2. • A wildfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an
uncontrolled fire in an area of
combustible vegetation occurring in rural
areas.
• Depending on the type of vegetation
present, a wildfire can also be classified
more specifically as a brush
fire, bushfire, desert fire, forest fire, grass
fire, hill fire, peat fire, vegetation fire,
or veld fire
• Characterized in terms of cause of ignition, their
physical properties, the combustible material present,
and the effect of weather on the fire.[
• Heat waves, droughts, cyclical climate changes such
as El Niño, and regional weather patterns such as high-
pressure ridges can increase the risk and alter the
behavior of wildfires dramatically
• Years of precipitation followed by warm periods can
encourage more widespread fires and longer fire
seasons.[
WILDFIRE/FOREST FIRE
15. • Land-use planning is important. Decisions need to be made
about which areas will be protected, converted, or
substantially managed in terms of rural development.
• Third is developing an effective system of governance of
the rainforest. Laws, policies, institutions, and the behaviors
of people in those institutions must be upgraded to meet
the long-term objectives Brazil has for the Amazon.
16. While the rainforest is home to the world’s largest river (by volume of water) and 1,700 tributaries, about one-
sixth of the basin is also made up of largely forest-covered wetlands that flood for long periods each year and
support the commercially most important fish in the region.
