Lutte contre les feux de forêt : Le Dash 8 arrive


Lutte contre les feux de forêt : Le Dash 8 arrive

18 September 2014

published by www.zinfos974.com

France — Le préfet de La Réunion, Dominique Sorain, a présenté ce jeudi le dispositif de lutte contre les feux de forêt, en ce début de période à risque qui se poursuivra jusqu’à la fin de l’année. Accompagné des acteurs locaux et nationaux concernés par cette lutte, il a évoqué la mise en place d’un module d’appui des services nationaux et l’arrivée d’ici quelques jours du Dash 8, l’avion bombardier d’eau.

Ce dispositif est “la dernière mise à jour du plan ORSEC (organisation de la réponse de sécurité civile, ndlr)” qui est révisé annuellement, a expliqué le préfet. Des réunions de coordination entre les différents acteurs sont prévues également chaque semaine afin de faire des bilans réguliers et d’anticiper pour le week-end le dispositif préventif et de surveillance nécessaire.

“Une coordination rigoureuse est essentielle et ces réunions sont de nature opérationnelles”, a-t-il précisé. En effet, les FAZSOI, la police nationale, le SDIS, l’ONF, le Parc national, l’AGORAH, la gendarmerie, Météo France et la MASC (mission d’appui en situation de crise) – qui représente le soutien national – étaient autour de la table à la préfecture aujourd’hui.

Tous ont également contribué à une nouveauté cette année. Une application informatique créé par AGORAH, une agence d’urbanisme dédiée à l’observation, leur est désormais proposé. Elle recense toutes sortes de données sur les feux, les zones à risques, les actions en place sur la base de cartes et permet un échange entre ceux qui y contribuent afin de faciliter la mise en place de dispositifs plus efficaces.

Le Dash 8 a effectué 78 largages d’eau en 2013

Les efforts redoublent en cette période de l’année. Le SDIS a augmenté ses effectifs de 36% pour cette période. La présence du Horus, un avion contenant un sapeur pompier et servant à la reconnaissance et la prise de photos, permettra par la suite au Dash 8 de donner la priorité à certains sites et de travailler avec plus d’efficacité.

Les données fournies par le SDIS pour le mois d’août démontrent l’importance d’une réactivité constante de tous les services : 42 feux de cannes, 103 feux de broussailles et deux feux de forêt. En quatre ans, ce sont 4.500 hectares de forêt qui ont été brûlés.

C’est pour renforcer le travail des nos soldats du feu que le Dash 8 rejoindra à nouveau notre territoire. En 2013, l’avion bombardier d’eau a effectué 83 heures de vol, dont 55 heures sur feux et 78 largages.

Le procureur de la République était également présent et a fait passer un message : “Que les départs de feux soient criminels ou involontaires, les peines sont très sévères, a affirmé Eric Tuffery, et toute affaire est automatiquement renvoyée à la cour d’assises. Nous avons des résultats fructueux de ce système pénal, même si le processus d’enquête après un incendie est en effet très long”.

La préfecture rappelle qu’il est interdit d’allumer un feu en forêt, ni même à moins de 200 mètres de celle-ci, de fumer en forêt, de jeter ses mégots par la fenêtre d’une voiture, de camper hors lieu autorisé… “La vigilance de tout le monde est le meilleur moyen de prévention”, termine le préfet.
 

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Indonesia wants to take the lead in nabbing forest criminals


Indonesia wants to take the lead in nabbing forest criminals
 
18 September 2014

published by www.asianewsnet.net

Indonesia — Indonesia is proposing to lead the forthcoming Asean secretariat in charge of joint efforts to mitigate transboundary air pollution caused by land and forest fires in the region.

As the last of the signatories to ratify the Asean Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution, Indonesia’s decision to officially adopt the decade-old treaty on Tuesday finally paved the way for the establishment of a joint secretariat that will function to coordinate the information, reports and policies needed to address the problems raised by transboundary haze pollution in the region.

“It will be good for Indonesia to host the secretariat as it will make the most of the country’s role in the efforts jointly taken to face the problems caused by transboundary haze pollution, which mostly originates from this country,” the environment ministry’s deputy minister for environmental damage control and climate change, Arief Yuwono, told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

Arief explained that the joint secretariat would bring together international experts who would work on comprehensive recommendations for state members dealing with land and forest fires that cause transboundary air pollution.

Arief was aware of the concern that such a secretariat could open a door for the infringement of territorial sovereignty, but he said that the office would only serve as a center for information sharing, to which a state member could contribute.

Upon the establishment of the secretariat, Article 20 of the haze treaty requires voluntary fund-raising from state members to finance the programs.

Indonesia’s decision to finally ratify the haze treaty it had already signed in 2003 garnered support from the country’s environmentalists, highlighting that the move was the beginning to a huge task.

William Sabandar, the chief operating officer of the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation plus (REDD+) Management, told the Post that although the ratification was a good step, it required transparency among governments and businesses to prevent the fires, especially regarding permits for opening plantations.

William said that currently the government was conducting a compliance audit in Riau, which is among the regions that are prone to forest fires, as an effort to promote transparency and the thoroughness of information.

“We check if the companies that have land concessions and regional governments are obeying the regulations,” he said.

William said further that the key to curbing the incidents of fire was consistent enforcement of the regulations of the haze treaty as well as of the country’s Environmental Protection and Management Law.

He also highlighted the importance of catching criminals who unlawfully slash and burn forests and open areas outside of their licenses.

Last week, the Pelalawan District Court in Riau sentenced Malaysian company PT ADEI Plantation and Industry and its general manager, Danesuvaran KR Singam, a Malaysian, for their activities that caused forest fires in the region.

Greenpeace Southeast Asia forest campaigner Yuyun Indradi added that there should be a thorough legal framework to catch rogue businesses and their investors.

He suggested that local banks and stock markets exclude such companies or investors from business and trade activities in Indonesia.

“Banks and stock markets can become environmental law enforcement tools,” he said.

He said that the government should also follow Singapore’s lead, which had passed a haze law that has the authority to sue individuals or companies that cause severe air pollution in Singapore through slash-and-burn agricultural practices in neighboring countries up to US$1.6 million.
 

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Savanna burns reduce emissions by half a million tonnes


Savanna burns reduce emissions by half a million tonnes
 

29 September 2014

published by www.abc.net.au

Australia — The CSIRO says improved fire management practices across northern Australia have reduced greenhouse gas emissions by more than half a million tonnes over the past year.

Savanna burning was introduced as a methodology under the Federal Government’s Carbon Farming Initiative, to reduce the frequency of large, late dry season fires in the north.

CSIRO researcher, Dr Garry Cook, says although emission reduction is the primary goal, many other benefits are also flowing from the methodology.

“To me the main value is that it’s providing important resources to manage fire in a landscape where the population is very sparse, and where there’s limited resources for land management,” he said.

“In the scheme of national emissions, savanna fires contribute about three to four per cent of Australia’s annual greenhouse gas emissions.

“So if we can reduce that by also getting better land management, supporting employment and improving fire management for biodiversity reasons across the north, it’s a very good outcome.”

Dr Cook says given the success of the program in its first year, researchers are now working on extending the methodology to include drier parts of northern Australia.

“The methodology applies currently to areas that get more than 1,000 millimetres rainfall,” he said.

“About 20 per cent of Australia’s land in that area is being managed using this approach in its first year of operation.

“To me, that’s a terrific outcome, and I think there’s potential for many more land landholders to take it up.

“We’re working with partners at Charles Darwin University and the North Australian Indigenous Land and Sea Management Alliance to extend the approach down to 600 millimetres rainfall.

“[That] could open-up more opportunities for people who have land in drier areas to participate in this.”

Uncertainty surrounding future carbon credit pricing has not deterred some Northern Territory land managers, who remain committed to improving fire practices on their properties.

Dr Cook says while the long-term economic benefits remain unclear, he’s confident the savanna burning methodology will continue to play an important role across the north.

“There’s some uncertainty in the policy arena on this, but we’re working closely with the responsible people in Canberra in developing these methodologies,” he said.

“We’re confident that it will remain as a very viable land management option across northern Australia.”

Dr Cook will present his research at the Ecological Society of Australia Conference in Alice Springs today.

 

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Haze shrouds Singapore F1 race


Haze shrouds Singapore F1 race
 
22 September 2014

published by www.todayonline.com

Singapore — Haze yesterday evening shrouded the island’s skyline, when it was meant to provide a picturesque backdrop to the Singapore Grand Prix watched by millions around the globe.

Visibility started falling in the afternoon, though the three-hour Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) remained within the good and moderate ranges. However, between 7pm and 8pm, the three-hour PSI reading deteriorated sharply into the unhealthy range — spiking from 89 to 116.

At 9pm, the three-hour PSI reading hit a high of 129.

Writing on Facebook in the evening, Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said the situation was due to an incoming haze cloud from Sumatra.

The National Environment Agency (NEA) said the Republic had been experiencing deteriorating hazy conditions since the late afternoon yesterday, with elevated levels of fine particulate matter, or PM2.5.

The haze was caused by smoke haze blown in from Sumatra by the prevailing winds, the NEA said, adding that intermittent haziness was expected to persist overnight. The 24-hour PSI overnight was expected to be in the high end of the moderate range.

The total number of hot spots detected yesterday in Sumatra and Kalimantan was 64 and 73, respectively. They were mostly in the southern parts of Sumatra and Kalimantan. Widespread smoke haze was visible in southern Kalimantan. The Star Online reported that the Malaysian government had formally written to its Indonesian counterpart to express concerns about the rise in the number of hot spots in south Sumatra and Kalimantan, which had led to haze over Peninsular Malaysia and Sarawak.

The NEA has forecast occasional hazy conditions during the day today. The overall air quality is expected to fluctuate between the high end of the moderate range and the low end of the unhealthy range. It advised healthy people to reduce prolonged or strenuous outdoor physical exertion. The elderly, pregnant women and children should minimise prolonged or strenuous outdoor physical exertion, while those with chronic lung or heart disease should avoid prolonged or strenuous outdoor physical exertion.

The agency added that those who are not feeling well, especially the elderly and children, and people with chronic heart or lung conditions should seek medical attention.
 

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GFMC: Recent Media Highlights on Fire, Policies, and Politics

Recent Media Highlights on Fire, Policies, and Politics

September 2014

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