Vittorio Leone

Conservation of Mediterranean pine woodlands: scenarios and legislative tools

Given the multiplicity of products, human activity over the past thousand years has strongly interacted with pine forest distribution. The results of human activity and its impact on the pine forests is a problem that began in the past, when wood and pine ecosystems were not valued, and whose repercussions are still felt today; notably in changes in fire regime, in grazing/browsing intensity, in harvesting, in land use, in plantation activity, in expansion of forest/urban interface, and in secondary urban settlements. Conservation, in this sense, means the maintenance of and the restoration or improvement of the abiotic and biotic features, which form the habitat of a species, as well as controlling activities, which may indirectly result in the deterioration of such habitats. Conservation, therefore, ranges from the conservation of genetic resources in several forms (seed banks, seed forests, conservation in situ of relic populations), to the elimination of human induced disturbances, to the planning of new activities, to the application of proper silvicultural tending and the pursuance of international Conventions, Regulations and Resolutions. The aim of this paper is to emphasise the main legislative tools, which are represented by the array of Conventions, Directives, Regulations and Resolutions concerning the environment and the ecological networks (NATURA 2000, EMERALD, EUNIS).

Human Factors of Fire Occurrence in the Mediterranean

The Mediterranean region accounts the larger proportion of human caused fires in the world (95%) followed by South Asia (90%), South America (85%) and Northeast Asia (80%) (FAO 2007). Socio-economic changes which are occurring in Europe along with global warming result in an augment of fire risk. Systematic and reliable information on fire causes is necessary in order to improve wildland fire management. However, collection of information on forest fire causes and motivations is still quite restricted in most countries around the world. The unknown cause is still too frequent in many wildfire statistics. A promising technique to overcome this shortcoming is the Delphi technique which uses a panel of carefully selected experts to improve the knowledge on fire motivations in a specific area. Understanding more about why people start fires would help to reduce the impacts of deliberate fire lighting. Spatial and temporal analysis of wildland fire occurrence data and the interaction with explanatory geographical variables is a critical part of fire management activities. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are appropriate tools to create, transform, combine and integrate variables related to fire risk in order to find geographical and analytical relationships which help to discriminate areas where risk factors are most severe in order to adopt the appropriate preventive actions.

Anatomic basis and insulation of serotinous cones in Pinus halepensis Mill

Pinus halepensis Mill., a widespread, low elevation conifer common in Mediterranean Basin, shows a dual reproductive strategy: post-fire obligate seeder (from serotinous cones) and an early coloniser (from non-serotinous cones). Release of seeds encased in serotinous cones is induced either by fire (pyriscence, serotiny or bradychory) or by drying (xeriscence). Morphological differences in serotinous and non-serotinous cones in natural populations of P. halepensis in Southeastern Italy were analyzed. Relationships between tree size (diameter class) and serotiny were checked by counting and sampling serotinous and non-serotinous cones. The macro and microscopic characteristics that could affect cones’ opening were measured in sampled cones. Protection against high temperatures offered by wood scales was also evaluated by applying different temperatures and time exposures, and following the inner thermal raise. Results showed that non-serotinous cones had bigger resin ducts and more separate scales. Also it was highlighted that ovuliferous scales of serotinous cones were bigger and thicker. These scales had more lamellated (multilayered) sclereid cells, and were significantly thinner with a shorter lumen diameter. Continuous temperature-monitoring heat tests inside cones showed that temperatures close to the cone axis were rather low, so seed germination was not influenced. Results confirm that serotinous cones are more compact, rigid and consistent than non-serotinous cones. These characteristics explain the lower insulation, seed protection and the ease opening of non-serotinous cones as well. In conclusion, opening mechanism of pinecone scales under the effect of fire or dry conditions seem related to anatomic differences and it provides seeds with an efficient protection against heat.

Plot size and shape for the early assessment of post-fire regeneration in Aleppo Pine Stands

Aleppo pine stands account for a third of the burned forests in the Mediterranean basin. The early assessment of post-fire regeneration is essential for the management of such stands. The assessment should be based on reliable and objective methods. In the Mediterranean basin, plot size and shape applied in regeneration survey designs and sampling schemes differ considerably. A study involving twelve stands (7 unharvested and 5 harvested) in the Province of Taranto (southern Italy) was carried out 38 months after a fire, by comparing plots of different shape and size within a plot-count sampling frame. The relative efficiency method was used to compare the efficiency of each size and shape. Early regeneration of Aleppo pine proved to be best assessed by 8m × 2m plots, i.e. by a plot size four times wider than the most commonly used one (2m × 2m). The need for such wide plots depends upon the typical spatial arrangement of the seedlings whose clustering is associated with the presence of seed bearing trees.

Morphological and anatomical differences in Aleppo pine seeds from serotinous and non-serotinous cones

Mediterranean communities have been historically conditioned by fire and have therefore developed adaptive traits. Serotiny is a strategy that increases fire resilience by storing seeds in the canopy, protecting them from heat and delaying their dispersion. Aleppo pine is an important serotinous tree species in the low altitude, near-coastal Mediterranean Basin. Differences in serotinous and non-serotinous cones have been detected previously but in order to resolve a gap in the knowledge on seed adaptation to fire, we focused this study on two fire-prone habitats in southern Italy. Several cones were sampled and opened in an oven at two different temperatures in order to group seeds according to provenance and cone type (serotinous or non-serotinous). The sampled seeds were weighed and their coats were removed. Seed size, embryo diameter and nutritive tissue thickness were recorded. We found that seeds with greater weight and size came from the more humid site and from non-serotinous cones. Also, we observed wax and cutine cells formed a thicker seed coat in seeds from the more humid site using a scanning electron microscope. The scanning electron microscopy/energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy showed higher Si and Ca concentrations in the covers of serotinous seeds. Seeds from different provenance and cone types have anatomic and morphological differences that confer different properties against heating. This knowledge can improve post-fire management and promote restoration tools.

Forest Fires in Europe: Facts and Challenges

Abstract Forest fires (term used in Europe to designate the unwanted fires burning forests and wild lands) constitute a serious problem for Europe. Frequently, Thought of almost exclusively as a problem for France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, and Spain, this chapter introduces how fire is now a hazard that affects most of the European countries. Although, a sharp gradient exists from the South to the North, in terms of fire regime (e.g., contributing and causing factors, fire frequency and area burned, fire behavior), the problem is common; no country seems exempt. The chapter discusses how contemporary forest fire risk can only be understood from a historical perspective and how this risk is growing exponentially as a result of high and increasing population density and a creeping urban sprawl that is increasing the extent and complexity of the wildland urban interface. This chapter also discusses how significant changes in land-use patterns are conflicting with historical land use practices are affecting the sustainable socioeconomic development in Europe. The impact of changes in critical climatic and weather conditions, such as during recurring heat waves and droughts, is discussed, as is their implications for reconciling social and economic development, environmental concerns, and living with forest fires in a sustainable and dynamic equilibrium in a European context.Forest fires (term used in Europe to designate the unwanted fires burning forests and wild lands) constitute a serious problem for Europe. Frequently, Thought of almost exclusively as a problem for France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, and Spain, this chapter introduces how fire is now a hazard that affects most of the European countries. Although, a sharp gradient exists from the South to the North, in terms of fire regime (e.g., contributing and causing factors, fire frequency and area burned, fire behavior), the problem is common; no country seems exempt. The chapter discusses how contemporary forest fire risk can only be understood from a historical perspective and how this risk is growing exponentially as a result of high and increasing population density and a creeping urban sprawl that is increasing the extent and complexity of the wildland urban interface. This chapter also discusses how significant changes in land-use patterns are conflicting with historical land use practices are affecting the sustainable socioeconomic development in Europe. The impact of changes in critical climatic and weather conditions, such as during recurring heat waves and droughts, is discussed, as is their implications for reconciling social and economic development, environmental concerns, and living with forest fires in a sustainable and dynamic equilibrium in a European context.

Fire intensity and serotiny: response of germination and enzymatic activity in seeds of Pinus halepensis Mill. from southern Italy

Abstract• ContextThe Mediterranean Basin is a fire-prone area. Pinus halepensis Mill. is a naturally growing conifer which is frequently used for reforestation and restoration as it displays some degree of adaption to fire. One of the traits conferring tolerance to fire is the frequent presence of serotinous cones that are thought to protect seeds from fire damage.• AimWe checked for the physiological responses of seeds to different intensities of fire and related them to the degree of serotiny of the cones.• MethodsGermination percentage, mean germination rate and enzymatic activity (α-amylase and protease) were recorded for seeds burned either free or enclosed in cones. We included as experimental factors the following: fire intensity, serotiny and time during which seeds were stored in cones after harvesting and germination stage.• ResultsBurned seeds (released and enclosed) developed in serotinous cones exhibited higher heat insulation. In released seeds, germination was decreasing according to increasing fire intensity, although we found differences depending on site, serotiny and time stored after harvesting. The enzymatic activity was also found to be related to serotiny and fire intensity.• ConclusionSerotiny is an adaptive trait increasing the tolerance to fire which should be promoted in natural and restored populations.

APPLICAZIONE DEL METODO DELPHI PER L'ANALISI DELLE MOTIVAZIONI DEGLI INCENDI: IL CASO TARANTO ( 1 )

Il crescente numero di incendi richiede una organizzazione difensiva piu attenta alla prevenzione, affidando un ruolo fondamentale agli strumenti di indagine territoriale, che possono aiutare ad individuare linee di tendenza e concentrazione del fenomeno, a interpretarne la dinamica e le motivazioni e ad impostare efficaci azioni di previsione del rischio. Fondamentale appare l’impiego di tecniche di investigazione che consentono di definire la distribuzione spaziale degli eventi sul territorio, agevolando l’interpretazione di un fenomeno di origine prevalentemente antropica con l’aiuto della conoscenza del problema a livello locale e dell’esperienza degli operatori del settore AIB. Il lavoro affronta aspetti relativi alla distribuzione del fenomeno attraverso il metodo della kernel density e all’applicazione del metodo Delphi per la valutazione delle motivazioni. L’applicazione delle due metodologie di analisi in ambito provinciale ha permesso l’identificazione delle motivazioni principalmente di origine volontaria (ampliamento, apertura o rinnovazione del pascolo a spese del bosco) e involontaria (attivita di ripulitura di incolti, bruciature stoppie, attivita di miglioramento o rinnovazione del pascolo).

Management of Threatened, High Conservation Value, Forest Hotspots Under Changing Fire Regimes

The current chapter starts by describing the elements of biodiversity in the Mediterranean Basin hotspot. It then describes climate change and fire regime interactions. Geographically restricted forest types with high conservation value such as Abies cephalonica, A. pinsapo, Juniperus macrocarpa, Quercus trojana, Tetraclinis articulata and Pinus leucodermis forests are presented as case studies. These forest hotspots are threatened by changing fire regime either because they lack of any active post-fire regeneration mechanism or because they are exposed to more frequent fires than they used to. Current post-fire management, if any, is presented and commented.

Forest fires hotspots in EU Southern Member States and North Africa: a review of causes and motives

Despite enhanced fire suppression efforts the number of fires has increased in Europe and in North Africa, above all in Portugal, and the extinction oriented model of fire control is no more suitable to change the trend. Hence, the need of shifting from a reactive model grounded on a fast and strong reaction, to more pro-active procedures supported by prevention, aimed not only to fuel reduction but also to gradually intervene on the causes of fires. In this perspective, a fair knowledge of man-caused fire outbreak motives is a crucial point. This paper intended to compare and interpret those motives in Portugal, Italy and Algeria obtained through the perception of experts (forest experts and other practitioners). In this research new data was collected in the North Region of Portugal and data already available for Algeria and Italy was commented. The results of the research highlighted great similarities of the main fire causes and motives identified by the experts from the case-studies in the three countries. Fire outbreak motives are not related with deliberate fire setting but, mainly, with the use of fire in rural activities. Fire is a manageable tool that is still needed in many agro-forestry systems. One of the findings of this study pointed out the need to design and develop specific prevention programs able to reduce fire incidence and promote practices more respectful of the tradition and needs of rural communities, often criminalized for their habitudes of using fire as a multipurpose tool. Deliberate fire can represent isolated and sporadic actions however, some of them result from organized and even criminal interests. Finally, this paper argues that improved fire prevention to address the roots of fire problems cannot be achieved without a deep knowledge of the complexity and diversity of the fire outbreak motives.