Spring Burning Research Articles

Use of Remote Sensing Data to Assess the Effects of the Floodplain Vegetation Burning in the Lower Dniester National Park (Odesa Region)

The aim of the study was to determine the burnt areas, response of the floodplain ecosystems to burning, and to determine the difference between them and the control sites using the remote sensing data. The impact of burning was assessed using the spectral indices: Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Green Chlorophyll Index (GCI), Specific Leaf Area Vegetation Index (SLAVI), Normalized Difference Moisture Index (NDMI) and Moisture Stress Index (MSI). It was established that during the winter/spring period of 2020, fires in the territory of the Lower Dniester NNP covered almost 4453 hectares (33.1% of the floodplain ecosystems area). Simulation showed that the difference between the burned and control areas gradually decreased over the vegetation period. Maximal difference was observed at the beginning of the growing season (the quality of group selection was 43.2%), which indicates forming of relatively individual environmental conditions for the floodplain vegetation development. In spring, the difference was equal to 20.3%, due to development of <i>Phragmites australis</i>, the edifier of the plant complexes of wetland ecosystems, whose stems have developed a leaf blade. The summer period was characterized by further decrease in the group selection quality (19.9%), owing to equalization of environmental conditions for vegetation development. The autumn period was characterized by dry conditions and end of the growing season, which also contributes to the almost complete disappearance of differences between the plots (14.5%). Based on the analysis of similarity (ANOSIM), it was found that degree of difference between the burned plots was small, owing to local conditions and burning intensity, and amount of dry organic matter in certain areas. It was found that gradual decrease in differences during the vegetation season took place only at winter (February) burning. The influence of spring (March, April) burning resulted in significant variability of the similarity degree over the vegetation period.

Антропогенная трансформация растительного покрова поймы реки Иртыш

The article considers the current state of the vegetation cover of the Irtysh River floodplain within its flat steppe section (Pavlodar Priirtyshye) under the conditions of anthropogenic transformation of the hydrological regime. A description of the landscape confinement of the main classes of floodplain vegetation formations is given. The main factors of anthropogenic impact on the vegetation cover in the form of grazing, recreation, haymaking, fires, littering with solid household waste, etc. Criteria and indicators of disturbance are developed. A description of the botanical biodiversity with an analysis of the economic spectrum of the flora (forage, medicinal, food, honey plants, poisonous, ornamental, technical plant species) is provided. The territory's flora contains 9 species listed in the Red Book, however, during the field survey, only Stipa pennata L. was noted. The eight main threats to botanical biodiversity are described: changes in the hydrological regime of the river; cattle grazing on the floodplain meadows; spring burning of dry grass; grazing and watering of cattle on the river bank; creation dams; illegal collection of ornamental red-listed plants; plowing of steppe landscapes on floodplain terraces; anthropogenic invasion of alien flora. Based on the analysis of geobotanical descriptions, phytoindicators of environmental conditions (moisture, salinization, chemical and mechanical composition of the soil, grazing load, etc.) for this region were identified. Recommendations are proposed to reduce the negative anthropogenic impact, preserve species and coenotic biodiversity, and methods for restoring disturbed areas in the context of climate change and modern transboundary use of the Irtysh River.

Maintaining an open landscape: Comparison of management methods for semi-natural grasslands: A Swedish multi-site study

Traditional management of semi-natural grasslands by grazing or annual mowing is not always feasible and the current study set out to evaluate alternative management methods. At eleven locations in southern Sweden, block experiments were conducted evaluating seven treatments in 5 m*20 m plots: grazing, annual mowing, annual spring burning, mowing every third year, mechanical removal of woody plants, herbicide control of woody plants, and untreated control. After approximately 13 years, trends for woody plants and species richness, and the occurrence of management-dependent plant species, low-grown species, and pollinator-attracting plant species were analysed. Overall, the annual mowing and grazing treatments resulted in fewer woody plants, the highest species richness, and more management-dependent, low-grown, and pollinator-attracting species. The untreated control plots showed the opposite effect, whereas less intense management (annual burning, mowing every third year, and mechanical and chemical treatments of woody plants) showed mixed and often intermediate effects. Compared to grazing and mowing, less intense management methods do not constitute long-term management alternatives to preserve typical features of species-rich grasslands. However, they may be short-term alternatives at sites where the recruitment of woody species is absent or rare. However, to prevent the encroachment of woody species, less intensive management might be a better long-term alternative at more productive sites with slow or inhibited woody species recruitment.

Inter-Month Nutrients Dynamic and Plant Growth in Calamagrostis angustifolia Community and Soil after Different Burning Seasons

Presently, as human activity and climate warming gradually increase, straw burning leads to more accidental burning in neighbouring wetlands, which threatens wetland carbon stores. Plants are important carbon fixers in wetlands, converting carbon dioxide to biomass through photosynthesis and releasing carbon into the soil as plants die off. Nitrogen and phosphorus limitation in wetlands is a key factor affecting plant growth, and different burning seasons have different effects on mitigating this limitation. To further elucidate the effects of nitrogen and phosphorus distribution on wetland inter-month nutrient dynamics after different burning seasons, we selected a Calamagrostis angustifolia wetland in the Sanjiang Plain that was burned in spring and autumn, respectively, and conducted a monthly survey from May to September. We found that the leaf nitrogen content in September at spring burning sites was 3.59 ± 2.69 g/kg, which was significantly lower than that in July, while the difference at the unburned sites was only 0.60 ± 3.72 g/kg, and after the autumn burning, soil nitrogen and phosphorus contents remained higher than at the unburned sites in August, being 0.55 ± 1.74 g/kg and 0.06 ± 0.12 g/kg, respectively. Our results indicate that spring burning immediately increased the nitrogen and phosphorus contents in soil and plants but that these effects only lasted for a short time, until June. In comparison, autumn burning had a long-term effect on soil nitrogen and phosphorus levels and significantly increased the aboveground biomass. Thus, we recommend that conducting autumn burning before the commencement of agricultural burning not only reduces combustible accumulation to prevent fires but also promotes nitrogen and phosphorus cycling in wetlands, and the increase in plant biomass after autumn burning also enhances the carbon fixation capacity of the wetland.

Direct and indirect effects of fire on germination of shortleaf pine seeds

BackgroundShortleaf pine is a fire-adapted tree species, and prescribed fire is commonly used to increase its regeneration success, improve wildlife habitat, and reach conservation objectives associated with open forest ecosystems. We studied direct effects of heat and smoke on shortleaf pine germination in a greenhouse study and effects of season of burning on the number of new germinants in a field study. Improved understanding of fire effects on shortleaf pine seed and regeneration success can help refine burn prescriptions to better meet specific management objectives.ResultsTemperatures ≥ 120 °C eliminated germination of shortleaf pine seeds in a greenhouse trial, and exposure of seeds to 60 °C resulted in no reduction in germination compared to the unheated control regardless of duration of exposure. At 80 °C, duration of heat exposure mattered, with exposure for 10 min reducing germination compared to unheated controls. Smoke exposure had no effect on germination. A field experiment showed that fall burns (prior to seedfall) resulted in greater initial germinant counts than early spring burns (after seedfall but before germination) or unburned controls, which both resulted in greater initial germinant counts than late spring burns (after germination).ConclusionsSeason of prescribed burning can affect the success of shortleaf pine germination. Late spring burning resulted in high mortality of young germinants. Burning in early spring likely resulted in direct damage to some seeds due to heating but may have also had indirect benefit by exposing mineral soil. Fall burning, before the dispersal of shortleaf pine seed, yielded the highest germinant count and is recommended if improving natural regeneration from seed is the primary objective.

Henslow’s Sparrow shows positive response to prescribed fire rotation

Abstract We examined Henslow’s Sparrow (Centronyx henslowii) response to prescribed fire at 32 grasslands at Big Oaks National Wildlife Refuge in southeastern Indiana from 1999 to 2009. We burned grasslands in the spring between 1999 and 2007 and monitored Henslow’s Sparrows for up to 4 yr after treatment. We used linear mixed models to analyze our data. Henslow’s Sparrow counts were correlated with time since prescribed fire and grassland size. The estimated changes in mean Henslow’s Sparrow density relative to pre-burn densities were −0.19, 1.15, 0.74, and −0.68 birds ha−1 for 1–4 breeding seasons after a spring burn, respectively. We found that Henslow’s Sparrows preferred larger grasslands both during the first breeding season after prescribed fire, when vegetation was presumed to possess less litter and structural density, and during the fourth breeding season after fire, when vegetation was presumed to be a more ideal composition, but preferred smaller grasslands in the interim. Thus, grassland size shapes the magnitude of Henslow’s Sparrow population response to fire, with populations in smaller grasslands experiencing greater amplitude changes. Larger grasslands might provide more habitat diversity following prescribed fire, attenuating population change. On average, Henslow’s Sparrows responded positively to prescribed fire in a network of grasslands and cumulative net change in densities were highest three breeding seasons after a burn suggesting that maintaining this burn frequency would be beneficial to Henslow’s Sparrow abundance.

Seasonal emission factors from rangeland prescribed burns in the Kansas Flint Hills grasslands

Operational-sized prescribed grassland burns at three mid-West U.S. locations and ten 1-ha-sized prescribed grassland burns were conducted in the Flint Hills of Kansas to determine emission factors and their potential seasonal effects. Ground-, aerostat-, and unmanned aircraft system-based platforms were used to sample plume emissions for a range of gaseous and particulate pollutants. The ten co-located, 1-ha-sized plots allowed for testing five plots in the spring and five in the late summer, allowing for control of vegetation type, biomass loading, climate history, and land use. The operational-sized burns provided a range of conditions under which to determine emission factors relevant to the Flint Hills grasslands. The 1-ha plots showed that emission factors for pollutants such as PM2.5 and BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene) were higher during the late summer than during the traditional spring burn season. This is likely due to increased biomass density and fuel moisture in the growing season biomass resulting in reduced combustion efficiency.

Soil moisture and temperature drive emergence delays associated with fire seasonality in eucalypt forests

Abstract Many ecosystems are well adapted to fire, although the impacts of fire seasonality and its effect on post-fire recruitment are less well understood. Late summer or autumn fires within eucalypt forests with a Mediterranean-type climate allow for seedling emergence during the cooler and wetter seasons. The emergence and survival after spring fires may be impacted by higher soil temperatures and water stress, delaying recruitment until the subsequent winter period. During this delay, seeds may be exposed to predation and decay, which reduce the viable seed bank. This study examines post-fire recruitment dynamics in a eucalypt forest ecosystem (Northern Jarrah Forest (NJF) of southwestern Western Australia) and whether it may be vulnerable to human-induced changes to fire season. Here, we compare in situ post-fire seedling emergence patterns between autumn and spring burns and account for a potential ecological mechanism driving seasonal differences in emergence by determining the thermal germination requirements of seeds for 15 common species from the NJF. Our results demonstrate that 93% of species had thermal optima between 10°C and 20°C, analogous with soil temperatures measured during the germination window (late April to October). Concurrent in situ post-fire emergence was highest 144 days after an autumn (seasonal) fire, followed by a 10–72% decline. In contrast, there was no emergence within the first 200 days following a spring (aseasonal) fire. We conclude that aseasonal fire in the NJF can lead to a complete delay in recruitment in the first season post-fire, resulting in a lower inter-fire growth period and increasing the potential for further reductions in recruitment through seed predation and decay. The study suggests that aseasonal fire has an immediate and significant impact on initial recruitment in the NJF, but further research is required to determine any longer-term effects of this delay and its implications for fire management in southwestern Western Australia.

Comparison on effect of mowing and spring burning on the occurrence of grassland plants in Western Siberia (preliminary results)

This article provides data on changes in the occurrence of plant species in grassland communities after the spring fire and the subsequent cessation of mowing in comparison with regularly mowed communities. It has been established that burning more often leads to a decrease in the occurrence of the species than to an increase. At the same time, for most species values are restored within 1 to 3 growing seasons.

Yield and Forage Quality on Native Meadows as Affected by Burn and Fertilization Management

Native meadows are widely used by producers in southeast Kansas. However, there are few studies about management practices to improve agronomic performance in southeast Kansas. This study evaluated the spring burn effect combined with the application of lime, nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium on yield and forage quality in native meadows. Yield and forage quality on native meadows were not affected by lime application, or P and K fertilization in the first year of the study. However, N fertilization increased yield, crude protein, and total digestible nutrients when associated with spring burn.

Impact of Stubble Heights on Native Hay Meadows in Southeast Kansas

Management practices affect hay production in native meadows. The objective of this study was to evaluate how stubble heights affect forage yield and quality in a native meadow. Prescribed spring burns contribute to improving forage quality. Setting the stubble height at 3 inches resulted in high forage quality and had a low yield impact.

Weather and Fuel as Modulators of Grassland Fire Behavior in the Northern Great Plains.

Fuel and weather interact to affect wildland fire behavior, but little is known about associations between these variables in the northern Great Plains of North America. Few studies consider rate of spread or statistically test the influence of fuel and weather. We measured overall fuel load and moisture ahead of prescribed fires in North Dakota, USA, and used a thermocouple array to measure two-dimensional rate of spread, soil surface temperature, and aboveground flame temperature, to compare with fire weather data. Flame temperatures averaged 225 °C during spring burns and 250 °C during fall burns, and were generally higher with greater fuel loads and lower overall fuelbed moisture. Surface temperatures averaged ≈100 °C, although 50% of observations were ≤60 °C. Fires spread at an average of 2.5 m min-1, increasing with wind speed. As such, prescribed fire in northern Great Plains working rangeland appear to spread slowly and effect low soil surface temperatures, often limited by high fuelbed moisture. Fire behavior measurements respond differently to variability in fuel and weather. Belowground heating is likely minimal. We suggest ecologists ought to consider which fire behavior measurements best relate to fire effects, and managers consider weather and ignition pattern mitigations when fuels constrain desired fire behavior to ensure effective burns.

A seasonal OH minimum region over the Indian Ocean?

As the hydroxyl radical (OH) is the cleansing agent of the atmosphere, reduction in its concentration is a great concern for air quality and transport of trace gases across the latitudes and altitudes. In addition, OH determines the lifetime of most trace gases and non-CO2 greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Since many pollutants have adverse health effects and are greenhouse gases, the changes in OH concentrations directly or indirectly affect public health and climate. Our analysis with OH data (from Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer and Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service reanalyses) for the past 14 (2005–2018) years finds an OH minimum region over Indian Ocean, in the eastern Bay of Bengal at 6°–14° N and 92°–95° E. The Indian Ocean OH minimum reaches to 15 × 104 molec.cm−3 in April, and a secondary minimum of 18 × 104 molec.cm−3 in September–November. This seasonal minimum found around the Andaman and Nicobar Islands also hosts an active volcano, which releases noticeable amount of SO2 (OH sink) throughout the year. In addition, the biomass burning in spring and thus, the distribution of CO has a profound influence on the OH distribution in this region as Southeast Asia is one of the global hotspots of biomass burning, and the Indian Ocean OH minimum is located near that region. The El Niño and La Niño events also control the tropospheric ozone and CO distribution, and thus the interannual variability of OH minimum there. The WACCM model simulations reproduce the general latitudinal distribution and average seasonal cycle of OH, but not the extreme minimum OH values, although the simulations show the annual minimum in winter (December–January) in both ocean regions, which demands dedicated studies using chemical transport models. Therefore, this study reveals a seasonal OH minimum over Indian Ocean, which is very likely to influence the regional air quality and trace gas transport in the tropics.

Grassland management actions influence soil conditions and plant community responses to winter climate change

AbstractRestoring ecosystems in a changing climate requires understanding how management interventions interact with climate conditions. In tallgrass prairies, disturbance through fire, mowing, or grazing is a critical force in maintaining herbaceous plant diversity. However, unlike historical fire regimes that occurred throughout the growing season, management actions like prescribed fire and mowing are commonly limited to the spring or fall seasons. Warming winters are resulting in less snow, causing overwintering plants to experience reduced insulation from snow and these more extreme winter conditions may be exacerbated or ameliorated depending on the timing of management actions. Understanding this novel interaction between the timing of management actions and snow depth is critical for managing and restoring grassland ecosystems. Here, we applied experimental management treatments (spring and fall burn and fall mow) in combination with snow depth manipulations to test whether the type and timing of commonly implemented disturbances interact with snow depth to affect restored prairie plant diversity and composition. Overall, snow manipulations and management actions influenced soil temperature while only management actions influenced spring thaw timing. Burning in the fall, which removes litter prior to winter resulted in colder soils and earlier spring thaw timing. However, plant communities were mostly resistant to these effects. Instead, plants responded to management actions such that burning and mowing, regardless of timing, increased plant diversity and spring burning increased flowering structure cover while reducing weedy cool season grass cover. Together these results suggest that grassland plant communities are resistant to winter climate change over the short term and that burning or mowing is critical to promoting plant diversity in tallgrass prairies.

192 Outcomes of Simulated Combinations of Rangeland Management Scenarios on Soil and Nutrient Processes

Abstract The relationships among rangeland management practices and ecosystem on soil and nutrient processes are complex. Simulation models can provide valuable insight into this complexity to guide future research and management decisions for sustainable grazing systems. The objective of this analysis was to evaluate the combinations of grazing management (continuous vs. rotational), stocking rate (low, moderate, or high), and burning (none vs. annual spring burn) on soil erosion, nutrient losses, and carbon sequestration. Soil, weather, and forage species data were collected for 3 locations in the Central Great Plains (Konza Prairie Biological Station, Kansas; Agricultural Research Center-Hays, Kansas; Central Plains Experimental Range, Wyoming). These data were used to simulate combinations of rangeland management scenarios using the Agricultural Policy/Environmental eXtender (APEX) model. A stocker cattle operation was simulated at Hays, Kansas and Wyoming locations, and a cow-calf operation at Konza, Kansas location. Burning increased soil loss from water erosion regardless of stocking rate or grazing management. Rotational grazing increased soil loss at the Kansas locations, but decreased soil loss at Wyoming compared with continuous grazing. Stocking rate had little effect on nitrogen losses, but rotational grazing decreased nitrogen loss compared with continuous grazing. Greater stocking rates slightly decreased phosphorus losses with continuous grazing, but not rotational grazing. Burning decreased phosphorus losses with continuous grazing at Konza, but not the other locations. Greater stocking rates decreased the deposition of soil organic carbon especially with continuous grazing, and burning resulted in losses of soil organic carbon at Konza and Wyoming. In conclusion, rangeland management practices differentially affect nutrient processes among ecosystems such that a one-size-fits-all management scheme will not maximize retention of all nutrients in all ecosystems.

Merging prescribed fires and timber harvests in the Sierra Nevada: Burn season and pruning influences in young mixed conifer stands

In dry, productive forests where historically infrequent high-severity fires are now common, new silvicultural systems will be needed to better align management activity with the ecosystem's dependent disturbance regime of frequent low and moderate-severity fires. Merging timber harvests with prescribed fire programs can be advantageous because each disturbance provides benefits that the other cannot provide alone. We conducted a study aimed at providing information to managers interested in merging gap-based silviculture with frequent prescribed fire. We studied the influence of burn season (spring versus fall) on canopy mortality and damage by conducting prescribed burns in 13-14 year old stands that had been regenerated with gap-based silviculture. We also pruned sugar pine (Pinus lambertiana) and incense-cedar (Calocedrus decurrens) prior to burns to evaluate the influence of pruning on fire related mortality and damage. Fall (21%) and spring (19%) burns resulted in similar amounts of mortality two years following burns, but the fall burns consumed considerably more fuel compared to spring burns. Percent volume crown scorch was greater in spring burns and greater when crown bases were low to the ground. Fall burns were generally favorable assuming a management context where fuel consumption and survival is desirable. However, either burn season may be acceptable using fire as a thinning mechanism is desired to encourage the development of low-density, mature stands. As a pre-fire treatment, pruning did not clearly reduce fire-related mortality or crown damage. Considering that pruning itself is a form of crown damage, it could be considered counterproductive as a pre-fire treatment because of increased heat entering pruned crowns as a result of increased surface fuel and the loss of heat-buffering lower branches. Merging gap-based silviculture with prescribed fires in perpetuity may be initially complex operationally in the Sierra Nevada, but it offers managers a disturbance regime-guided method for sustaining heterogeneity at fine and coarse scales while maintaining low surface fuels. The timing of introducing fires into young stands as well as traditional timber management tools such as rotation ages and harvest intervals can be altered depending on exact objectives.

Prescribed Burning in Late Summer Benefits Ranchers, Air Quality

AbstractFire is essential to the survival of the tallgrass prairies of Kansas and Oklahoma. To maintain the treeless prairie ecosystem, ranchers have historically burned pastures each spring from April to May. But when more than 500,000 acres are burned in a short period with slow winds and dense cloud, stagnant smoke can lead to unhealthy air quality in neighboring communities. The spring burning of rangeland coincides with weather patterns that create air quality issues (temperature inversions stemming from moderately warm days followed by cool nights). The solution to air quality issues is for ranchers to reschedule prescribed burnings for late summer or early fall when temperature inversions are less likely to occur. Earn 0.5 CEUs in Crop Management by reading the article and taking the quiz at https://web.sciencesocieties.org/Learning‐Center/Courses.

Dormant Season Vegetation Phenology and Eddy Fluxes in Native Tallgrass Prairies of the U.S. Southern Plains

Carbon dioxide (CO2) fluxes and evapotranspiration (ET) during the non-growing season can contribute significantly to the annual carbon and water budgets of agroecosystems. Comparative studies of vegetation phenology and the dynamics of CO2 fluxes and ET during the dormant season of native tallgrass prairies from different landscape positions under the same climatic regime are scarce. Thus, this study compared the dynamics of satellite-derived vegetation phenology (as captured by the enhanced vegetation index (EVI) and the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI)) and eddy covariance (EC)-measured CO2 fluxes and ET in six differently managed native tallgrass prairie pastures during dormant seasons (November through March). During December–February, vegetation phenology (EVI and NDVI) and the dynamics of eddy fluxes were comparable across all pastures in most years. Large discrepancies in fluxes were observed during March (the time of the initiation of growth of dominant warm-season grasses) across years and pastures due to the influence of weather conditions and management practices. The results illustrated the interactive effects between prescribed spring burns and rainfall on vegetation phenology (i.e., positive and negative impacts of prescribed spring burns under non-drought and drought conditions, respectively). The EVI better tracked the phenology of tallgrass prairie during the dormant season than did NDVI. Similar EVI and NDVI values for the periods when flux magnitudes were different among pastures and years, most likely due to the satellite sensors’ inability to fully observe the presence of some cool-season C3 species under residues, necessitated a multi-level validation approach of using ground-truth observations of species composition, EC measurements, PhenoCam (digital) images, and finer-resolution satellite data to further validate the vegetation phenology derived from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) during dormant seasons. This study provides novel insights into the dynamics of vegetation phenology, CO2 fluxes, and ET of tallgrass prairie during the dormant season in the U.S. Southern Great Plains.

Prescribed burning in spring or autumn did not affect the soil fungal community in Mediterranean Pinus nigra natural forests

In the context of global change, wildfires are not only a threat but are also increasing in their severity in forest ecosystems worldwide, affecting and modifying vegetation, wildlife, and fungal dynamics. Mediterranean ecosystems are frequently affected by fire and prescribed burning is being increasingly used as a tool to reduce the risk and severity of wildfires. Although some of the effects of prescribed burning have been studied, the best moment to perform a prescribed burn to reduce the impact of fire on fungal communities has not been fully investigated. In this study, we analysed the effect of prescribed burning in two different seasons (spring and autumn) on soil fungi associated with naturalPinusnigraforests. Four years after prescribed burning was applied, our analyses showed that the total fungal richness and the composition of fungal communities in spring-burned, autumn-burned, and unburned control plots did not differ significantly. However, analyses of specific phyla and functional trophic groups did reveal some significant differences between spring- or autumn-burned plots and unburned control plots. Valuable edible fungi, which were not affected by the prescribed burning, were also found in the study area. Thus, our results suggest that prescribed burning is not only an interesting tool that could be used to reduce the risk of wildfire but also is compatible with the conservation of fungal communities, and could even promote specific valuable edible species, generating complementary incomes for the rural population. Although further studies are needed, our analyses suggest that the season (spring or autumn) in which prescribed burning is performed does not affect fungal conservation and, therefore, does not need to be one of the factors taken into consideration when selecting the most appropriate time to perform a prescribed burning.

ВІДНОВЛЕННЯ ДЕГРАДОВАНИХ МІСЬКИХ ВОДНО-БОЛОТНИХ УГІДЬ (НА ПРИКЛАДІ СОВСЬКИХ СТАВКІВ У КИЄВІ)

The article is devoted to the problem of the preservation of urban wetlands as the most vulnerable valuable ecosystems in the conditions of rapid urbanization, which need to be protected. It researches the current state of the Sovky tract (and the lower cas­cade wetlands of the Sovski Ponds located within it) in the center of Kyiv. Despite the strong urban influence, the rich floristic and faunal diversity of the studied area has been revealed. The value of urban wetlands for Kyiv is determined by the vital ecosystem services provided to the local community. Such services include, first of all, regulation of the microclimate, moisture and nutrients distribution in the soil, habitats preservation for the rare species of animals and plants, regulation of the groundwater levels, pollution filtration, waste adsorption, oxygen produc­tion and carbon dioxide absorption, water quality improvement, mitigation of the climate change consequences, creation of the favourable conditions for recreation, etc. As a result of field surveys of the Sovky tract, the complete decline of the territory and the degradation of valuable wetlands have been indicated. We have investigated the main geoecological conflicts caused by littering of the territory with household and construction waste, persistent pollution of the water bodies caused by untreated sewage due to unauthorized intrusions of resi­dents into the household sewers, chemical and noise pollution from the road infrastructure, grass burning in spring, etc. The spatial localisation of all conflicts within the Sovky tract is shown on the relevant map. The negative consequences of the long-term unresolved conflicts for the functioning of the wetlands and the quality of the ecosystem services they provide have been identified. Given the perspective of development in the study area of the ecopark and a fairly general idea of the essence of this concept, we proposed to include wetlands of Sovky tract in the Nature Reserve Fund of Kyiv. According to the current legislation, this area meets all the criteria of the category “Regional Landscape Park” (RLP).The main purpose of preserving the unique urban wetlands is the protection of rare species of plants and animals and their natural habitats, which is possible only in the conditions provided for in the RLP reserved zone. In addition, granting the official status of a protected area will make it impossible to build and litter within unique urban wetlands in the future.