ESR9 Project
Title of the project
Understanding Fire Resilient Landscapes
Early Stage Researcher
Abstract
Wildfire events do not have to become a wildfire disaster, and yet in recent decades devastating wildfires have impacted regions across the world – and this trend seems set to continue. The concept of fire resilient landscapes has become more and more relevant as societies understand that wildfires are a natural ecosystem process that cannot be eliminated, instead moving towards the idea that humans should coexist with fire. Designing landscapes from a socio-ecological perspective, whereby the two systems are intertwined, to allow fire in such a manner that it is not associated with destruction, is imperative to reach this goal of coexistance. In my research I propose a definition of a fire resilient landscape as ‘a socio-ecological system that accepts the presence of fire, whilst preventing significant losses through landscape management, community engagement and effective recovery.’ This definition and core themes are summarised in Figure 1. I then apply these themes to undertaken an analysis of Catalonia’s recent wildfire events and their interactions with land cover. concluding that investment into rural livelihoods, bio-economies and landscape management is needed to enhance resilience to wildfire events in this region, particularly when considering climatic changes both now and in the future. Finally, I apply these themes to the concept of rewilding within a UK context. Rewilding is becoming increasingly popular, however there is little understanding as to what influence redesigning landscapes with this in mind will have on wildfire events. Using a combination of wildfire spread modelling and stakeholder interviews, I aim to provide some clarification of possible impacts with the final section of my PhD.
Figure 1. The common themes of a fire resilient landscape: acceptance and use of fire, management of the landscape, community engagement, loss avoidance and recovery. Credits: Fiona Newman-Thacker.
Copyright
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