Wildfire risk and its perception in Kabylia (Algeria)

Abstract

(1) This research aims to study wildfire perception by residents living in Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) in Kabylia (Algeria). We conducted an exploratory qualitative survey contacting 254 randomly selected individuals in eight hamlets of the Mizrana forest. Face-to-face questionnaires were administered to understand the fire risk problem. Respondents think that their homes are not exposed to fire risk and perceive their hamlets are protected against wildfires; on the contrary, they perceive their property (fields, livestock, olive trees, etc.) as exposed to fire risk. The vast majority of respondents declare to know how to defend themselves in the case of a fire event, using water and hand tools. Residents mainly use fire for stubble burning and disposal of domestic waste. Their skill in using fire as a land management tool respectively comes from their fathers, grandfathers and mothers. Results show the necessity of making resident more aware of the risks that wildfires pose to them. A culture of risk needs to be developed within the territory to limit vulnerability and the likelihood of destructive fires.

Is Experience the Best Teacher? Knowledge, Perceptions, and Awareness of Wildfire Risk

“…It could be inferred that these subgroups might be at risk for wildfire consequences, concerned about their own protection for work and personal reasons, and, consequently, more likely to gather information on the topic. This is in line with previous studies on both forest and wildfire specialists and WUI residents, pointing out the perceived need of further knowledge and evidence on wildfires [20,28].…”

“…No validated questionnaire on the variables of interest is currently available in the literature. Therefore, for the item selection and development of our questionnaire we adapted previously used items for investigating the perception of wildfire risk in WUI residents in Algeria [20], Portugal [18], and the United States [6]. After merging the three aforementioned questionnaires, an adapted questionnaire resulted (see Table S1 in Supplementary Materials for the English version), suitable for the administration to a wider pool of users, including the general population, fire-related workers, and WUI residents.…”

Diversity and richness of day Butterflies species (Lepidoptera: Rhopalocera) in the Chettaba Forest, Constantine, Northeastern Algeria

“…Shannon's Diversity Index reveals that the low matorral station is the most balanced and diverse one, followed by the high mattoral. Some degraded ecosystems, such as the matorral, which is the result of the degradation of a Mediterranean forest (Sahar et al 2018), are increasingly recognized as having significant biological importance for biodiversity. Indeed, degraded forest habitats provide renewal to plants by allowing more flowering species to thrive.…”

40-Year Fire History Reconstruction from Landsat Data in a Mediterranean Area of North Africa Following International Standards

“…When looking across the African side of the Mediterranean Basin, Algeria is the main fire hotspot [5]. Throughout history, this country has witnessed an unprecedented series of large extreme fires [6], with a record-breaking heatwave in the summer of 2023, which affected ecological and socio-economic assets [7,8], including human casualties. These fires may seriously degrade forest habitats in this country, a large part of which may not be restored [9].…”