YAKUTSK, July 20. /TASS/. The increasing of wildfires areas in the Arctic zone, including in Yakutia, is associated with the climate changes and forest management problems, a senior researcher at the Permafrost Institute of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the North-Eastern Federal University, Nikita Tananaev, told TASS.
The situation with wildfires in Yakutia is very complicated now. Wildfires there periodically develop into crown fires. Earlier, dense smoke was reported in Yakutsk and other settlements. The Ministry of Emergency Situations has reported 316 wildfires in the region, their area has increased by 38 thousand hectares per day.
"The fire danger in forests is determined by weather conditions - the current air temperature and humidity, the history of rain, the soil dryness. The climate changes continuing in the region are manifested in higher air temperature - by 0.15 - 0.30 degrees Celsius over ten years. Scientists in Alaska say forest fires depend directly on thresholds - air temperatures above the threshold by only a few tenths of a degree cause a disproportionate increase in higher risks of fires by dozens and hundreds of times," the expert said.
"In Yakutia, this year, we witness new anomalies of positive temperatures. In April, May and June, temperatures were above average levels of the recent thirty years by between two and six degrees," he said.
"Another problem is that fires are a source of carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide emissions in forest fires in the Arctic last year were twice bigger than in previous years, up to 395 megatons. The total emissions in the Far East amounted to 540 megatons, which is higher than the previous maximum level, registered in 2003," the scientist said.
Organizational problems
The deterioration of the climatic situation adds to organizational difficulties in forest management and fire extinguishing. "The region has big areas far from large settlements, and it is impossible to fly to all the fires at a time. Yakutia’s most territory is a so-called control zone where, according to regulations approved by Russia’s Ministry of Natural Resources, fires may be left as they are as long as they do not threaten settlements and economic objects," the expert explained.
The decision whether to extinguish or "close" such fires is made by the regional emergency response commission, he noted. "Such decisions should be based on forecast of extinguishing costs and possible damage from the fire, but we have no information that such forecasts are ever made. All most dangerous situations of the past and current years occurred during the fires, which the regional emergency situations committees had closed. Thus, it is necessary to reduce the control zones and to increase the areas of protected forests. The experience shows, if a fire occurred in the control zone, its extinguishing is usually automatically closed," the expert explained.
In June 2021, a "closed" forest fire came very close to the village of Khandyga. "The fire approached the village at a critically dangerous distance, and noteworthy this development could have been foreseen. Similar situations were last year (2020) in the Vilyui group of districts and in the region’s north, near the village of Suturuoha," he told TASS.
The Russian Federation’s Ministry of Natural Resources recalled occasions of unreasonable decisions not to extinguish fires in forests near specially protected natural territories. As a result of such decisions, fires have affected unique protected landscapes. In June 2021, similar cases were noted in Yakutia: the fire spread to the territory of the Amma reserve in the village of Amga.
The situation with assessing effectiveness of the existing forest management system and extinguishing forest fires is complicated by a complex organizational structure, a difference between the scope of powers and their financing, the scientist said. "Fires in the control zone need to be extinguished in order to avoid more harm, but it is still optimal to invest in a systematic approach to forest management. The main problem is that there is no effective forest management system. You can buy as much equipment as you want, but if the forest is not properly maintained, then little can be of help," the expert added.
Out of the 1.1 billion hectares of the Russian forests (20% of the planet’s resources) only 90 million hectares have infrastructures with terrestrial firefighters for prompt extinguishing. Fires occur not only in forests - in recent years we have seen many tundra forests, he said.
Finnish experience
According to the scientist, Russia can use positive experience of other countries to improve the forestry management system. "The experience of Finland as a European country with largest areas of natural forests could be of interest. In that country, there is a national forest institute with branches in every province, which combine practical and research functions. The country has forest districts, with organized forest roads and paths, and many observation points. Foresters periodically collect dead trees, clean the lower level, not everywhere - in certain places only. They make fire reservoirs to extinguish quickly any forest fires, when necessary," Tananayev said.
This practice is not active throughout the country, of course, he said, but at least around populated areas. "For example, Eastern Finland outlaws making fires in forests. Tourists are offered specially equipped places for this. Such networks are widespread, such places are marked on tourist maps and on the Internet. Such a site has a fireplace, a grill, a shelter for large companies, and a stock of firewood. Visitors don't need to bring their own coal. These facilities are organized in order to protect the forest. Ideally, in Russia, similar facilities could be organized around each locality. Of course, it is logical to prohibit access to the forests and at the same time to offer equipped sites. Where do they take that firewood? Foresters go, check, and if needed they cut wood and give it to people."