Partnership is creating change - Joining forces to develop forest and grassland fire management in Armenia - The United Nations Development Programme, the Armenian Rescue Service, the OSCE office in Yerevan and the Global Fire Monitoring Center (Germany) partnered up in 2011 to find synergies in developing forest and grassland fire management in Armenia. As a result more than 300 participants from various organisations were brought together in three days of fire management events between the 12th and 14th of September, 2011. The events led to the establishment of a National Task Force on Wildfire Management, which will start operating later in 2011. Wildfires are posing an increasing risk under changing climate conditions threatening ecosystems, livelihoods and even human health. Changes in land-use practices and deficiencies in fire management are creating conditions for devastating fires, Encouraging stakeholder discourse. Representatives from UNDP, majority of which are human caused. Armenian Rescue Service and Global Fire Monitoring Center. Mutual endeavours of various organisations are required to improve forest and grassland fire prevention, pre-suppression and suppression in Armenia. The joint venture of the parties is setting a good example on how partnership can create change beyond individual efforts. Ready to respond. Forest fire early response teams in action in Command Staff field exercise (right and below). “Adaptation to Climate Change Impacts in Mountain Forest Ecosystems of Armenia” UNDP/GEF/00051202 Project Identifying the problems Nevertheless, even if changes in land-use and climate are creating the conditions for grassland and forest Global wildfire trends fires, the overwhelming cause for wildfires is human Both the frequency and size of forest and grassland behaviour. For example traditional practices on fires is increasing in many areas around the world8. agricultural lands, particularly at forest’s edge, Changes in land-use practices and deficiencies in activities in forests, careless handling and deliberate forest and grassland fire management are allowing ignition of fires cause as much as 95% of wildfires more fires to ignite and run their course leading to around the world1. severe impacts on ecosystems, livelihoods and human health. Forest and grassland fires in Armenia The wildfire situation in Armenia is no different to that Global climate change is contributing significantly to of many other parts of the world. The number of the increasing incidence of wildfires. Large wildfires wildfires has increased during the past decade and are recorded during heat waves coinciding with low especially the extremely hot and dry year of 2010 led precipitation and strong winds. Increasing to a significant increase in the area burned by temperatures and reduced relative humidity affect the wildfires. In 2010 fires broke out also in more humid moisture content of fuel and thus, for example, also areas of the country where severe fire seasons are fire frequency, intensity and severity2. Additionally not often experienced. For example the regions of changing climate conditions can increase fuel levels Gegharkunik and Shirak saw a 10-fold increase in the through disturbances, such as pest outbreaks and number of grassland fires in 2010 compared to the wind-storms2 as well as through increased productivity 2006-2009 average3. In the whole country, the of vegetation in regions with sufficient precipitation. number of grassland fires in 2010, just under 2700 Fire behaviour responds immediately to these changes incidents, was over four times the 2006-2009 average making fire activity very sensitive to climate change2. (Fig. 1)3. Furthermore, the number of and area Increasing frequency and size of wildfires in affected by forest fires also increased significantly in combination with other extreme weather events, such 2010. The area burned by forest fires in 2010 totalling as heavy rainfall, can lead to severe secondary 852 hectares was nearly 9-fold higher compared to disasters like flooding, erosion and loss of soil fertility4. the average of the previous four years5. 2700 2400 2100 1800 1500 1200 900 600 300 0 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 Grassland fire incidents Figure 1. Number of grassland fires between 2006 and 2010 in Armenia.3 “Adaptation to Climate Change Impacts in Mountain Forest Ecosystems of Armenia” UNDP/GEF/00051202 Project Figure 2. Human causes, 100% such as negligent and 90% reckless use of fire as well 80% as agricultural waste 70% burning on fields are the 60% main reasons for forest fires 50% in Armenia. Between 2004 40% and 2009 on average 66% 30% of forest fires were human- 20% induced and 30% of fires 10% resulted from burning of 0% agricultural waste and 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 stubble fields.5 Other Negligence and other human causes Burning on agricultural lands Human factors are identified as the main cause for fires together with e.g. reduced regeneration success forest fires also in Armenia (Fig. 2). Fires along roads caused by drought and heat stress as well as caused by cigarettes or unmaintained vehicles are a fragmentation and declining forest integrity caused by regular phenomena and fires escaping from fields and anthropogenic factors such as grazing, illegal harvest, pasturelands spread to forests. construction and mining deposits that make the mountain forests of Armenia especially vulnerable Negligence remains one of under climate change. the main causes of forest and grassland fires; for The conservation of Armenia’s forests, which currently example in 2006 a fire occupy only about 332 000 hectares, is a global spreading from a picnic priority as the forests fall under the Caucasus- area burned some 90 Anatolian-Hyrcanian Temperate Forests Ecoregion hectares of ecologically that has been listed by WWF as a Global 200 valuable juniper woodland Ecoregion and by Conservation International as a in the south-eastern biodiversity hotspot. Syunik Marz. Shortcomings of forest and grassland fire management in Armenia The multifaceted issue of forest and grassland fire management exceeds the capacities and Increasing threats on forest ecosystems under responsibilities of any one institution. The organisation changing climate conditions of forest and grassland fire prevention, pre- The arid climate of Armenia makes the country suppression and suppression needs to involve a vulnerable to climate change7. It has been estimated number of organisations from forest and protected that Armenia is among the most sensitive countries in area management units to the Rescue Service and the Europe and Central Asia region in regard to from the scientific community to local community climate change7. Rising temperatures and decreasing members. precipitation are expected to lead to more frequent wildfires, which together with increasing pest The lack of coordinated planning and a clear outbreaks are posing the most immediate impacts on command chain for the organisation of fire fighting with forest ecosystems of Armenia under changing climate clearly defined organisational responsibilities has been conditions. identified as a critical shortcoming of forest and grassland fire management in Armenia6. There is also Although the increasing occurrence of fires may a clear need to move from reactive to proactive forest become a major force altering forest ecosystems and grassland fire management. under climate change, it is the combined impacts of “Adaptation to Climate Change Impacts in Mountain Forest Ecosystems of Armenia” UNDP/GEF/00051202 Project Common goals bridging initiatives Caucasus “Phase Two and Three: Enhancing national capacity on fire management and The identification of the increasing threat posed by wildfire disaster risk reduction in the South wildfires as well as the shortcomings of wildfire Caucasus” (2010-2012). ENVSEC is a framework management has led to the establishment of projects for co-operation between neighbouring states on and initiatives in Armenia and the larger South- security-related environmental issues. Caucasus region with common objectives addressing national capacities in fire management and wildfire Armenian Rescue Service of the Ministry of disaster risk reduction, as well as the national capacity Emergency Situations of Armenia prioritises to moderate, cope with and take advantage of the improving wildfire prevention and fighting. To this consequences of climate change. end, the Rescue Service intended to organise a conference on forest and grassland fire prediction, The UNDP/GEF project “Adaptation to climate prevention and fire fighting bringing together change impacts in mountain forest ecosystems of different stakeholders to develop wildfire Armenia” (2009-2012) aims to enhance the adaptive management in Armenia. To organise the capacities of forest and protected area management to conference, the Rescue Service requested for cope with climate change. Adaptation measures assistance from the UNDP/GEF project. introduced under the project aim to increase the resilience of mountain forest ecosystems to climate change preventing the loss of globally significant biodiversity. The measures include flexible policies, spatial planning and management practices that enhance the inherent adaptability of species and habitats and reduce human-induced pressures that increase vulnerability to climate change. Among others, this includes testing and streamlining of measures to improve forest fire management. National capacities in fire management are addressed also under