CO2 emission and biomass loss, associated to the occurrence of forest fires in the Biobío Region, Chile: An approach from Ecosystem Services (ES)

Abstract

Fire is a phenomenon inherent to natural forests, but the management model for forest plantations may increase its frequency and intensity, since it is an important disturbing agent which generates changes in the dynamic that governs the operation of ecosystems and the loss or reduction of many ecosystem services. The main objective of this work is to review the problem of forest fires in Chile with special reference to the Biobío Region, quantifying the loss of some of the ecosystem services caused by this phenomenon. The results show that on average during the last ten years, the Biobío Region has become the largest national area affected by fires (179.912 ha), confirming that these events are highly correlated with forest development (r = 0.5; P < 0.05), amounting to 50.7 % of the national total. Due to limited knowledge on the effects of fires at the local level, results are discussed in the context of direct losses of ecosystem services, particularly the effects in the atmosphere (CO₂ emissions and biomass), stressing the importance of the conservation of native forests as absorption systems for the effects of fire.