Savannah Fires

Many types of forest, historically adapted to outbreaks of fire from both natural and human sources, are now becoming increasingly vulnerable to it. This is the result of changes in demography and land use, and the cumulative effects of the disturbances brought about by humanity.

Fire is an important recurrent natural phenomenon in all vegetation zones, ranging from the tropics to the northern circumpolar conifer forests. In some ecosystems it maintains the dynamic equilibrium responsible for high biodiversity and economic productivity. In others, such as lowland and mountain rain forests, it destroys the forest cover and leads to long-term site degradation. But, in most areas of the world, wildfires burning under extreme weather conditions have severely damaged economies and human health and safety and caused major disasters.