FOREST FIRES IN EUROPE AND POLAND FOREST FIRES

FOREST FIRES IN EUROPE AND POLAND

FOREST FIRES Fires are one of the phenomena occurring in forests. From a forest management point of view they are one of the most serious dangers threatening forests. Every year, nearly 2000 fires are recorded in the world. The vulnerability of forests to fire depends primarily on weather conditions. They affect the humidity of the litter. The forest is an excellent combustible material. However, in order to create a fire source is needed. In recent years, Poland is in the infamous in terms of the number of fires.

CAUSES AND EFFECTS OF FOREST FIRES Causes Effects • lightning discharge Øendanger the lives and health of people • eruptions of volcanoes Ømaterial losses • sparks caused by striking blocks and crumbs of rock Øecological in the natural environment • self-ignition Øground degradation • Arson Ødestruction of habitats of many species of plants and animals • accidental fire Øduring fires, large amounts of pollutants are released Ødamage to plants, animal death

DIVISION OF FOREST FIRES Fires of forests are divided into categories: v. Earthfire is rare. They form one mostly during long-term drought. The most common cause of thiscategory of fires is burning fires on peat bogs. v. Underground fires are spreading slowly, but they can last up to several months. v. Ground fires, most frequently occurring category of fires in Poland. v. The apical fires are spreading in the crowns of trees. This fire is usually caused by a mundane fire through lower tree crowns and hanging branches. With particularly favorable weather conditions, peak fires can take the size of a cataclysm. v. Fires of single trees are most often caused by firing fires in old, rotten hollows and firing fires under trees. The causes of single tree fires are also lightning strikes.

EFFIS The source of information on forest fires in Europe is EFFIS (European Forest Fire Information System). EFFIS tasks include: • providing historical data on forest fires in Europe • monitoring the current situation • fire weather forecasting (monthly and seasonal), using data on recent rain and temperature anomalies • creating a network of experts from 40 countries – Expert Group on Forest Fires

FOREST FIRES IN EUROPE STATISTICS Southern countries, mainly Portugal, Italy, France, Greece and Spain, are the most vulnerable to forest fires. In those countries combined, averagely almost 180 thousand ha of forests were burnt annually (1980 -2015). The total burnt in 2015 in Europe (including Turkey) was ca 256 thousand ha. A fire in Catalonia, Spain (2012) A satellite image of a fire in Portugal

FOREST FIRE HAZARD IN EUROPE

PROCESS AND SPREAD OF A FIRE Factors contributing to a fire are: § Bad menagament of forests § Extreme weather and climate changes – like in the summer, when the temeratures are high and the air is dry § Lack of territorial planning and control § Lack of cooperation The speed of spread of a forest fire depends on, among others: humidity, density and type of wood, and external factors like wind speed

THE BIGGEST FOREST FIRE IN EUROPE The biggest forest fire in Europe after the second World War was in Poland near Kuźna Raciborska on 26 th August, 1992. It was caused by a spark from under the wheels of a train, very high temperature and no rain for weeks. The consequences were three fatalities and fifty wounded. The fire caused the destruction of over 9000 ha, creating the biggest debris in Europe. About 10, 000 people took part in the firefighting.

METHODS OF FIRE PROTECTION Fire protection is a whole range of activitiesand preventive measures designed to protect life, property and health from fire. Types of hand-held fire extinguishing equipment: § Fire extinguishers § Powder fire extinguishers

METHODS OF FIRE PROTECTION Because of their functions and the number of people who may be in the group, they are divided into groups: §Public buildings §Buildings for use by people with reduced mobility §Schools, office buildings, health centers, student residences, boarding houses, hotels, penitentiaries §Residential buildings

METHODS OF FIRE PROTECTION To prevent the spread of fire and to protect against neighboring buildings, use: Non-flammable ceilings Fire walls Adequate distances between buildings Refractory materials on roofs of buildings

FORESTS IN FINLAND In Finland the forests occupy 69% of the area, that’s about 232, 550 km, 60% of this area are private forests, 25% of state forests, 10% of forest enterprises and 5% of other public forests.

FORESTS IN FINLAND In the forests pines dominate, pine forests occupy 65% of forest area. Finnish pines and birches have thinner branches and more slender trunks from the Polish. Other important species are spruce 24% and birch 9%. There also plenty of poplars and aspen. Other deciduous species are rare. The spruce is the most valued, due to its high productivity, thickness. There are several species of predators in the forests of Finland, such as the brown bear, the wolf, the lynx, the wolverine. The most common hunting animals are moose, hare, grouse and numerous water birds.

NATIONAL PARKS IN FINLAND In Finland there are 35 national parks. The biggest ones, located in Lapland, are: Urho Kekkonena National Park (2500 km²) – that was a gift for the president of Finland in 1983 Lammenjoki National Park (2855 km²) - one of the largest national parks in Finland. Together with the Norwegian national park Ovre Anarjokka create the largest protected area in Europe. The attraction is the reindeer rushes. There also wolverines.

BIBLIOGRAPHY, PHOTOS, GRAPHS AND MAPS USED Forest fires: https: //pl. wikipedia. org/wiki/Po%C 5%BCary_las%C 3%B 3 w; http: //tvnmeteo. tvn 24. pl/archiwum-2015 -12 -20, 1/polska-w-niechlubnej-czolowce-pozarylasow-wybuchaja-u-nas-raz-po-raz, 189019, 0. html; http: //straz. gov. pl/porady/pozary_lasow EFFIS: the official EFFIS site (http: //effis. jrc. europa. eu/) Statistics on fires in Europe; graph – ‘Share of burnt area 2015 in the Southern Member States’: Jesús San-Miguel-Ayanz, Tracy Durrant, Roberto Boca, Giorgio Libertà, Francesco Boccacci, Margherita Di Leo, Jorge López Pérez, Ernst Schulte; Forest Fires in Europe, Middle East and North Africa 2015; EUR 28158 EN; doi: 10. 2788/914; Spreading of a fire: Samuela Bassi, Marianne Kettunen; Forest Fires: causes and contributing factors in Europe; Tomasz Czerpak, Tadeusz Maciak; Forest fire modeling. Part 1. Methods and algorithms forest fire modeling; The biggest forest fire in Europe: http: //www. tvn 24. pl/poznan, 43/najwieksze-pozary-w-historii-polski, 568332. html; http: //raciborz. naszemiasto. pl/artykul/najwiekszy-pozar-lasu-w-europie-pamietacie-1992 -rok, 2392457, artgal, t, id, tm. html Methods of fire protection: http: //www. jutom. pl/aktualnosci/17 -ochrona-przeciwpozarowa. html Forests in Finland: https: //pl. wikipedia. org/wiki/Lasy_Finlandii; https: //pl. wikipedia. org/wiki/Park_Narodowy_Lemmenjoki; https: //pl. wikipedia. org/wiki/Park_Narodowy_Urho_Kekkonena; http: //ypef. eu/flora_i_fauna_fin SLIDE 6. Graph – ‘Share of burnt area 2015 in the Southern Member States’: Jesús San-Miguel-Ayanz, Tracy Durrant, Roberto Boca, Giorgio Libertà, Francesco Boccacci, Margherita Di Leo, Jorge López Pérez, Ernst Schulte; Forest Fires in Europe, Middle East and North Africa 2015; EUR 28158 EN; doi: 10. 2788/914; downloaded April 21 st 2017; Photo – ‘A fire in Catalonia’ - http: //www. ibtimes. co. uk/spain-forest-fires-2012 -wildfire-girona-catalonia-366151, downloaded April 21 st 2017; Photo – ‘A satellite photo of a fire in Portugal’ – NASA, https: //www. earthobservatory. nasa. gov/IOTD/view. php? id=5736, downloaded April 21 st 2017 SLIDE 7. Map - ‘Forest fire hazard’ - http: //www. eumetrain. org/data/3/30/navmenu. php, downloaded April 21 st 2017 SLIDE 8. Photo – ‘How wildfires spread’ http: //news. bbc. co. uk/2/hi/americas/7059705. stm; downloaded April 21 st 2017 SLIDE 9. – forest fire in Kuznia Raciborska - left: Foto: OSP Kuźnia Raciborska downloaded April 21 st 2017 right: https: //dnm. ppstatic. pl/kadr/k/r/c 8/94/53 f 5 a 91 c 65 a 2 c_o, size, 933 x 0, q, 70, h, d 31 ade. jpg downloaded April 21 st 2017 SLIDE 13. Photo – ‘forest in Finland’ lower - http: //www. 2013. wyprawynaryby. pl/gfx/finlandia/Taivalkoski/right/duze/6. jpg; downloaded April 21 st 2017 upper https: //herbatniczek. files. wordpress. com/2014/03/dsc 0224. jpg? w=655&h=436 downloaded April 21 st 2017 SLIDE 15. Photo – ‘National Parks in Finland’ - http: //www. inarisaariselka. fi/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Lemmenjoki. jpg downloaded April 21 st 2017 Map – ‘National Parks in Finland’ - https: //upload. wikimedia. org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2 a/Lemmenjokinationalpark. png/256 px-Lemmenjokinationalpark. png downloaded April 21 st 2017

AUTHORS Daria Kwiecińska – class 1 BB Dorota Jeż, Barbara Popławska - class 1 BA XL Liceum Ogólnokształcące z Oddziałami Dwujęzycznymi im. Stefana Żeromskiego Platynowa Sreet 1 00 -808 Warsaw Poland