Fire History Reconstruction from Tree Rings in Northeast Pennsylvania

Tree-ring data from Waste House Run East in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, provides a record of past fire events. The dataset covers a period from 67 to 11 calendar years before present, offering a multi-decadal historical perspective. It is archived and maintained by the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information under the World Data Service for Paleoclimatology.

Use Cases

• Analyze the frequency of fire events over time using the fire history chronology.
• Correlate fire event years from tree-ring records with regional climate proxy data.
• Reconstruct historical fire return intervals for the specific study site in Schuylkill County.

Strengths

• Data spans a 78-year period (from 67 to 11 years BP), providing a multi-decadal record.
• Archived by the authoritative NOAA NCEI World Data Service for Paleoclimatology.

Limitations

• The temporal coverage is relatively short (78 years) for long-term climate trend analysis.
• Geographic scope is limited to a single site in Northeast Pennsylvania, limiting regional generalizations.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) World Data Service (WDS) for Paleoclimatology.

Collection Method

Derived from tree-ring analysis (dendrochronology) to identify fire scars or other fire-related indicators.

Time Range

From 67 to 11 calendar years before present (BP).

Freshness

Last updated in 2017; static historical archive.

Geography

Waste House Run East, Schuylkill County, Northeast Pennsylvania, United States of America.