Pyrological Zoning: Principles, Methods, and Significance of the Role of the Geographical Factor in the Problem of Wildland Fires

Abstract

Forest and other wildland fires must necessarily be controlled to prevent potential damage to human life, property and the environment. The greater the expenditures on fire control, the less the damage. Today it is commonly accepted by wildland fire managers that the best approach to funding is to try to minimize the sum of cost plus loss. Therefore, an effective way of arriving at an optimal solution to the problem is to consider the following conditions: (1) effective fire control, and (2) accurate and thorough assessment of fire damage. The control of wildland fires is rather complicated by the following properties of the phenomenon:

• The occurrence of wildland fires is very uneven in terms of time and space, so that firefighting resources have to maneuver between regions. To bring good results, the maneuvers should be performed in a timely and anticipatory manner; this is only possible on the basis of regional fire danger forecasts.

• If a wildland fire escapes control, it may spread across a large area. For this reason, the control of wildland fires must be free of mistakes and underestimates. Therefore, standard containment tables must inevitably be conservative, with over-estimated production costs and expenditure ratings, i.e. wasteful. Effective control of fires can only be achieved on the basis of sizing up by an experienced specialist, who has the ability to take into account both regionally dependent features of fire behaviour and the actual fire situation.