Abstract

BackgroundPyrogeography is a major field of investigation in wildfire science because of its capacity to describe the spatial and temporal variations of fire disturbance. We propose a systematic pyrogeographic analytical approach to cluster regions on the basis of their pyrosimilarities. We employed the Affinity Propagation algorithm to cluster pyroregions using Italian landscape as a test bed and its current wildfire metrics in terms of density, seasonality and stand replacing fire ratio. A discussion follows on how pyrogeography varies according to differences in the human, biophysical, socioeconomic, and climatic spheres.ResultsThe algorithm identified seven different pyroregion clusters. Two main gradients were identified that partly explain the variability of wildfire metrics observed in the current pyroregions. First, a gradient characterized by increasing temperatures and exposure to droughts, which coincides with a decreasing latitude, and second, a human pressure gradient displaying increasing population density in areas at lower elevation. These drivers exerted a major influence on wildfire density, burnt area over available fuels and stand replacing, which were associated to warm-dry climate and high human pressure. The study statistically highlighted the importance of a North–South gradient, which represents one of the most important drivers of wildfire regimes resulting from the variations in climatic conditions but showing collinearity with socioeconomic aspects as well.ConclusionOur fully replicable analytical approach can be applied at multiple scales and used for the entire European continent to uncover new and larger pyroregions. This could create a basis for the European Commission to promote innovative and collaborative funding programs between regions that demonstrate pyrosimilarities.

Highlights

  • Pyrogeography is a major field of investigation in wildfire science because of its capacity to describe the spatial and temporal variations of fire disturbance

  • This study proposes a systematic pyrogeographic analytical approach of the Italian peninsula presenting a method for uncovering current pyroregions on the basis of their pyrosimilarities across the Italian territory at large

  • Based on adopted wildfire metrics, the pyroregions uncovered by this approach can be implemented in fire management plans and civil protection strategies

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Summary

Introduction

Pyrogeography is a major field of investigation in wildfire science because of its capacity to describe the spatial and temporal variations of fire disturbance. Bowman et al (2013) defined pyrogeography as the discipline that studies the past, current, and future projected distribution of wildfires. It offers new perspectives on landscape wildfire management and the link between wildfires and. One approach to represent such multi-scaled spatiotemporal interactions is to employ suitable recurring wildfire metrics to group different regions on the basis of their pyrosimilarities (i.e., pyroregions) within a defined space–time window Clustering pyroregions may be helpful for scientists to assess potential drivers altering fire occurrences and to assess potential future scenarios relative to an appropriate baseline (Keeley et al 2019; Rodrigues et al 2019)

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