Neither in the city nor in the forest: on the meaning of the fires in the urban areas of the north

The effects of fires in the middle regions of Israel: threats to biological diversity and dangers to humans

By Naama Tesler, Zveta - Science and Environment News Agency

The displaced people of the north. Photo: Yossi Zamir, Shatil Stock
The displaced people of the north. Photo: Yossi Zamir, Shatil Stock

At the same time as the fires in the open areas, which caused great damage with effects that may show their signs in the coming years, some of the fires penetrated the settlements, such as in Kiryat Shmona. Fires in populated areas often have a dramatic effect on community life and the population's sense of security. In the current situation, where a significant part of the population is evacuated, it is difficult to estimate what the impact of these fires will be when the time comes, when the residents return to their homes.

Fires in the urban areas tend to develop in the transition areas, those areas that are between the open areas and the built-up areas, and which are often defined as the areas of the urban book (WUI - Wildland-Urban Interface). Often these are the most sensitive areas to damage from fires due to the risk of damage to a person on the one hand and to the ecosystem on the other. In this connecting thread between the built area and the natural area, the ecosystem is also described as a seam between the natural area and the urban area. As in many places in Israel and in the world, the vegetation in this area is a mixed vegetation that consists of natural vegetation, such as grove and Mediterranean forest trees including oak and these; and an infringed flora, which includes cultivated plants and invasive plants of various species, and which often grows on land that is affected by the pressures, vulnerabilities and threats that exist in cities compared to nature.

Fires in the urban areas of the book develop through the vegetation and through buildings and infrastructure such as warehouses, decks and roofs, which feed the fire and the fire is easy to hold on to. The attempts to control the fire in the fires in these areas are complex, and it is very difficult to rehabilitate these areas as a result. The large amount of waste and the urban infrastructure that must be taken into account contribute to the challenge, and of course, so does the nature of the local vegetation. Invasive species such as Ilantha glandular, bluish acacia and Dudnia sticky, as well as waste and sewage plants such as sticky sedge, common thistle and nettle are not the plants we aspire to see in the Israeli nature - but a large part of the invasive species like fires and regenerate well after them either by regeneration from the seed bank in the soil or regeneration from the neck of the root (the upper part of the root).