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Wester Ross Wildfire Week to focus on learning from experience

Posted: Tuesday 18 February, 2020 @ 13:07:01

Wildfire week conference 6th March 2020

1st to 6th March 2020, around Wester Ross (see below)

Organised by Highland Environment Forum and Wester Ross Biosphere

Wildfire is an issue which can affect the productivity of rivers within the SWRFT area. Some of the juvenile salmon recorded during SWRFT surveys in recent years have been amongst the smallest for their age in Scotland. Growth and production of juvenile salmon in many rivers within the SWRFT is limited by food availability. A lack of food for juvenile salmon often relates to the low fertility of catchment areas and a lack of riparian trees and other leafy vegetation. Riparian trees not only provide leaf litter and food for the insects upon which juvenile salmon and trout feed; they can also provide shade preventing streams from becoming too hot during the summer time.

Wildfires can damage riparian vegetation and young woodlands.  If wildfires are very large, they can also destroy nutritious vegetation and organic matter over large areas which would otherwise help to slow down the rate of run-off and severity of damaging spates. Vital nutrients including phosphorus are lost in smoke and in ash which is washed away following a wildfire.

Wester Ross Wildfire Week has been organised by the Highland Environment Forum in partnership with the Wester Ross Biosphere, with support from many other organisations and estates, to focus on the issue of wildfires within the Wester Ross Biosphere area, to raise awareness of threats to biodiversity and the biological productivity of much of Wester Ross.

Faced with the prospect of warmer, drier summers associated with Climate Change, wildlife week brings together people with a wide range of backgrounds and experience, to learn of the best ways to minimise the risk of wildfires and to improve the outcome of managed fires.  

Further information, including details of how to book a place at the wildfire conference on 6th March at Kinlochewe Village Hall, can be found on the Highland Environment Forum website:

https://www.highlandenvironmentforum.info/2020/02/16/raising-wildfire-awareness-in-wester-ross/

Wildfire conference booking:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/preventing-wildfires-learning-from-experience-tickets-86277176357