Fire records of Taiwan

The major purpose of this study was to analyze forest fire history and characteristics of Taiwan National Forests in order to serve as guidelines for fire policy making and fire suppression practice in Taiwan. All the 1,454 fire records, dated back to 1963-2004, were obtained from the forest fire summary reports of Taiwan Forest Bureau. Results indicate that, in light of fire frequency, there were 2 20-year cycles in this 4-decades duration. Plummeted from peak level in 1963, annual fire frequencies fluctuated below 50 during 1970’s and 1980’s, while started to soar dramatically around 1991. However, it is especially of concern that there was no noticeable sign of leveling off in this upward trend. Fire seasons in Taiwan stretched from December to May, with peak season in March. The most fire-prone areas were Chaiyi and Pintung National Forest Districts in the southern part of Taiwan. Among the 37 National Forest Working Circles, Puli, Dapu, Chisan, and Dajashi were the 5 working circles that were most susceptible to forest fires. As with respect to burned area, more than 58% of the fires were of small sizes, with burned areas less than 5 ha; however, only 80 out of 1454 forest fires each consumed more than 100 ha separately. The majority of forest fires in Taiwan National Forests were human-caused fires. Agricultural cultivation contributed to most fires before 1991, however, arson has increased considerably since 1991 which demands further investigation on socio-economic factors of fire risk in Taiwan.