What are the impacts of wildfires?

• Primary = immediate and short-term

  Secondary = long-term and as a result of primary impacts
• Primary Impacts

  • Ecological damage
  • Loss of Life
  • Loss of property
  • Toxic gases and particulates
  • Loss of Wildlife
  • Damage to soil structure and nutrient content
• Damage to soil structure and nutrient content

  • Forests struggle to regrow often due to the loss of nutrients and change in the nutrient cycle required for growth of complex ecosystems such as dense forest. 
• Secondary Impacts

  • Evacuation
  • Increased flood risk
  • Landslides
• Ecological damage

  • The loss of trees and woodland can have devastating effects on the environment and will take many years to replace – in the USA it is estimated that $10 million per day goes towards fighting wildfires. 
  • E.g. Hayman fire – Colorado, USA 2002
• Loss of Life

  • It is estimated that wildfires, peat fires and controlled burns on farming land kills 339,000 people worldwide each year. 
  • Most of these deaths are concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa, where an estimated 157,000 people die as a result of being exposed to such fires annually
• Loss of property

  • The amount of property lost due to wildfires is increasing each year, mostly due to population increase;
  • People are forced/choose to live in areas prone to fire
  • Urban sprawl and satellite towns encroach into fire prone areas – e.g. Sydney and Los Angeles
  • Increased tourism into fire prone areas
• Toxic gases and particulates

  • South East Asian Haze – fire related large scale air pollution that occurs regularly. This is caused mostly by large scale illegal agricultural/slash and burn practices. 
  • The haze covers most of Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
• Evacuation

  • Hayman fire (Colorado 2002) – a total of 5340 people were forced to evacuate. At one point, 14,000 were told to stand by for evacuation. 
  • Costs regarding shelter, food, water, blankets etc. are then also required
• Increased flood risk

  • Las Conchas wildfire (New Mexico, 2011) charred more than 150,000 acres of land. One month later, heavy rains flooded the burned area prompting a Presidential Disaster Declaration. 
• Landslides

  • Severe wildfires damage the forest canopy, the plants below, as well as the soil. This can result in increased runoff after intense rainfall or rapid snowmelt, which can put homes and other structures below a burned area at risk of localized floods and landslides.