Wildland Fires in the Subtropical Hill Forests of Southeastern Bangladesh
The first ever comprehensive study on wildland fires in Bangladesh is carried out to develop a fire prevention and prediction method. The major causes of huge wildland fires (88%) in the subtropical Chittagong Hill forest (43% of total) of southern Bangladesh are reported as shifting cultivation, gr...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-01-01
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| Series: | Atmosphere |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/14/1/97 |
| _version_ | 1797446309994561536 |
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| author | Murad A. Farukh Md. A. Islam Hiroshi Hayasaka |
| author_facet | Murad A. Farukh Md. A. Islam Hiroshi Hayasaka |
| author_sort | Murad A. Farukh |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The first ever comprehensive study on wildland fires in Bangladesh is carried out to develop a fire prevention and prediction method. The major causes of huge wildland fires (88%) in the subtropical Chittagong Hill forest (43% of total) of southern Bangladesh are reported as shifting cultivation, grazing and unauthorized settlement. We used satellite hotspot (HS) data from 2003 to 2021 (a total of 54,669 HSs) to clarify the spatio-temporal structure of wildland fires. Fire weather conditions were analyzed using various weather data and synoptic-scale weather maps at different air levels. Fires concentrated from March through April or a transitional period from the dry season, caused by the Asian winter monsoon, to the wet season, due to the Asian summer monsoon. Fire occurrence depended on dry conditions and pre-monsoon showers and their timing. The difference in 925 hPa heights of high and low pressure systems may be attributed to the different types of the Asian winter and summer monsoons. The average maximum air temperature and incident shortwave solar energy in April were the highest and strongest, contributing fire-prone weather conditions. Based on the analysis, a fire prevention and prediction method will be developed, and this report may also facilitate the establishment of future CO<sub>2</sub> reduction measures for Bangladesh. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T13:38:29Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c65b81fbf03f44688f41d47522a40024 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4433 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T13:38:29Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Atmosphere |
| spelling | doaj.art-c65b81fbf03f44688f41d47522a400242023-11-30T21:09:20ZengMDPI AGAtmosphere2073-44332023-01-011419710.3390/atmos14010097Wildland Fires in the Subtropical Hill Forests of Southeastern BangladeshMurad A. Farukh0Md. A. Islam1Hiroshi Hayasaka2Department of Environmental Science, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh 2202, BangladeshDepartment of Environmental Science, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh 2202, BangladeshArctic Research Center, Hokkaido University, Sapporo 0010021, JapanThe first ever comprehensive study on wildland fires in Bangladesh is carried out to develop a fire prevention and prediction method. The major causes of huge wildland fires (88%) in the subtropical Chittagong Hill forest (43% of total) of southern Bangladesh are reported as shifting cultivation, grazing and unauthorized settlement. We used satellite hotspot (HS) data from 2003 to 2021 (a total of 54,669 HSs) to clarify the spatio-temporal structure of wildland fires. Fire weather conditions were analyzed using various weather data and synoptic-scale weather maps at different air levels. Fires concentrated from March through April or a transitional period from the dry season, caused by the Asian winter monsoon, to the wet season, due to the Asian summer monsoon. Fire occurrence depended on dry conditions and pre-monsoon showers and their timing. The difference in 925 hPa heights of high and low pressure systems may be attributed to the different types of the Asian winter and summer monsoons. The average maximum air temperature and incident shortwave solar energy in April were the highest and strongest, contributing fire-prone weather conditions. Based on the analysis, a fire prevention and prediction method will be developed, and this report may also facilitate the establishment of future CO<sub>2</sub> reduction measures for Bangladesh.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/14/1/97wildland fireAsian monsoonsubtropical hill forestMODIS hotspotshifting cultivation |
| spellingShingle | Murad A. Farukh Md. A. Islam Hiroshi Hayasaka Wildland Fires in the Subtropical Hill Forests of Southeastern Bangladesh Atmosphere wildland fire Asian monsoon subtropical hill forest MODIS hotspot shifting cultivation |
| title | Wildland Fires in the Subtropical Hill Forests of Southeastern Bangladesh |
| title_full | Wildland Fires in the Subtropical Hill Forests of Southeastern Bangladesh |
| title_fullStr | Wildland Fires in the Subtropical Hill Forests of Southeastern Bangladesh |
| title_full_unstemmed | Wildland Fires in the Subtropical Hill Forests of Southeastern Bangladesh |
| title_short | Wildland Fires in the Subtropical Hill Forests of Southeastern Bangladesh |
| title_sort | wildland fires in the subtropical hill forests of southeastern bangladesh |
| topic | wildland fire Asian monsoon subtropical hill forest MODIS hotspot shifting cultivation |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/14/1/97 |
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