Summary: Forest fires are a natural phenomenon that causes enormous economic damage and often lead to ecological catastrophes. They occur at all latitudes and under varying climatic conditions, in countries with different levels of standard and culture. Faced with serious direct and indirect impacts of forest fires, various preventive and repressive measures concordant with natural conditions and material means are undertaken to control them. The efficiency of stopping the spread of fires and their control depends primarily on the applied preventive measures. All preventive measures have equal importance regardless of their educational, biological or technical nature. Forest tracks are often used as a means of controlling forest fires.In practice, forest tracks may have several purposes and are usually built with a defined task in mind. In terms of purpose, method of construction and manner of application, they may serve as forest boundaries, as silvicultural tracks - narrow snipe tracks, hunting tracks, tracks below transmissions lines, fire lines and others.Fire lines used to be one of the standards of preventive protection of forests from fires. They were mostly built in areas threatened by fires, in the Mediterranean vegetation zones with an exceptionally high biomass production. They were placed vertically to the contour lines and were therefore often very steep and difficult to access. The width of the lines was regulated by law (from 5 to 15 m) and depended on the type of forest vegetation, terrain configuration, wind power and other factors contributing to the spread of fires. The width of fire lines and their efficacy in the field regularly gave rise to controversies and doubts about their usefulness. It was shown in practice that fire lines could not be kept completely clear from vegetation and that their function in stopping large forest fires did not justify their construction. It is either impossible or very difficult to set a fire defence line in the tracks built with the above elements, as their steepness and inaccessibility make it very hard for fire fighters and fire fighting equipment to approach them.All other kinds of tracks built in forests have special purposes but may also be used in fire control. Tracks below major electro-energetic facilities are built to protect transmission lines. Therefore, they are constructed and maintained with the aim of enabling the normal functioning of electrical facilities and not of preventing the spread of forest fires.Fire lines with elements of roadways are increasingly being built to prevent and repress forest fires. They are preventively used in silvicultural-management treatments and other forest management activities. Fire extinction, that is, the application of repressive measures, is much more efficient in areas with access roads and in areas where these facilities have enabled and alleviated the previously applied forest tending activities. Classical fire lines are gradually being abandoned, particularly in steep and inaccessible areas.
Key words: forest fires; forest fire protection; preventive measures; forest tracks; fire lines; fire lines with elements of roadways; lines below electro-energetic facilities; clearing fire lines; forest tending; biomass; flammable material; fire fighting equipment; fire line |
