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FOREST FIRES:

About Forest Fires:

• A forest fire is described as any uncontrolled and unprescribed combustion or burning of plants in a natural setting, such as a forest, grassland, brushland, or tundra, that uses natural fuels and spreads based on environmental conditions (e.g., wind, topography).
• Forest fires started by humans can be initiated by land clearing, severe drought, or, in rare cases, lightning.
• To burn, a wildfire requires three things: fuel, oxygen, and a heat source.

• Incidence of forest fires in 2021:

• In January, fires burned for months in Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh (Kullu Valley), and along the NagalandManipur border (Dzukou Valley).
• A big fire broke out in Odisha's Simlipal National Park between the end of February and the beginning of March.
• Recently, there have been fires in the Bandhavgarh Forest Reserve in Madhya Pradesh, as well as sanctuaries for the Asiatic lion and the great Indian bustard in Gujarat.

Vulnerability to Fire in India's Forests:

• According to the Forest Survey of India (FSI), Dehradun's India State of Forest Report 2019 (ISFR), forest covers around 21.67 percent (7,12,249 sq km) of the country's geographical area.
• Trees cover another 2.89 percent of the land (95, 027 sq km).
• According to historical fire incidents and data, forests in the Northeast and central India regions are the most prone to forest fires.
• Assam, Mizoram, and Tripura have been designated as 'especially prone' to forest fires.
• Among the states with substantial forest regions rated as "very highly prone" are Andhra Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Maharashtra, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh.
• According to the MoEFCC's annual report for 20202021, Western Maharashtra, Southern Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh's regions, as well as central Odisha, are becoming 'particularly prone' forest fire hotspots.
• The 'very prone' and'moderately prone' groupings cover around 26.2 percent of total forest cover, or 1,72,374 square kilometers.

Causes of Forest Fires:

• Forest fires can be caused by a variety of natural sources, however many large fires in India are caused by human acts.
• New research linked climate change to an increase in fires around the world, including the recent major fires in Brazil's and Australia's Amazon forests.
• Climate change is associated to longerlasting flames, fires of greater intensity, fires that occur more frequently, and fires that are particularly flammable.
• Forest fires are most common in India around March and April, when the ground is covered in dry wood, logs, dead leaves, stumps, dry grass, and weeds that can easily catch fire if a trigger is present.
• A lack of soil moisture is also considered as a significant factor in Uttarakhand. In two consecutive monsoon seasons, rainfall has been 18 percent and 20% below seasonal average (2019 and 2020, respectively).
• Humans are responsible for the majority of fires, which are sometimes intentionally started. Following a massive fire in Simlipal forest last month, villagers in Odisha are known to set dry leaves on fire in order to collect mahua flowers, which are used to make a traditional drink.

Negative Impacts of Forest Fire:

• Forest fires can harm the forest cover, soil, tree development, vegetation, and overall flora and fauna in a variety of ways.
• Fires have rendered several hectares of woodland worthless, leaving behind ash that is unsuitable for plant growth.
• The heat produced by the fire destroys animal habitats.
• As the composition of the soil changes, the quality of the soil deteriorates.
• The soil's moisture and fertility are also affected.
• Forests are capable of shrinking in size.
• Firesurviving trees are typically stunted, and their growth is severely impeded.

The Importance of Forests:

• Forests are essential for climate change prevention and adaptation.
• They act as a carbon sink, a reservoir, and a source of carbon.
• A healthy forest stores and sequesters more carbon than any other terrestrial ecosystem.
• With 1.70 lakh villages in close proximity to woods, several crores of people in India rely on fuelwood, bamboo, fodder, and tiny timber (Census 2011).

Forest Fire Prevention Efforts:

• The Forest Survey of India (FSI) built the Forest Fire Alert System in 2004 to track forest fires in real time.
• In its improved version, which was launched in January 2019, the system now uses NASA and ISRO satellite data.
• Forest Fire Prevention and Management Scheme, as well as the National Action Plan on Forest Fires (NAPFF), were published in 2018.

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