Post-fire effects on DOC concentrations in streams: A meta-analysis

Forest fires affects extensive areas each year around the world. An important percentage of those areas represent forested watersheds which provide water supply for different communities, from the microbial till the industrial scale. Forest fires can have an effect in erosion, runoff rates, loss of vegetation cover, rainfall interception, water repellence, among others, which affect the water quality in the streams. The change in the dynamic of a burned watershed produce variation in the DOC concentration, among other water quality parameters, which has a direct impact in the drinking water treatment. This meta-analysis explores post-fire effects in DOC concentrations, during the years after the fire. More than 50 watersheds were identified in the collection of the information. Changes in concentrations were documented primarily within the first 5 years after the fire. The studies were published between 2001 and 2020. We found that percentage of area burned, and fire severity have stronger effect on DOC concentrations. The study documents strong heterogeneity in responses to post-fire effects and DOC concentrations.