Forest Fires
Forest fire management for positive sustainable forest growth
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level : National Action Plan on Forest Fires
Mains level : environment conservation
Context
- Forest fires are becoming more common and wildfires are destroying nearly twice as much tree cover globally as they did in 2001.
Why in news?
- Climate change is driving more intense and widespread forest fire by fuelling more extreme heat and deepening drought, which dries out forests.
How to define forest fire?
- A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation starting in rural and urban areas.
What causes forest fires?
- Human activities: Forest fires can be caused by a number of natural causes, but officials say many major fires in India are triggered mainly by human activities.
- Climate change: Emerging studies link climate change to rising instances of fires globally, especially the massive fires of the Amazon forests in Brazil and in Australia in the last two years. Fires of longer duration, increasing intensity, higher frequency and highly inflammable nature are all being linked to climate change.
- Season: In India, wildfires are most commonly reported during March and April, when the ground has large quantities of dry wood, logs, dead leaves, stumps, dry grass and weeds that can make forests easily go up in flames if there is a trigger.
- Natural reasons: Under natural circumstances, extreme heat and dryness, friction created by rubbing of branches with each other also have been known to initiate fire.
Key fact
7.4 million acres of forest are getting burnt annually now an area roughly the size of Belgium.
What factors make forest fires a concern?
- Carbon emission: They act as a sink, reservoir and source of carbon.
- Livelihood loss: In India, with 1.70 lakh villages in close proximity to forests (Census 2011), the livelihood of several crores of people is dependent on fuelwood, bamboo, fodder, and small timber.
- Destruction of animals’ habitat: Heat generated during the fire destroys animal habitats. Soil quality decreases with the alteration in their compositions.
- Soil degradation: Soil moisture and fertility, too, is affected. Thus forests can shrink in size. The trees that survive fire often remain stunted and growth is severely affected.
Measures to curb Forest fires
1) National Action Plan on wild fires
- The MoEFCC has prepared a National Action Plan on wild fire in 2018 after several rounds of consultation with all states and UTs.
- The objective of this plan is to minimize forest fires by informing, enabling and empowering forest fringe communities and incentivizing them to work in tandem with the State Forest Departments.
- The plan also intends to substantially reduce the vulnerability of forests across diverse forest ecosystems in the country against fire hazards, enhance capabilities of forest personnel and institutions in fighting fires and swift recovery subsequent to fire incidents.
2) Forest Fire Prevention and Management scheme
- The MoEFCC provides wildfire prevention and management measures under the Centrally Sponsored Forest Fire Prevention and Management (FPM) scheme.
- The FPM is the only centrally funded program specifically dedicated to assist the states in dealing with forest fires.
- The FPM replaced the Intensification of Forest Management Scheme (IFMS) in 2017. By revamping the IFMS, the FPM has increased the amount dedicated for forest fire work.
- Funds allocated under the FPM are according to the 90:10 ratio of central to state funding in the Northeast and Western Himalayan regions and 60:40 ratio for all other states.
- Nodal officers for forest fire prevention and control have been appointed in each state.
Way forward
- Awareness should be created among the villagers residing near the forests with respect to the long-term ill effects of forest fires.
- Measures to prevent wildfires have to be taken before summer season when fires are prevalent.
- Local people should be given skills to use online portals or mobile apps in order to monitor the forests for fires and inform forest authorities regarding the same.
Mains question
Q. Climate change is driving more intense and widespread forest fires by fueling more extreme heat and deepening drought. Why forest fires are cause of concern? Discuss our preparedness level for the same in the above context.
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Forest Fires
Places in news: Sariska Tiger Reserve
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level : Sariskta TR
Mains level : Forest fires
A massive fire has broken out in the Sariska Tiger Reserve and Air Force helicopters equipped with water sprays are battling to bring it under control.
Sariska Tiger Reserve
- Sariska Tiger Reserve is a tiger reserve in Alwar district, Rajasthan.
- It stretches over an area of 881 sq km comprising scrub-thorn arid forests, dry deciduous forests, grasslands, and rocky hills.
- This area was a hunting preserve of the Alwar state and was declared a wildlife sanctuary in 1958.
- It was given the status of a tiger reserve making it a part of India’s Project Tiger in 1978.
- It is the first reserve in the world with successfully relocated tigers.
- It is a part of the Aravalli Range and the Khathiar-Gir dry deciduous forests eco-region.
Existential threats
- It is rich in mineral resources, such as copper.
- In spite of the Supreme Court’s 1991 ban on mining in the area, marble mining continues to threaten the environment.
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Forest Fires
Fire Ready Formula by UNEP
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level : UNEP’s Fire Ready Formula
Mains level : Wildfires prevention
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has called on global governments to adopt a new ‘Fire Ready Formula,’ as it warned that incidences of wildfires would rise in the future.
What is the Fire Ready Formula?
- The new formula envisages that 66 per cent of spending be devoted to planning, prevention, preparedness and recovery.
- The remaining 34 per cent can be spent on response.
|
New “Fire Ready Formula” focuses on Planning and Prevention |
||
| Serial No | Budget item | Percentage share of the total on wildfire management recommended |
| 1 | Planning | 1 % |
| 2 | Prevention | 32 % |
| 3 | Preparedness | 13 % |
| 4 | Response | 34 % |
| 5 | Recovery | 20 % |
Why need such a formula?
- The UNEP report projected that the number of wildfires is likely to increase by up to 14 per cent by 2030.
- Integrated wildfire management was key to adapting to current and future changes in global wildfire risk, the UNEP.
- There is a need to invest more in fire risk reduction, work with local communities and strengthen global commitment to fight climate change.
- Achieving and sustaining adaptive land and fire management requires a combination of policies, a legal framework and incentives that encourage appropriate land and fire use.
Back2Basics: United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
1. Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), 2. Minamata Convention on Mercury, 3. Convention on Migratory Species and 4. Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)
|
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Forest Fires
Why forest fires break out in the spring?
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level : Not Much
Mains level : Forest fires and their prevention
Uttarakhand has witnessed over 1,000 incidents of a forest fire over the last six months, including 45 in the last 24 hours alone.
Forest fires this year
- Since the start of 2021, there has been a series of forest fires in the Himachal Pradesh, Nagaland-Manipur border, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat, including in wildlife sanctuaries.
- April-May is the season when forest fires take place in various parts of the country.
- But forest fires have been more frequent than usual in Uttarakhand and have also taken place during winter; dry soil caused by a weak monsoon is being seen as one of the causes.
As of 2019, about 21.67% of the country’s geographical area is identified as forest, according to the India State of Forest Report 2019 (ISFR) released by the Forest Survey of India (FSI). Tree cover makes up another 2.89% (95, 027 sq km).
How vulnerable are forests in Uttarakhand?
- Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh are the two states that witness the most frequent forest fires annually.
- In Uttarakhand, 24,303 sq km (over 45 per cent of the geographical area) is under forest cover.
What causes forest fires?
- Forest fires can be caused by a number of natural causes, but officials say many major fires in India are triggered mainly by human activities.
- Emerging studies link climate change to rising instances of fires globally, especially the massive fires of the Amazon forests in Brazil and in Australia in the last two years.
- Fires of longer duration, increasing intensity, higher frequency and highly inflammable nature are all being linked to climate change.
- In India, forest fires are most commonly reported during March and April, when the ground has large quantities of dry wood, logs, dead leaves, stumps, dry grass and weeds that can make forests easily go up in flames if there is a trigger.
- Under natural circumstances, extreme heat and dryness, friction created by rubbing of branches with each other also have been known to initiate fire.
Why Uttarakhand?
- In Uttarakhand, the lack of soil moisture too is being seen as a key factor. In two consecutive monsoon seasons (2019 and 2020), rainfall has been deficient by 18% and 20% of the seasonal average, respectively.
- But, forest officials say most fires are man-made, sometimes even deliberately caused.
- Even a small spark from a cigarette butt, or a carelessly discarded lit matchstick can set the fire going.
- For example, in Odisha, which saw a major fire last month in Simlipal forest, villagers are known to set dry leaves to fire in order to collect mahua flowers, which go into preparation of a local drink.
Why are forest fires difficult to control?
- The locality of the forest and access to it pose hurdles in initiating firefighting efforts.
- During peak season, shortage of staff is another challenge in dispatching firefighting teams.
- Timely mobilization of forest staff, fuel and equipment, depending on the type of fire, through the thick forests, remain challenges.
- As it is impossible to transport heavy vehicles loaded with water into the thick forests, a majority of fire dousing is initiated manually, using blowers and similar devices.
- But there have been incidents when forest fires were brought under control using helicopter services.
- Wind speed and direction play a critical role in bringing a forest fire under control. The fire often spreads in the direction of the winds and towards higher elevations.
What factors make forest fires a concern?
Forests play an important role in mitigation and adaptation to climate change.
- Carbon emission: They act as a sink, reservoir and source of carbon.
- Livelihood loss: In India, with 1.70 lakh villages in close proximity to forests (Census 2011), the livelihood of several crores of people is dependent on fuelwood, bamboo, fodder, and small timber.
- Destruction of animals’ habitat: Heat generated during the fire destroys animal habitats. Soil quality decreases with the alteration in their compositions.
- Soil degradation: Soil moisture and fertility, too, is affected. Thus forests can shrink in size. The trees that survive fire often remain stunted and growth is severely affected.
Various efforts taken
- Since 2004, the FSI developed the Forest Fire Alert System to monitor forest fires in real-time.
- In its advanced version launched in January 2019, the system now uses satellite information gathered from NASA and ISRO.
- Real-time fire information from identified fire hotspots is gathered using MODIS sensors (1km by 1km grid) and electronically transmitted to FSI.
- This information is then relayed via email at state, district, circle, division, range, beat levels. Users of this system in the locality are issued SMS alerts.
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Forest Fires
Forest fire in Simlipal Biosphere Reserve
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level : Simlipal BR
Mains level : Forest fires and their prevention
The Simlipal forest reserve area frequently witnesses forest fires during dry weather conditions.
Try this PYQ:
Q.From the ecological point of view, which one of the following assumes importance in being a good link between the Eastern Ghats and the Western Ghats?
(a) Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve
(b) Nallamala Forest
(c) Nagarhole National Park
(d) Seshachalam Biosphere Reserve
Simlipal Biosphere Reserve
- Similipal, which derives its name from the ‘Simul’ (silk cotton) tree, is a national park and a tiger reserve situated in the northern part of Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district.
- Similipal and the adjoining areas, comprising 5,569 sq km, was declared a biosphere reserve by the Government of India on June 22, 1994, and lies in the eastern end of the eastern ghat.
- It includes three protected areas — Similipal Tiger Reserve, Hadgarh Wildlife Sanctuary with 191.06 km2 (73.77 sq mi) and Kuldiha Wildlife Sanctuary.
- It is the abode of 94 species of orchids and about 3,000 species of plants.
- The identified species of fauna include 12 species of amphibians, 29 species of reptiles, 264 species of birds and 42 species of mammals, all of which collectively highlight the biodiversity richness of Similipal.
- Sal is a dominant tree species.
How fire-prone is Simlipal forest?
- Generally, with the onset of summers and towards the end of autumn, the forest area remains vulnerable to forest fires.
- They are a recurrent annual phenomenon but are also brought under control due to the short span of precipitation.
- This duration coincides with the shedding of deciduous forests in the forest areas.
- The fallen leaves are more vulnerable to catching fire and facilitate the spreading of these forest fires quickly over the entire forest area.
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Forest Fires
Forest Fire: Its Prevention and Management
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level : Forest Fire Prevention and Management scheme
Mains level : Forest fires in India
The Minister for Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has informed that area covering 93,273 hectares was affected by forest fires in 2019. Most of the fires have been “ground fires” burning ground vegetation.
Measures to curb Forest fires:
1) National Action Plan on Forest Fires
- The MoEFCC has prepared a National Action Plan on Forest Fires in 2018 after several rounds of consultation with all states and UTs.
- The objective of this plan is to minimize forest fires by informing, enabling and empowering forest fringe communities and incentivizing them to work in tandem with the State Forest Departments.
- The plan also intends to substantially reduce the vulnerability of forests across diverse forest ecosystems in the country against fire hazards, enhance capabilities of forest personnel and institutions in fighting fires and swift recovery subsequent to fire incidents.
2) Forest Fire Prevention and Management scheme
- The MoEFCC provides forest fire prevention and management measures under the Centrally Sponsored Forest Fire Prevention and Management (FPM) scheme.
- The FPM is the only centrally funded program specifically dedicated to assist the states in dealing with forest fires.
- The FPM replaced the Intensification of Forest Management Scheme (IFMS) in 2017. By revamping the IFMS, the FPM has increased the amount dedicated for forest fire work.
- Funds allocated under the FPM are according to the 90:10 ratio of central to state funding in the Northeast and Western Himalayan regions and 60:40 ratio for all other states.
- Nodal officers for forest fire prevention and control have been appointed in each state.
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Forest Fires
Blaze down under
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level : Not much.
Mains level : Paper 1-Climate change,Forest fires.
Context
In Australia, forest fires, among the worst in the country’s history, have been raging since September and show no signs of abating.
Unabated fire in Australia
- The fire, worst in Australia’s history, has been raging since September and shows no signs of abating.
- At least 24 people lost their lives, 500 million animal have perished, and more than 12bn acres of land has turned to cinders.
- New South Wales, the country’s worst-affected state, declared an emergency last week in its southeastern region.
Climate change and the fire
- Australians have vented their anger at Prime Minister for playing down the blaze’s association with climate change.
- Bushfires are actually a part of Australia’s ecosystem. Many plants depend on them to cycle nutrients and clear vegetation.
- Eucalyptus trees in Australia depend on fire to release their seeds.
- The prolonged blaze this year has coincided with Australia’s harshest summer.
- Parts of the country recorded their highest recorded temperature in December.
- Much of Australia is facing a drought that is a result of three consecutive summers with very little precipitation.
- This, according to climate scientists, is unprecedented.
- Australian Bureau of Meteorology’s 2018 State of the Climate report had given a hint of the change.
- It said “Australia’s climate has warmed by just over 1 degree Celsius since 1910, leading to an increase in the frequency of extreme heat events.’’
- This has led to more rainfall in northern Australia but created drought-like conditions in the more densely populated southeast.
Damage caused to the flora and fauna of Australia
- Australia is home to nearly 250 animal species.
- Some of them like the koalas and kangaroos are not found elsewhere.
- The region also has the highest rate of native animals going extinct over the past 200 years.
- Experts, for example, reckon that more than a quarter of the koala habitat has been consumed by the blaze.
- The fires have also caused a drop in the bird, rodent and insect populations.
Conclusion
- These creatures perished are the building blocks of the ecosystem and the fall in their population is bound to have long-term impacts. In Australia’s bushfires lies a warning about the complex ways in which climate variables interact.
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