Kimberlie Perkins Courtney Creamer Jeff P. Prancevic Jonathan D. Stock Corina Cerovski-Darriau 2026 <div class="title">Background</div><p>Wildfires abruptly change landscapes by altering soil properties and vegetation cover. These changes are thought to reduce soil infiltration capacity, making landscapes susceptible to runoff and erosion. However, post-fire soil response is complex and likely varies across locations and time.</p><div class="title">Aims</div><p>Here, we aim to understand regional post-fire soil response and recovery by tracking changes across different northern California (USA) lithology and vegetation types.</p><div class="title">Methods</div><p>We conducted repeat<span>&nbsp;</span><i>in situ</i><span>&nbsp;</span>soil infiltration tests for 3&nbsp;years post-fire at 31 burned and 10 unburned sites spanning the 2021 Dixie, 2020 LNU Lightning Complex, 2020 Walbridge and 2020 Glass fires.</p><div class="title">Key results</div><p>Our two main findings are: (1) burned chaparral soils have increased hydraulic conductivity compared with unburned sites, and (2) infiltration rates return to pre-fire conditions within 3&nbsp;years across most lithologies and vegetations.</p><div class="title">Conclusions</div><p>Recovery might be generalizable by vegetation and lithology but differ regionally, making it important to identify meaningful hydrologic response units (HRUs). Multi-year studies with paired burned and unburned measurements can constrain the recovery timeline and provide information missed by observations solely of burned soils.</p><div class="title">Implications</div><p>Understanding where, and for how long, soil remains susceptible to runoff and erosion can help prioritize areas and time periods most in need of mitigation.</p> application/pdf 10.1071/WF25141 en CSIRO Publishing Post-fire soil hydrologic response and recovery in northern California (USA) article