Dynamic forest fire risk evaluation in Poland

Autorzy

  • Ryszard Szczygieł Forest Research Institute, Laboratory of Forest Fire Protection, Sękocin Stary, Braci Leśnej 3, 05-090 Raszyn, Poland
    e-mail: r.szczygiel@ibles.waw.pl
  • Mirosław Kwiatkowski Forest Research Institute, Laboratory of Forest Fire Protection
    Sękocin Stary, Braci Leśnej 3, 05-090 Raszyn, Poland
  • Bartłomiej Kołakowski Forest Research Institute, Laboratory of Forest Fire Protection, Sękocin Stary, Braci Leśnej 3, 05-090 Raszyn, Poland
  • Józef Piwnicki Forest Research Institute, Laboratory of Forest Fire Protection
    Sękocin Stary, Braci Leśnej 3, 05-090 Raszyn, Poland

Abstract

The weather conditions determine the dynamic forest fire risk. In Poland, the dynamic forest fire risk is calculated using a method elaborated at the Forest Research Institute. The forest fire risk degree (4-level scale) is calculated every day at 9:00 am and at 1:00 pm during the fire season (1.03 till 30.09) for 60 prognostic zones selected on the basis of stand and climatic conditions. 97% of all annual forest fires occur during the fire season. Surface fires are a significant part of the fires (90%) and occur in forest stands where pine is the dominant species. The purpose of the research was to prepare a new method of forecasting forest fire risk, which would enable a more precise method of evaluation of the risk of an outbreak of fire in relation to the existing and forecast meteorological conditions in forests. The results obtained during testing of this method indicate a high accuracy in forecasting fire risk and a satisfactory precision of formulae for calculating moisture content of pine litter.

The assumptions of the new method included:
– possibility of determining the actual risk of fire for the given area, being the average for all measurement points located on the terrain equally those in which the moisture content measurement of litter has not been performed,
– possibility of forecasting the risk of forest fire for the afternoon in the morning hours of the given day,
– possibility of forecasting fire risk for the following day,
– forecasting moisture content of litter for the afternoon and of the given day and for the following day,
– drawing up a method enabling limitation of operational costs of fire prevention system.

DOI 10.2478-ffp-2020-0014
Source Folia Forestalia Polonica, Series A – Forestry
Print ISSN 0071-6677
Online ISSN
2199-5907
Type of article
short communication
Original title
Dynamic forest fire risk evaluation in Poland
Publisher The Committee on Forestry Sciences and Wood Technology of the Polish Academy of Sciences and the Forest Research Institute in Sekocin Stary
Date 29/07/2020

Article:

Translate »