Study: Fires surged to unprecedented levels in Madagascar during lockdown

By Stephen Beech via SWNS

Fires surged during lockdown in one of the world's most important conservation areas, reveals new research.

The number of fires inside protected conservation areas across Madagascar reached "unprecedented levels" when COVID-19 lockdowns led to the suspension of any on-site management for five months during 2020.

Scientists say their findings suggest that governments should consider keeping some staff in protected areas at all times as an “essential service” - even during periods of health crisis and travel restrictions.

The research team believe that more attention must be paid to the management of protected areas, not just expanding their coverage, at the long-delayed convention to set international biodiversity goals later this year.

Madagascar is a renowned biodiversity “hotspot” - home to species such as its famous lemur populations that don’t exist anywhere else. The island is also a frontline in the fight between wildlife protection and habitat loss.

The new study, published in the journal Nature Sustainability, is the first to gauge the effects of the pandemic on protected conservation areas.

An international team of scientists led by Cambridge University and Helsinki University used historical and contemporary fire and weather data to predict rates of burning in Madagascar’s protected areas for every month from 2012 to 2020.

The researchers compared the data modelling to counts of actual blazes collected by satellites to detect periods when fires raged far beyond what might be expected from the climate and previous patterns of burning.

When the first lockdowns of 2020 halted the on-site management of protected areas, the numbers of fires - much of them in threatened forest habitat – soared by 209 percent in March, 223 percent in April, 78 percent in May, 248 percent in June and 76 percent in July.

However, burning quickly returned to normal levels as predicted by the modeling once management operations resumed – despite continued border closures and economic hardships as a result of the ongoing pandemic.

Researchers describe the scale of burning inside protected areas as “unprecedented” in recent Malagasy history.

They said the only comparable periods were during two spells of civil unrest in 2013 and 2018 in the run-up to elections, but even then the fieriest month was a 134 percent increase in burning.

Study senior author Prof Andrew Balmford, of the University of Cambridge, said: “The disruption caused by COVID-19 clearly demonstrates the dramatic impact that interruptions to the management of protected areas can have on habitats.

“Over the last 20 years, excess fires in Malagasy protected areas have been limited to occasional blocks of one or two months.

“When all staff were pulled out of protected areas in March 2020 the fires spiked dramatically and continued at a ferocious level for an unprecedented five months, falling away exactly as staff started to return."

While the team say they cannot know for sure what caused all the fires during the early months of COVID-19, lead author Dr. Johanna Eklund said that local communities already struggling economically would have come under further pressure from lockdowns.

Dr. Eklund, of the University of Helsinki, said: “Madagascar has very high rates of poverty, and has a history of conflict between the livelihoods of vulnerable people and saving unique biodiversity.

“The pandemic increased economic insecurity for many, so it would not be surprising if this led some to encroach on protected lands while on-site management activities were on hold.”

Dr. Eklund suggested that a lack of on-site patrolling to prevent any fires from spreading combined with communities resorting to “swidden” – or slash-and-burn – agriculture may be behind much of the spike in lockdown fires.

The techniques clear vegetation for crops and cattle-grazing, but are illegal inside protected areas.

She said: “Importantly, the study did not measure fires outside conservation sites, so we cannot measure how much protected areas actually mitigated burning compared to areas without protection."

The team used imaging data from NASA satellite systems capable of detecting “thermal anomalies” and noted for near real-time fire management alerts.

Dr. Eklund, who has conducted research in Madagascar for close to a decade, realized she could still remotely assist those protecting the forests.

She added: “Satellites pick up fires really well and show where protected areas are under pressure.”

Co-author Domoina Rakotobe, former coordinator for the Malagasy organization Forum Lafa, said: “The high levels of burning during the lockdowns clearly shows the value of on-the-ground management, with protected area teams working with communities to support local livelihoods and safeguard natural resources.”

The findings were published in the journal Nature Sustainability.