Filenews 14 November 2022
Historically, the best year for dealing with and preventing fires was 2022, according to an announcement by the Department of Forests of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, based on the overall assessment of the year.
According to the data he cites, the burnt area of state forest was the smallest since 1960, just 0.4 hectares, the burnt forest area was the smallest in twenty years, only 30 hectares, the average burned area per forest fire was the smallest in twenty years, just 0.5 hectares, the percentage of forest fires in total fires was the smallest in a decade, 31%, and the extent of the largest fire of the year was the smallest in twenty years, just 3.6 hectares.
In 2022, in the zone of responsibility of the Department of Forests, 179 fires occurred, with a total burned area of 143 hectares. Although the number of fires was 18% higher than the average of the decade 2012-2021 (152 fires), the burned area was 77% smaller than the average (611 hectares). The average burnt area per fire for 2022 was 0.8 hectares, while the corresponding one for the decade amounts to 4 hectares, a decrease of 80%.
Of the 179 fires, only 57 were forest fires that burned a total area of 30 hectares, the smallest in twenty years while the average burnt area per forest fire was 0.5 hectares which was again the smallest in twenty years.
According to the averages of the decade 2012- 2022 the number of fires was 68, the burned area 537 hectares, average burned area per fire 8 hectares. The remaining 122 fires concern fires on agricultural land, which thanks to the immediate and effective intervention of the firefighting forces were extinguished in time before they spread to forest vegetation, burning a total area of only 114 hectares. It is precisely thanks to this effective intervention that the percentage of forest fires in total fires was 31%, the smallest in a decade, which is one of the best indicators of the effectiveness of the system.
In 2022, the Department of Forests also assisted the Fire Brigade in extinguishing 29 rural fires, as well as 38 fires on agricultural land.
Regarding the causes of forest fires for 2022, the first place is occupied by intentional fires. The percentage of intentional fires is 50% of all anthropogenic causes of forest fires and 44% of all forest fires. It is perhaps the number one problem. For this very reason, the technology systems that are being installed will not only aim at the early detection and better management of the fire incident but also at identifying the perpetrators of the intentional fires. 12% of all forest fires are due to natural causes (lightning), while the remaining 44% is due to human negligence.
"Based on the above, the results of this year's fire season, in the zone of responsibility of the Department of Forests, are judged as excellent. It is noteworthy that in 2022, in the zone of responsibility of the Department of Forests, the largest forest fire had an area of only 3.6 hectares. A particularly important element is the total area of the state forest that was burned this year, which as mentioned above, amounts to only 0.4 hectares. This area is the smallest annual burnt area of state forest since 1960, when forest fire data recording started," it said.
The main factors that contributed to the above excellent results were, according to the Ministry, the improvement of the operational capacity of the Department, due to the improvement of the planning and organization as well as the strengthening of the Forest Fire Response System. Special mention is made of the tactics applied and in particular the evaluation of each incident from its initial stages (in time "zero") and the immediate mobilization of the required number of repressive forces, but also in the operation of the Support Group, which was established with the increase in the number of forest firefighters. It is a very good example that the aid has had an effect.
Also the excellent cooperation between the services involved and on the other hand the favourable weather conditions that prevailed this season, namely the rainy winter and the relatively mild summer.
Reference is also made to the important and essential role played by the public and the media, to whom the Department of Forests expresses its warmest thanks.
