Severity

n. The magnitude of an effect.

• Discussion

The term severity refers to the strength of an effect. High severity indicates a strong effect; low severity indicates a weak effect. Wildland fire science refers to two types of severity: “fire severity” refers to the effect of a fire on ecosystem properties; “soil burn severity” refers to the effect of a fire on soil properties.

• See Also

  • Fire severity

  • Soil burn severity

  • Wildland fire

   

• Notes

  • Author 

    Joe Scott, Research Forester

    Systems for Environmental Management

     

  • Last update 

    August 2007