Forest fire investigation advances! The Fondecyt Regular 1231580 project, led by Dr. Fabián Guerrero from the Federico Santa María Technical University, began in April 2023.
Lorenzo Palma, Journalist.- This ambitious and important study for a country that every fire season suffers great environmental and social losses, focuses on analyzing the chemical composition of tree species and its relationship with flammability, with the aim of better understanding the factors that drive fires. in the sclerophyll forest.
The research team headed by Dr. Guerrero has made significant advances in previous research. His study revealed a ranking of flammability, where exotic species such as eucalyptus, Australian acacia and radiata pine occupy the first places. Now, the Fondecyt Regular project, which has a duration of 4 years, is immersed in the analysis of cuticular waxes as fire drivers in the sclerophyll forest during forest fires.
Dr. Guerrero, a researcher, explained that the main objective is to evaluate the chemical composition of cuticular waxes and the flammability parameters of native or endemic sclerophyll species in areas with a Mediterranean climate. The study seeks to establish the influence of the constituent compounds of the waxes on the spread of fire during forest fires.
How will they do it? The researcher explains that they will carry out field sampling to obtain fresh leaves and litter of 9 native/endemic species in the south-central zone of Chile, in what is known as the sclerophyllous forest.
“A laboratory will be installed on the ground that will make it possible to carry out chemical extractions and flammability tests. In addition, samples will be stored with the purpose of carrying out the identification and quantification of cuticular waxes through various analytical stages. These steps will include extraction, separation, isolation, derivatization, identification, and quantification. These activities will be carried out in the chemical laboratories of the USM”, explained the specialist.
The results of this project are expected to have a significant impact on the management of the risk of catastrophic events, in addition to developing more effective tools for planning and preventing fires in Mediterranean ecosystems prone to fires due to climate change, commented the researcher, who is part of from the Department of Mechanical Engineering of the UTFSM.
This project will be supported by a multidisciplinary team belonging to different areas of chemistry and engineering: Dr. Fabián Guerrero (Principal Investigator, USM); Dr. Lautaro Taborga (co-investigator, USM) and Dr. Jan Bergmann (co-investigator, PUCV); Dr. Mario Toledo (co-investigator, USM); Lorena Espinoza (researcher associated with the project) and Camilo Carmona (researcher associated with the project).
In addition, an international collaboration will be carried out with prominent researchers such as Dr. Melisa Blackhall from the Biodiversity and Environment Research Institute (INIBIOMA) of the National University of Comahue (CONICET) of Argentina, Dr. Mercedes Guijarro and Dr. Javier Madrigal with the Institute of Forestry Sciences (ICIFOR) of the National Institute of Agricultural and Food Research and Technology (INIA) of the Higher Council for Scientific Research (CSIC) of Spain, Dr. Yulian Carrasco of the Center for Research and Environmental Services (ECOVIDA) belonging to the Environment Agency (AMA) of Cuba will join this exciting project.
challenges
The main challenge facing researchers is to optimize the analytical methodologies needed to accurately obtain the chemical molecules present in cuticular wax. This will allow us to expand our knowledge about the possible differences or similarities in the type of molecules contained in the cuticular wax of the leaves of sclerophyllous species, which can be considered flammable for the vegetation.
In this way, the UTFSM researcher explains that they seek to deepen the relationship between plant characteristics and flammability at the species level, achieving a broader understanding of the vegetation-fire dynamics at a local and landscape scale, strengthening ecology, the management and development of sustainable reforestation plans.
“With this valuable study underway, it is expected to obtain fundamental knowledge for the protection and conservation of the sclerophyll forest, as well as to strengthen the prevention and mitigation of forest fires in these Mediterranean ecosystems threatened by climate change”, concluded the director of the study. .
