Forest Fires in Europe, Middle East and North Africa 2017

Forest Fires in Europe, Middle East and North Africa 2017. San-Miguel-Ayanz, J., Houston Durrant, T., Boca, R., Libertà, G., Branco, A., de Rigo , D., Ferrari, D., Maianti, P., Artés Vivancos, T., Costa, H., Lana, F., Löffler, P., Nuijten, D., Ahlgren, A. C., Leray, T., Benchikha, A., Abbas, M., Humer, F., Baetens, J., Konstantinov, V., Pe ̌sut, I., Petkovi ̌cek, S., Papageorgiou, K., Toumasis, I., Pecl, J., Valgepea, M., Kõiv, K., Ruuska, R., Timovska, M., Michaut, P., Joannelle, P., Lachmann, M., Theodoridou, C., Debreceni, P., Nagy, D., Nugent, C., Zaken, A. B., di Fonzo , M., Sciunnach, R., Leisavnieks, E., Jaun ̧ki ̧kis, Z., Mitri, G., Rep ̌sienė, S., Assali, F., Mharzi Alaoui, H., Botnen, D., Piwnicki, J., Szczygie\l, R., Almeida, R., Pereira, T., Cruz, M., Sbirnea, R., Mara, S., Eritsov, A., Longauerová, V., Jak ̌sa, J., Enriquez, E., Lopez, A., Sandahl, L., Reinhard, M., Conedera, M., Pezzatti, B., Dursun, K. T., Baltaci, U., & Moffat, A. Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg, 2018.
doi abstract bibtex

[Excerpt: Executive summary] This is the 18th issue of the EFFIS annual report on forest fires for the year 2017. This report is consolidated as highly appreciated documentation of the previous year's forest fires in Europe, Middle East and North Africa. In its different sections, the report includes information on the evolution of fire danger in the European and Mediterranean regions, the damage caused by fires and detailed description of the fire conditions during the 2017 fire campaign in the majority of countries in the EFFIS network. The chapter on national reporting gives an overview of the efforts undertaken at national and regional levels, and provides inspiration for countries exposed to forest fire risk. [\n] The preparation and publication of the report aims also at improving cooperation with the members of the Expert Group on Forest Fires (EGFF) especially with regard to fire prevention actions. Our common aim is to maintain and protect our landscapes and natural heritage, to avoid loss of human lives and to minimise the damage caused to property by uncontrolled forest fires. [\n] The aim of the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS) is to provide harmonised information on forest fires and assessment of their effects in the pan-European region. For this purpose, collaboration with EU Member States and neighbouring countries has been on-going since 1998. EFFIS started as a pilot project of collaboration between the European Countries and the European Commission in the area of fire information and fire prevention. [\n] On the Commission side, EFFIS was initiated by the Joint Research Centre in collaboration with the DG Environment. Due to the high support from the Expert Group on Forest Fires, which constitutes the network of experts from the countries contributing to EFFIS, the system was developed to an operational level supporting national and European policies and providing the information basis for the discussion of issues related to forest fires in the European Parliament . Currently, EFFIS provides operational support to DG ECHO in the area of civil protection, DG GROW in the implementation of the Copernicus Regulation [3] as well as to DG REGIO regarding the implementation of the EU Solidarity Fund Regulation [4] for critical fires. In 2015, EFFIS was adopted as one of the components of the EU Copernicus Program, which provides a legal and financial basis for its operation under this framework. [\n] EFFIS provides an ideal platform for countries to exchange good practices on fire prevention, firefighting, restoration practices and other activities related to fire management, and for the European Commission to update the forest fire services in the countries on relevant initiatives at the European level. [\n] Since its first operation in the year 2000, the number of countries contributing to the information on forest fires in EFFIS and receiving data from it has increased steadily. [\n] [...] [Foreward] At the time of preparing this 2017 report, wildfires have shown again in 2018 that they can be very deadly, even when countries are aware of the fire danger conditions and prepared for firefighting, such as the dramatic fires in Greece this July. Simultaneously, we are observing how extreme weather conditions can affect all the territories of the European Union, not only the Mediterranean region. In 2018, wildfires have heavily affected Sweden, UK, Ireland, Finland, and Latvia; countries in which wildfires have not been a concern in past years. This shows the importance and the urgency to seriously invest in the prevention of forest fires. [\n] This report presents the dramatic effects of wildfires in the year 2017. Despite the efforts by national and regional wildfire administrations and the support of the European Commission to prevent and fight wildfires in the European Union (EU), in 2017 wildfires burnt over 1.2 million ha of natural lands in the EU and killed 127 people among fire fighters and civilians. Over 25\,% of the total burnt area was in the Natura2000 network, destroying much of the efforts of the EU countries in preserving key biodiversity and natural habitats for future generations. The European Forest Fire Information System estimated losses of around 10 billion euros caused by these fires. [\n] I would like to stress again that the extreme conditions by themselves are not the cause of wildfires. In the vast majority of the cases, it is human intervention that ignites fires, which, under extreme weather conditions spread uncontrollably, causing enormous destruction and significant losses of human lives and assets. Fire prevention is thus key in tackling wildfires. More efforts should be channelled to increasing population and decision makers' awareness on the risk of wildfires. Member States and the EU Institutions must work hand in hand in providing guidelines on how to act in case of wildfires and how to increase our resilience, building on individual national experiences and capacities and sharing best practices. [\n] Furthermore, unsustainable forest management practices, degradation of ecosystems and their services, as well as the continuity of fuels of very flammable forest tree species facilitate fire ignition and favours fire propagation. Awareness raising and training of local communities, policy makers and stakeholders should be combined with investing in sustainable land-use practices that ensure the multifunctional role of forests beyond their economic function. Forest ecosystem services such as the regulation of the water cycle, soil protection, habitats provision for biodiversity, air cleaning, are under pressure due to climate change and intensified management and more investments are needed in ensuring forest resilience and supporting the ecosystem services that forests provide to the economy and the wider society. [\n] The EU is actively supporting wildfire prevention and fighting, the restoration of burnt lands, as well as education and awareness raising measures through its Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Rural Development Fund (EAFRD). The European Commission is working with its Expert Group on Forest Fires (EGFF), made of 41 national wildfire administrations from the EU and the Mediterranean neighbouring countries, in developing guidelines for better wildfire prevention and common basic criteria to assess wildfire risk at the pan-European level. These basic criteria will be ready by the end of 2018 and will help in assessing wildfire risk and developing better prevention and preparedness measures to tackle wildfires in the pan-European area. The EGFF is also working on a guidance, due in 2019, on forest fire prevention to support Member States in their prevention processes. [\n] These activities are conducted with the support of the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), which constitutes the backbone of wildfire information, provides near-real time information on wildfires and support to firefighting operations coordinated by the Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC). Moreover, with the recent RescEU proposal the Commission aims at strengthening the European civil protection focusing on two complementary strands of action: creating a stronger collective response at the European level, and improved prevention and preparedness capacities. [\n] The Commission intends to keep on working together with the national administrations to be better prepared for wildfire conditions that may worsen in the future by the effects of climate change. Wildfires can be a real concern to any of the EU countries, as shown by the ongoing 2018 wildfire season. It is thus essential that coordinated actions are taken at European level to increase the resilience of our forest, to learn from each other through the exchange of good practices and to increase preparedness for firefighting operations. We need to show the EU solidarity in action and through effective EU initiatives strengthen the EU capacity to defend the lives of our citizens and protect our natural capital for future generations. [\n] [...]

@book{san-miguel-ayanzForestFiresEurope2018a,
  title = {Forest Fires in {{Europe}}, {{Middle East}} and {{North Africa}} 2017},
  author = {{San-Miguel-Ayanz}, Jes{\'u}s and Houston Durrant, Tracy and Boca, Roberto and Libert{\`a}, Giorgio and Branco, Alfredo and {de Rigo}, Daniele and Ferrari, Davide and Maianti, Pieralberto and Art{\'e}s Vivancos, Tom{\`a}s and Costa, Hugo and Lana, Fabio and L{\"o}ffler, Peter and Nuijten, Daniel and Ahlgren, Anders C. and Leray, Tha{\"i}s and Benchikha, Abdelhafid and Abbas, Mohamed and Humer, Franz and Baetens, Jan and Konstantinov, Vladimir and Pe{\v s}ut, Ivana and Petkovi{\v c}ek, Sini{\v s}a and Papageorgiou, Kostas and Toumasis, Ioannis and Pecl, Jan and Valgepea, Mati and K{\~o}iv, Kadi and Ruuska, Rami and Timovska, Maja and Michaut, Philippe and Joannelle, Philippe and Lachmann, Michaela and Theodoridou, Christina and Debreceni, Peter and Nagy, D{\'a}niel and Nugent, Ciaran and Zaken, Avi B. and {di Fonzo}, Marco and Sciunnach, Renato and Leisavnieks, Edijs and Jaun{\c k}i{\c k}is, Zigmunds and Mitri, George and Rep{\v s}ien{\.e}, Svetlana and Assali, Fouad and Mharzi Alaoui, Hicham and Botnen, Dag and Piwnicki, Joseph and Szczygie{\l}, Ryszard and Almeida, Rui and Pereira, Tania and Cruz, Miguel and Sbirnea, Radu and Mara, Septimius and Eritsov, Andrey and Longauerov{\'a}, Val{\'e}ria and Jak{\v s}a, Jo{\v s}t and Enriquez, Elsa and Lopez, Antonio and Sandahl, Leif and Reinhard, Michael and Conedera, Marco and Pezzatti, Boris and Dursun, Kamil T. and Baltaci, Ugur and Moffat, Andy},
  editor = {{San-Miguel-Ayanz}, Jes{\'u}s and Houston Durrant, Tracy and Boca, Roberto and Libert{\`a}, Giorgio and Branco, Alfredo and {de Rigo}, Daniele and Ferrari, Davide and Maianti, Pieralberto and Art{\'e}s Vivancos, Tom{\`a}s and Costa, Hugo and Lana, Fabio and L{\"o}ffler, Peter and Nuijten, Daniel and Ahlgren, Anders C. and Leray, Tha{\"i}s},
  year = {2018},
  publisher = {{Publications Office of the European Union}},
  address = {{Luxembourg}},
  issn = {1831-9424},
  doi = {10.2760/663443},
  abstract = {[Excerpt: Executive summary] This is the 18th issue of the EFFIS annual report on forest fires for the year 2017. This report is consolidated as highly appreciated documentation of the previous year's forest fires in Europe, Middle East and North Africa. In its different sections, the report includes information on the evolution of fire danger in the European and Mediterranean regions, the damage caused by fires and detailed description of the fire conditions during the 2017 fire campaign in the majority of countries in the EFFIS network. The chapter on national reporting gives an overview of the efforts undertaken at national and regional levels, and provides inspiration for countries exposed to forest fire risk.

[\textbackslash n] The preparation and publication of the report aims also at improving cooperation with the members of the Expert Group on Forest Fires (EGFF) especially with regard to fire prevention actions. Our common aim is to maintain and protect our landscapes and natural heritage, to avoid loss of human lives and to minimise the damage caused to property by uncontrolled forest fires.

[\textbackslash n] The aim of the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS) is to provide harmonised information on forest fires and assessment of their effects in the pan-European region. For this purpose, collaboration with EU Member States and neighbouring countries has been on-going since 1998. EFFIS started as a pilot project of collaboration between the European Countries and the European Commission in the area of fire information and fire prevention. 

[\textbackslash n] On the Commission side, EFFIS was initiated by the Joint Research Centre in collaboration with the DG Environment. Due to the high support from the Expert Group on Forest Fires, which constitutes the network of experts from the countries contributing to EFFIS, the system was developed to an operational level supporting national and European policies and providing the information basis for the discussion of issues related to forest fires in the European Parliament . Currently, EFFIS provides operational support to DG ECHO in the area of civil protection, DG GROW in the implementation of the Copernicus Regulation [3] as well as to DG REGIO regarding the implementation of the EU Solidarity Fund Regulation [4] for critical fires. In 2015, EFFIS was adopted as one of the components of the EU Copernicus Program, which provides a legal and financial basis for its operation under this framework.

[\textbackslash n] EFFIS provides an ideal platform for countries to exchange good practices on fire prevention, firefighting, restoration practices and other activities related to fire management, and for the European Commission to update the forest fire services in the countries on relevant initiatives at the European level.

[\textbackslash n] Since its first operation in the year 2000, the number of countries contributing to the information on forest fires in EFFIS and receiving data from it has increased steadily. 

[\textbackslash n] [...]

[Foreward] At the time of preparing this 2017 report, wildfires have shown again in 2018 that they can be very deadly, even when countries are aware of the fire danger conditions and prepared for firefighting, such as the dramatic fires in Greece this July. Simultaneously, we are observing how extreme weather conditions can affect all the territories of the European Union, not only the Mediterranean region. In 2018, wildfires have heavily affected Sweden, UK, Ireland, Finland, and Latvia; countries in which wildfires have not been a concern in past years. This shows the importance and the urgency to seriously invest in the prevention of forest fires. 

[\textbackslash n] This report presents the dramatic effects of wildfires in the year 2017. Despite the efforts by national and regional wildfire administrations and the support of the European Commission to prevent and fight wildfires in the European Union (EU), in 2017 wildfires burnt over 1.2 million ha of natural lands in the EU and killed 127 people among fire fighters and civilians. Over 25\,\% of the total burnt area was in the Natura2000 network, destroying much of the efforts of the EU countries in preserving key biodiversity and natural habitats for future generations. The European Forest Fire Information System estimated losses of around 10 billion euros caused by these fires. 

[\textbackslash n] I would like to stress again that the extreme conditions by themselves are not the cause of wildfires. In the vast majority of the cases, it is human intervention that ignites fires, which, under extreme weather conditions spread uncontrollably, causing enormous destruction and significant losses of human lives and assets. Fire prevention is thus key in tackling wildfires. More efforts should be channelled to increasing population and decision makers' awareness on the risk of wildfires. Member States and the EU Institutions must work hand in hand in providing guidelines on how to act in case of wildfires and how to increase our resilience, building on individual national experiences and capacities and sharing best practices. 

[\textbackslash n] Furthermore, unsustainable forest management practices, degradation of ecosystems and their services, as well as the continuity of fuels of very flammable forest tree species facilitate fire ignition and favours fire propagation. Awareness raising and training of local communities, policy makers and stakeholders should be combined with investing in sustainable land-use practices that ensure the multifunctional role of forests beyond their economic function. Forest ecosystem services such as the regulation of the water cycle, soil protection, habitats provision for biodiversity, air cleaning, are under pressure due to climate change and intensified management and more investments are needed in ensuring forest resilience and supporting the ecosystem services that forests provide to the economy and the wider society. 

[\textbackslash n] The EU is actively supporting wildfire prevention and fighting, the restoration of burnt lands, as well as education and awareness raising measures through its Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Rural Development Fund (EAFRD). The European Commission is working with its Expert Group on Forest Fires (EGFF), made of 41 national wildfire administrations from the EU and the Mediterranean neighbouring countries, in developing guidelines for better wildfire prevention and common basic criteria to assess wildfire risk at the pan-European level. These basic criteria will be ready by the end of 2018 and will help in assessing wildfire risk and developing better prevention and preparedness measures to tackle wildfires in the pan-European area. The EGFF is also working on a guidance, due in 2019, on forest fire prevention to support Member States in their prevention processes.

[\textbackslash n] These activities are conducted with the support of the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), which constitutes the backbone of wildfire information, provides near-real time information on wildfires and support to firefighting operations coordinated by the Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC). Moreover, with the recent RescEU proposal the Commission aims at strengthening the European civil protection focusing on two complementary strands of action: creating a stronger collective response at the European level, and improved prevention and preparedness capacities. 

[\textbackslash n] The Commission intends to keep on working together with the national administrations to be better prepared for wildfire conditions that may worsen in the future by the effects of climate change. Wildfires can be a real concern to any of the EU countries, as shown by the ongoing 2018 wildfire season. It is thus essential that coordinated actions are taken at European level to increase the resilience of our forest, to learn from each other through the exchange of good practices and to increase preparedness for firefighting operations. We need to show the EU solidarity in action and through effective EU initiatives strengthen the EU capacity to defend the lives of our citizens and protect our natural capital for future generations. 

[\textbackslash n] [...]},
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}

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