CHINA / SOCIETY
China faces serious task in preventing forest fires this year, as Spring temperatures are higher than usual: authorities
Published: Apr 13, 2023 10:59 PM
Photo: Screenshot from website

Photo: Screenshot from website



 
China is facing  is facing a severe challenge in preventing forest fires this Spring, and China's long border line with other countries highlights the danger of forest fire in border areas, said the country's National Forestry and Grassland Administration (NFGA).

Forests in China's Southwest, Southeast and Northeast, as well as in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region face severe risks of forest fire, partly because temperature this year is higher than usual, coupled with scarce rainfall, and strong wind, Liu Yuexiang, an official from NFGA said at a conference on Thursday.

The official said that villagers, factories' using of fire in the forest increased risk of bushfire. Moreover, China shares a long border with neighboring countries such as Russia, Mongolia, Vietnam and India, which increases the risk of wildfires in border areas, according to Liu. 

China in recent weeks has witnessed multiple forest fires. On Monday, a forest fire broke out on a hillside in Xichang City, Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture of southwest China's Sichuan Province. No casualities were reported.

In another instance,  North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region has dispatched several groups of firefighters to prevent the flames of a grassland fire in Mongolia from spreading across the China-Mongolia border. The fire was successfully extinguished on Tuesday.

Liu said that the NFGA willeducate the public and improve local government's ability to contain grassland fires. 

It will also deploy satellite remote sensing devices, aircraft patrol and other means to monitor wildfire in areas that are prone to wildfires. 

As of Thursday, the NFGA has dispatched 81 people from 18 work groups to 18 provincial-level regions to provide instructions to local governments on preventing forest fires.