ITTO Guidelines on Fire Management in Tropical Forests: Appendix 5
ITTO Guidelines on Fire Management in Tropical Forests
Appendix 5
POTENTIAL OBJECTIVES FOR THE USE OF PRESCRIBED FIRE IN MANGEMENT OF PLANTATIONS IN THE TROPICS
Objectives Target Desired effects Undesired effects or potential hazards Possible Substitution Wildfire hazard reduction Thinning or post-harvest slash, forest floor (raw humus), aerial fuels, rank understory Reduce potential wildfire intensity, remove surface and ladder fuels, reduce understory stature Stand/tree damage (crown, bole, or root) Partial (mechanical treatment/removal by hand, shredding, piling and burning outside of stand, pruning) Site preparation for natural regeneration or planting Forest floor, post harvest slash, undesired vegetation Expose mineral soil (improve germination), increase seedfall Encroachment, sprouting, or germination of undesired plants Partial (herbicides to kill undesired vegetation) Improve accessibility Thinning of post harvest slash, rank understory Improve access for silbivultural operations, esthetics (recreation) Reduction of understory stature Partial (herbicides to kill understory) Increase growth/yield Raw humus layer (forest floor), understory plants Enhance nutrient availability; reduce competition for moisture, sun and nutrients Loss of nutrients (leaching), erosion Fertilization and herbicides
Alter plant species composition Weeds and other undesirable vegetation Promote desired species Increase in weed germination/production of undesirable seeds Herbicides Pest management Pests and diseases and their habitats Eliminate spores, eggs, individuals, and breeding material Fire-induced tree stress, increased susceptibility to secondary pests Pesticides Silvopastoral land use Slash; forest floor; mature, unpalatable growth; competing vegetation Create/improve conditions for desired ground cover Mechanical removal of dead fuels and vegetation Improve fire protection Surrounding buffer zone, fuel breaks and fire breaks Reduce spread and intensity of wildfires (outside of stands)
Source: Goldammer 1993
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