PYROLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF FOREST EDGES UNDER INTENSIVE RECREATIONAL LOADS

Abstract

-The increase in fires in urban landscapes causes adverse and sometimes irreversible changes in forest ecosystems. The modern solution is to find the places of primary fires and the most dangerous areas. The purpose of this study was to find dependences between the forest typological features of forest stands and their fire danger. To fulfil this purpose, a systematic analysis of forest fire danger and phytoindication were performed. The composition of the flora of edge biotopes was figured out using the route geobotanical method. The article analyses forest fires that occurred in urban forests of Kyiv during 2014-2021. Primary ignition locations have been identified. It was proved that fires often occurred on the forest edges, as well as along highways and railways. Among the standard indicators of fire danger (number and area of forest fires), the method makes provision for establishing the fire frequencies in the same forest area. This indicator allows figuring out the most dangerous areas from the pyrogenic standpoint. It was found that the simple edge is characterised by a minimal taxonomic composition in the ground vegetation and its projective cover of up to 20%. The grass tier stabilises the environment and mitigates the effects of extreme natural phenomena. The vegetation cover of an elementary and multicomponent edge is one of the barriers that can stop surface fires. Taxonomic diversity, especially of deciduous species, determines the pyrological features of forest edges. Analysis of the flora of marginal biotopes showed that oligotrophs, xerophytes, and xeromesophytes predominate among the species of simple edges. The share of ruderal elements in the ground vegetation was 36%, which indicates a significant anthropogenic impact and synanthropisation of the flora of the edges. These processes adversely impact the conservation of typical species but have a fire-retaining effect. Analysis of forest fires dynamics under intensive recreational loads allows substantiating the vectors for fire safety improvement, choosing a strategy for ensuring fire safety, and increasing the economic and social efficiency of fire prevention measures. It is proved that the forest edge is one of the decisive factors in the fire behaviour arising from a nonwooded area. The formation of multicomponent edges will help minimise the risks of fires