Wildfires are a major problem for many European societies threatening human lives and property with disastrous impacts particularly at the wildland-urban interface. On the other hand, humans have always used fire as a tool to regulate nature and traditional use of fire is known in many regions of Europe. The understanding of this paradox, is thus essential for finding solutions for integrated wildland fire management. This concept requires considering the various aspects of fire, from its use as a planned management practice (prescribed fire) to the initiation and propagation of unplanned fires (wildfires) and to the use of fire in fighting wildfires (suppression fire). Prescribed or suppression fires will therefore set the limits for wildfires by controlling their spatial extent, intensity and impacts. This is the main approach adopted aiming at the creation of the scientific and technological bases for new practices and policies under integrated wildland fire management and in the development of strategies for its implementation in Europe.
Three major domains of related activities were considered: research, development and dissemination. In research, the project will focus on understanding the mechanisms and modelling the processes associated with fire, from physics to biology and social sciences. Experimental and sampling methods will be used. The scientific and technical knowledge gathered will allow the development of a technological platform that will integrate the fire model, the temporal and spatial variability of fuels and weather, and the potential ecological and social-economical impacts. Documentation and demonstration platforms will also be extensively used for dissemination, focusing in the development of strategies for public awareness, academic and professional training using new communication technologies and networks, and for the implementation of new practices, policies and regulations under the concept of integrated wildland fire management.
More information at the project website: http://www.fireparadox.org/ (last visited 20.06.2018)
EFI publications related to the project
Cristina Montiel and Daniel Kraus (editors). 2010. Best Practices of Fire Use – Prescribed Burning and Suppression Fire Programmes in Selected Case-Study Regions in Europe. Research Report 24. European Forest Institute.
Francisco Rego, Eric Rigolot, Paulo Fernandes, Cristina Montiel, Joaquim Sande Silva. 2010. Towards Integrated Fire Management. Policy Brief 4. European Forest Institute. Also available in French, Portuguese, Greek, Russian, Spanish and Italian.