Adélia Nunes

Mapping wildfire vulnerability in Mediterranean Europe: testing a stepwise approach for operational purposes

Vulnerability assessment is a vital component of wildfire management. This research focused on the development of a framework to measure and map vulnerability levels in several areas within Mediterranean Europe, where wildfires are a major concern. The framework followed a stepwise approach to evaluate its main components, expressed by exposure, sensitivity and coping capacity. Data on population density, fuel types, protected areas location, roads infrastructure and surveillance activities, among others, were integrated to create composite indices, representing each component and articulated in multiple dimensions. Maps were created for several test areas, in northwest Portugal, southwest Sardinia in Italy and northeast Corsica in France, with the contribution of local participants from civil protection institutions and forest services. Results showed the influence of fuel sensitivity levels, population distribution and protected areas coverage for the overall vulnerability classes. Reasonable levels of accuracy were found on the maps provided through the validation procedure, with an overall match above 72% for the several sites. The systematic and flexible approach applied allowed for adjustments to local circumstances with regards to data availability and fire management procedures, without compromising its consistency and with substantial operational capabilities. The results obtained and the positive feedback of end-users encourage its further application, as a means to improve wildfire management strategies at multiple levels with the latest scientific outputs.

Principais causas dos incêndios florestais em Portugal: variação espacial no período 2001/12

The knowledge of the causes of forest fires, and the respective factors of ignition, is essential for the effective implementation of measures to prevent its occurrence. With this work we aim to analyze the spatial distribution, at the scale of the municipality, and the main causes that are source of ignitions, between 2001 and 2012, and to detect interrelations between the physical andhuman characteristics of municipal territories and the incidence of certain type of ignition.

FERNANDO REBElO, piONEiRO E gRANDE impUlsiONADOR DO EsTUDO DOs RiscOs Em pORTUgAl*

O dia 16 de setembro de 2013 foi de festa e de natural regozijo para o Professor Doutor Fernando Manuel da Silva Rebelo, por ter completado a bonita idade de 70 anos e, por conseguinte, ter atingido a sua jubilação na Universidade de Coimbra, onde leccionou na Faculdade de Letras e exerceu as funções mais diversas, durante quarenta e três anos de intensa atividade, que culminaram nas de Reitor da Universidade de Coimbra.

O “Ciclone” de fevereiro de 1941: análise histórico-geográfica dos seus efeitos no município de Coimbra

Neste artigo, discute-se a influencia determinante de diferentes tipos de tempo na estrutura termica vertical da baixa troposfera, bem como as suas implicacoes na magnitude e no padrao dos contrastes termohigrometricos espaciais, numa cidade de media dimensao, localizada na faixa costeira ocidental da Peninsula Iberica (Figueira da Foz, Portugal).Res_por:Os fortes ventos que assolaram o territorio portugues no dia 15 de Fevereiro de 1941 poderao ser considerados os mais violentos desde que ha recolha de registos meteorologicos (finais do seculo XIX), causando um elevado numero de vitimas humanas e avultados danos materiais. Com o presente trabalho pretende-se fazer uma analise as condicoes meteorologicas responsaveis pelos fortes ventos, cujas rajadas maximas atingiram no Porto 130km/h, em Coimbra 133km/h e em Lisboa 127km/h. Com recurso a jornais da epoca e a outras fontes estatistico-documentais, apresenta-se uma sintese dos principais efeitos deste temporal a nivel nacional e aprofundam-se as suas consequencias no municipio de Coimbra. Por ultimo, problematiza-se a exposicao e a vulnerabilidade a epoca e os potenciais efeitos da manifestacao deste tipo de risco na atualidade.

Spatial dimension of the risk(s) in Portugal mainland and the Porto metropolitan area: 9th grade students´ perception

This study sets out to assess the perception of 9th grade students about some fundamental concepts related to the science of risk and to ascertain their ability to identify and classify the natural and mixed risks most likely to occur, both at a national level and in Porto Metropolitan Area (PMA). A survey was carried out by means of a questionnaire and the results show that the students rated the risk of the occurrence of forest fire highest, not only nationally but also in all municipalities of the PMA, with a classification of fire occurrence ranging between high (nationally) and moderate (PMA municipalities). Some differences in the ranking defined for the different typologies of risk for the municipalities are noted. The study also suggests that most of the students have difficulty in identifying the origin, consequences and mitigation measures of the risks they identified as being the most likely to be found in the respective municipality of residence.This study sets out to assess the perception of 9th grade students about some fundamental concepts related to the science of risk and to ascertain their ability to identify and classify the natural and mixed risks most likely to occur, both at a national level and in Porto Metropolitan Area (PMA). A survey was carried out by means of a questionnaire and the results show that the students rated the risk of the occurrence of forest fire highest, not only nationally but also in all municipalities of the PMA, with a classification of fire occurrence ranging between high (nationally) and moderate (PMA municipalities). Some differences in the ranking defined for the different typologies of risk for the municipalities are noted. The study also suggests that most of the students have difficulty in identifying the origin, consequences and mitigation measures of the risks they identified as being the most likely to be found in the respective municipality of residence.

RISK REDUCTION EDUCATION IN PORTUGUESE SCHOOLS: THE EXAMPLE OF WILDFIRES

In Portugal, wildfires cause huge socioeconomic and environmental impacts. This study aims to understand the contribution of the school to wildfire risk education and to explore how 9th year students rank the risks that affect our country and the municipalities in which they live. The results show that students ranked wildfires risk as the most important risk at national scale and in the area where they live. When asked about the causes, consequences and mitigation measures, most of them found it difficult to identify them. The formal geography curriculum only contained material related to risk reduction education in 2015. However, a non-formal project (PROSEPE – Education and Awareness-Raising Project for School Population), adopted reducing the risk of wildfires as one of its main goals, when it was first established in the 1990s.

Incidência regional dos incêndios florestais em Portugal: tendências de evolução no período de 1980-2012

In this work we aim to analyze the spatial distribution and to detect trends in the density of ignitions and in the percentage of burnt areas, for the period 1980-2012, at district level. Concerning to the density of ignitions, the results obtained show a significant positive trend for all the territorial units, when Pearson and Spearman coefficients were applied. As regards to the mean annual percentages of surface incinerated, the results are much more discrepant. With positive trends (p-value 0,05).

Emergency measures to protect the soil after forest fires: preliminary results of a research in the Serra do Gerês

Em Portugal Continental, ao longo dos ultimos quarenta anos, verificou-se um aumento significativo do numero de ocorrencias de incendios florestais, bem como da dimensao da area ardida, situacao que acarreta um grande leque de consequencias ambientais e prejuizos socioeconomicos, conduzindo paulatinamente o Pais para uma alteracao/degradacao da sua floresta. Apesar da genese dos incendios florestais ser, na sua grande maioria, devida a causas de natureza antropica, pois “o desenvolvimento espontâneo do fogo, embora possivel, e raro” (Rebelo, 2003: 15), as condicoes meteorologicas sao parte integrante do comportamento dos incendios, mormente nas regioes de clima mediterrâneo, como e o caso da generalidade do territorio continental, sendo elas que, muitas vezes, acabam por ditar as caracteristicas dos incendios florestais. Para o comprovar, analisou-se a relacao entre a ocorrencia e o desenvolvimento dos incendios florestais em Portugal continental, num periodo de quarenta anos, com as condicoes meteorologicas existentes, expressas atraves dos respetivos valores de temperaturas e humidades relativas do ar, bem como da precipitacao, e os resultados obtidos apontam claramente para uma elevada correlacao entre determinados tipos de tempo e elevados valores de eclosao e propagacao de incendios, do mesmo modo que outros tipos de tempo se revelarem extremamente prejudiciais a manifestacao e desenvolvimento de incendios.

Abandono agrícola no Interior Centro de Portugal: implicaçoes na ocorrência de incêndios florestais e nos processos de erosao hídrica

Neste trabalho, analisam-se as implicacoes do abandono agricola na ocorrencia de incendios florestais e nos processos de erosao hidrica. E dada especial enfase a variabilidade obtida na resposta hidrogeomorfologica de solos ardidos comparativamente aos usos tradicionais do territorio e outros relacionados com a sucessao da vegetacao, apos o abandono. Os resultados obtidos mostram que a ocorrencia de fogos florestais se relaciona com o abandono das actividades tradicionais do territorio, o qual favorece a proliferacao de comunidades arbustivas. Estas comunidades mostram uma funcao determinante na proteccao do solo, perante a atuacao dos agentes erosivos, todavia incrementam o risco de incendio florestal. Com a incineracao do coberto vegetal, desencadeiam-se importantes escoamentos superficiais e perdas de solo, sobretudo na sequencia do fogo, os quais se reduzem, significativamente, com a regeneracao da vegetacao. Os resultados obtidos mostram, ainda, o caracter pernicioso dos usos tradicionais (alqueive e cultura de cereais) para os solos, pelos elevados conteudos de agua exportados e, sobretudo, pela acentuada concentracao de sedimentos arrastados.