Pine for prudence

Forest fires are ravaging Uttarakhand. The crisis calls for policies based on a proper understanding of science

- PUJA AWASTHI

PERSISTENT AND PERSISTENTLY misunderstood. That, in a nutshell, is the story of forest fires in Uttarakhand.

Fires break out each year between March and mid-June, before the onset of the monsoon. They spawn headlines like ‘Forest fires rage across Uttarakhand’ and ‘State loses hundreds of hectares of green cover in 24 hours’. Hyperbole, misinformation and poorly explained science paint a picture of roaring fires devouring trees and animals, and destroying property and livelihoods. The forest fires of Uttarakhand are nothing of the kind, though. For starters, they are not ‘crown fires’, which spread to the top of the trees.

They are, in fact, ground fires that feed on fallen pine needles. Mostly man-made, the fires are aided by high temperatures and winds.

The number of forest fires varies every year. In 2002, there were 1,401 such incidents. In 2016, the figure went up to 12,958, and then fell to 2,158 in 2019. As of June 2022, there have been 2,131 forest fires, affecting more than 3,348 hectares and causing a loss of ₹87.31 lakh. Uttarakhand has a forest cover of 53.48 lakh hectares.

Periodic fires are needed to maintain ecological balance and lower the possibility of larger, uncontrolled fires. But what makes recurring fires a matter of concern is that it produces black carbon—sooty material that not just pollutes the atmosphere, but warms it as well, leading to the melting of Himalayan glaciers.