Modelling wildfire risk in pure and mixed forest stands in Portugal

Abstract

In Portugal over 85% of the forest area is occupied by Maritime pine (Pinus pinaster), eucalypt (Eucalyptus globulus), cork oak (Quercus suber) and holm oak (Quer- cus ilex). Eucalypt plantations extend over 20% of the total forest area being the main source of raw material for the pulp and paper industry. In The main aim of the present study was to develop a planning oriented stand level model to pre- dict wildfire risk for a wide range of forest stands in Por- tugal, including different mixtures of species as well as even-and uneven-aged structures. The model aims at predicting the effects of management options (e.g. silvi- cultural treatments) on the probability of wildfire propa- gation to enhance the integration of forest and fire management activities.