RESFIRE

Assessing the potential of REStoring ecological FIRe regimes as Nature-based Solution to extreme wildfires in Mediterranean ecosystems

Creaf leader

The RESFIRE project focuses on addressing the global environmental crisis of biodiversity loss by exploring innovative approaches to ecosystem restoration, especially in Mediterranean landscapes. The project proposes the restoration of natural processes with the aim of reversing ecological degradation. In a context where landscapes have undergone rapid change due to agricultural abandonment and increased efforts to suppress fires, the project seeks to understand and implement strategies that balance biodiversity conservation with the mitigation of large catastrophic fires.

The RESFIRE project focuses on addressing the global environmental crisis of biodiversity loss by exploring innovative approaches for ecosystem restoration, particularly in Mediterranean landscapes. The project aims to restore natural processes to reverse ecological degradation.

In a context where landscapes have undergone rapid changes due to agricultural abandonment and increased efforts to suppress fires, the project seeks to understand and implement strategies that balance biodiversity conservation with the mitigation of large catastrophic fires.

Objective

The concept of “ecological fire regimes” involves the strategic reintroduction of controlled fires (both planned and unplanned) to emulate natural processes, promoting ecological health and biodiversity.

The project is developed around three main axes:

Human control over fire regimes in Mediterranean landscapes
The primary goal is to understand the processes influencing fire restoration as a natural disturbance in humanized Mediterranean landscapes.
- The research is based on the hypothesis that the interaction between land abandonment (vegetation recovery and natural succession) and fire suppression significantly shapes fire regimes and landscape dynamics.
- Special attention is given to the emergence of large catastrophic fires, asserting that fire suppression plays a key role in their development.
Biodiversity responses to ecological fire regimes
The aim is to better understand the ecological processes determining the biodiversity responses to various fire regimes in Mediterranean landscapes, using birds as the primary study model.
- It is hypothesized that species responses depend on the habitat heterogeneity linked to fire, resulting from the interaction between time since fire and local environmental factors.
- The goal is to determine when current fire regimes are associated with negative impacts on bird communities and when opportunities arise to enhance their conservation value and ecological function.
Nature-Based Solutions (NbS)
The Nature Futures Framework (NFF) will be used to guide the future potential of ecological fire regimes as nature-based solutions to extreme fires.
- Specific NFF scenarios will be developed, based on ecological fire regimes, which consider a balanced perspective of fire as an ecological process.
- Advanced modeling platforms will be utilized to assess potential trade-offs between extreme fire reduction, biodiversity conservation, and soil erosion, helping policymakers navigate towards more desirable fire regimes in these systems.