, resulting in washing of fire debris into downstream creeks and reservoirs. To better characterize these potential threats, a multi-institutional team with complimentary expertise in environmental chemistry and transport will assess the concentrations of these and many other heavy metal and organic pollutants in the Camp Fire watershed for 12 months post-fire. The research team will use this information to evaluate the fate and transport of contaminants from the burn area. Specific research will seek to understand 1) how does burning, ash deposition, and rainfall influence contaminant mobilization within the urban area and in downstream waters, 2) how long will contaminants persist in the watershed post-fire, and 3) what are the acute and chronic threats to human and aquatic health associated with contaminant mobilization into surrounding surface waters. The results of this research will improve our understanding of contaminant fate, persistence, and transport following burning. This information will help urban/rural planners, as well as forest and watershed managers to better identify, mitigate, and reduce threats to water quality resulting from forest fires.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.