Human dimensions of wildfires in NW Spain: causes, value of the burned vegetation and administrative measures.

María Calviño-Cancela,Nuria Cañizo-Novelle

doi:10.7717/peerj.5657

Abstract

Exploring the human dimensions of forest fires is a crucial, although often overlooked, aspect of wildfire research, since wildfires often have important socio-economic impacts and humans are nowadays the main cause of wildfires in many areas of the world. We carried out a telephone survey (N = 345 interviews) in one of the most fire-prone areas in Europe (NW Spain) in order to assess citizens’ awareness about wildfire causes and risks, their perception of the value of the vegetation and of administrative measures to fight against fires. Perceptions of respondents about fire causes were in general realistic although fires caused by pyromaniacs and for profit were overestimated, while vegetation management was comparatively underestimated. Citizens were broadly aware of the fire risk associated with different vegetation types, rightly considering native oak forests and agricultural fields as less risky than shrublands and pine and eucalypt plantations. Tree-dominated vegetation was more valued than treeless formations, and native forests more than tree plantations, which seems related to a preference for ecological value over utilitarian considerations. In addition, the value of eucalypt plantations was clearly affected by the education level of respondents, being less valued as the education level increased. Most citizens considered that the administration was not doing enough to fight against fires. The law that compels landowners to reduce fuels in wildland-urban interfaces was considered effective by most respondents (72%), but 50% considered it difficult to implement by landowners. This may explain the poor degree of compliance of this law.

Highlights

Fire is a natural agent that has shaped natural landscapes and species adaptations over millions of years and has a significant role in the Earth system (Pausas & Keeley, 2009; Bowman et al, 2009)
We focused on wildfire causes, the risk associated with the type of vegetation, the value of this vegetation and the management measures implemented by the administrative authorities
There were some differences between male and female participants and educational levels in the relative frequency they assign to different causes, as revealed by the significant interactions with these factors (Table 1), the same general trend was observed for all demographic groups

Summary

Introduction

Fire is a natural agent that has shaped natural landscapes and species adaptations over millions of years and has a significant role in the Earth system (Pausas & Keeley, 2009; Bowman et al, 2009). Fire regimes have changed greatly due to anthropogenic causes, with an increase in the frequency of severe fires (Westerling et al, 2006; Marlon et al, 2008). Humans have a great influence on fire activity both directly, by causing, controlling and suppressing fires, and indirectly, by modifying the flammability of landscapes and warming the climate through the combustion of fossil fuels (Bowman et al, 2011). Wildfires may cause significant impacts, environmental as well as socio-economic (Pausas et al, 2008; Bowman et al, 2011), and this has motivated an increase in the interest of studying fire. How to cite this article Calviño-Cancela and Cañizo-Novelle (2018), Human dimensions of wildfires in NW Spain: causes, value of the burned vegetation and administrative measures. Addressing the causes of wildfires is essential for reducing them and, since fire causes are nowadays mainly anthropogenic in most areas of the world (FAO, 2007), it is crucial to explore the human dimensions of wildfires (McCaffrey et al, 2013)

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Results

Discussion

Conclusion