WILDFIRE EFFECTS ON SOIL EROSION DYNAMICS: THE CASE OF 2021 MEGAFIRES IN GREECE

Abstract

In recent decades, the frequency and severity of wildfires have increased, especially in the Mediterranean Basin. Aside from their direct effects, accelerated soil erosion is observed in fire-affected areas due to the destruction of vegetation. The 2021 Greece megafires were one of the country's major ecological disasters, destroying over 125,000 hectares of forest and agricultural land. The present study aims to quantify the effects of selected wildfire events on erosion dynamics over the 2021 fire season. To accomplish the goals of the current research the RUSLE erosion prediction model was implemented using readily available earth observation (EO) data. The results demonstrated a shift to the erosion hazard from very low and low (pre-fire) to severe and very severe (post-fire), in all cases. In particular, the increase in potential erosion, expressed in t ha−1 y−1, was found to be equal to 98.5, 65.9, 57.0, 56.3, 51.6 and 35.6 for the Gytheio (Laconia), Schinos (Corinthia – West Attica), Northern Evia, Ancient Olympia – Gortynia (Ilia), Vilia (Western Attica) and Varympompi (Attica) regions, respectively. Moreover, the spatial distribution of post-fire soil erosion rates provides sufficient information for the identification of the erosion prone-areas and the corresponding emergency rehabilitation treatments.