COVERAGS.TXT - 4th of 19 digital documentation files distributed
               with the "Forest Fire Chronology of Saskatchewan"
               (FFCS) dataset.


<Document overview>

     Lists all of the coverages within the FFCS, provides basic
     burn area statistics, and indicates the years for which
     there are no FFCS data.


<Years with no data>

     The fire seasons of 1951, 1954, 1962 and 1965 either lacked
     fires at least a 1,000 hectares in size for or there were no
     records for fires that size during those years.


<Coverage descriptions>

     In this incarnation of the FFCS dataset, there are 48
     coverages, starting with 1945 and ending with 1996.  The
     coverage summary is listed in chronological order.

     =========================================================
                         -------------AREA (Ha)--------------
                Number   Smallest  Largest   Mean      Total
     Coverage  of Fires    fire      fire    size      burned
     =========================================================
     SK_1945       1       2440       2440     2440      2440
     SK_1946       3       1817       3342     2680      8040
     SK_1947       1       1637       1637     1637      1637
     SK_1948       8        991      14132     4516     36127
     SK_1949      20       1235      53210    12080    241608
     SK_1950       6        950       6639     4354     26124
        *
     SK_1952       4        839       3077     1544      6176
     SK_1953       6       3468      15584     7784     46701
        *
     SK_1955      16        816     134215    25054    400862
     SK_1956       5        838       5567     2913     14564
     SK_1957       4       1891      19327     7178     28712
     SK_1958       1       4352       4352     4352      4352
     SK_1959       2        981       9143     5062     10124
     SK_1960      14        978      36851    11057    154792
     SK_1961      26       1111     192462    19674    511519
        *
     SK_1963       9       1146      36165     7229     65059
     SK_1964      24       1171      75760    13944    334646
        *
     SK_1966       5       1126       4647     2501     12507
     SK_1967      22       1079      35981     8656    190427
     SK_1968       6       2342      40534    10260     61558
     SK_1969      14        974     226976    21769    304762
     SK_1970      33        826     289768    32303   1066014
     SK_1971       6       2328      44956    14513     87079
     SK_1972      24       1046      67885     6601    158419
     SK_1973      38       1031      50598    12869    489011
     SK_1974       3       1622       9324     5889     17668
     SK_1975      10       1452      38824    12256    122562
     SK_1976       9       1849      33448    10357     93215
     SK_1977      15        928      70503     8255    123818
     SK_1978       6       1458      47885    15800     94800
     SK_1979      30       1137      58079    16610    498298
     SK_1980      82        919     361787    25312   2075561
     SK_1981      71        807     486330    26103   1853287
     SK_1982      10       1124      20877     7060     70595
     SK_1983      12       1176      12865     3954     47445
     SK_1984      21       1024      72055    13113    275372
     SK_1985      11        915      23103     9288    102163
     SK_1986       2       2346       3777     3062      6123
     SK_1987      20       1549      81162    11587    231736
     SK_1988      10       1476      34915     7189     71887
     SK_1989      64        928      47244     7050    451229
     SK_1990      25        638      37479     8013    200324
     SK_1991      22       1009      31798     9753    214576
     SK_1992       8       1780      62321    15732    125855
     SK_1993      25       1013     373701    29554    738857
     SK_1994      41       1437     166766    24669   1011439
     SK_1995      49        789     234677    29430   1442056
     SK_1996       3       1617       4655     3563     10690
     =========================================================

     Notes:

      (1) Area totals are rounded to the nearest hectare from
	  GIS square meter totals, but these figures must not be
          construed as having that high a level of numerical
          significance.
      (2) Area totals do not include fires initially recorded as
          smaller than 1000 hectares (fires that the GIS shows
          as slightly less than a 1000 hectares were not discarded,
          particularly for the latter years).
      (3) Area summaries do not account for errors inherent with
          source maps or digitizing.


<Associated documentation>

     This same list is provided in the ./other sub-directory as
     "sk_stats.txt", but the contents are in comma delimited
     format.


This document prepared by:

Ott Naelapea
Wildlife Branch
Saskatchewan Environment & Resource Management
Box 3003, 800 Central Avenue
Prince Albert, SK.  S6V 6G1
CANADA
(306)953-2671 - Tel.
(306)953-2750 - Fax.

November 28, 1996


Revisions:

March 31, 1997
  -added 1972-1976 data which had been erroneously omitted
  -added 1996 data
  -replaced 1991 and 1995 data with updated figures
  -corrected Notes (1) and (2)
  -removed Note (4) indicating incomplete data for 1995.
