Víctor Resco de Dios
Lecturer of Forestry Engineering and Global Change, University of Lleida and researcher at Agrotecnio
What is the reason for the intensity of these three fires?
"The intensity of fire seasons has increased by an average of 30–40 per cent over recent decades. We have been warning about this for many years. This increase in intensity is due to all the energy stored in the countryside in the form of biomass, as a result of rural depopulation and, at times, excessively protectionist environmental policies. It is also, on the other hand, because the atmosphere is laden with drying energy, as a consequence of the burning of fossil fuels.”
What role does the type of vegetation in these areas play?
“What matters is not the type of vegetation, but the type of fuel – that is, how much biomass there is and, above all, how it is spatially connected. That is why we talk about creating mosaic landscapes, where discontinuities are introduced into the landscape: areas where the intensity of the flames decreases and firefighters can extinguish the fires. It is often claimed that pine and eucalyptus trees are to blame for the fires. The reality is that 70 per cent of what burns is scrubland and that the area of pine forest affected is decreasing (fires in eucalyptus plantations have always been rare, as they cover a very small area). On the contrary, studies show that protected areas are burning more frequently, precisely because of this continuity in vegetation and biomass (which does not mean that protected areas are a bad thing, but rather that fuel and fire must be managed).”
They are affecting the urban-forest interface. How can homes and the surrounding area be protected?
“There are many detailed guides available that any member of the public can consult. People need to take a series of measures to protect their homes and, in collaboration with the local council, implement protection plans.”
What can be done to prevent the flames from causing so much damage?
“Manage the fuel, the biomass – what burns in a fire. We must manage 1 million hectares nationwide, focusing on containment corridors at national and regional levels, strategic points at mountain range level and, additionally, at local level through prevention plans.”