admin
Sukulwenkosi Dube
Vicious fire outbreaks have become synonymous with the fire season which stretches from July 31 to October 31.
Veld fires are blazes that get out of control and become wild and in the process destroying large tracts of land or property, forests, grass land, animals and homesteads.
Innocent people have become victims of these outbreaks caused by reckless people either by losing their lives or valuables.
In most cases the fire starters are never caught but the effect of the damage is long lasting.
As part of efforts to raise awareness against veld fires, the National Fire Week was recently launched at Watershed Ward in Figtree area in Bulilima.
The National Fire Week is commemorated in the second Week of May each year and the theme for 2015 is “Veld fire Prevention my Responsibility”.
Environmental Management Agency Environmental Education and Publicity Officer for Matabeleland South Province Sithembokuhle Moyo said most veld fire outbreaks could be prevented if people exercised caution.
She said most outbreaks occurred as a result of negligence.
‘‘The fire season is upon us and there’s a lot that communities should adhere to in order to prevent the spread and outbreaks of veld fires.
‘‘Under the theme of the year, we’re emphasising that each person has a role to play. As a result we expect everyone to adhere to the guidelines that guard against veld fires as failure to do so is a punishable offence,’’ said Moyo.
She said the agency would not hesitate to penalise people who started fires outside their homes as this was an offence.
Statutory Instrument 7 of 2007 as read with the Environmental Management Act (CAP 20:27), states that no person is allowed to start a fire outside residential and commercial premises during the period July 31 to October 31 of each year.
Communities need to set up fire guards as they played a crucial role in containing the spread of veld fires.
Moyo appealed to smokers to desist from throwing away lit cigarettes in bushy areas.
‘‘When 31 July comes we expect all communities to have set up standard fire guards of nine metres (in width) as failure to do so will attract fines. Communities that will be found without fire guards will be fined.
“It’s also an offence not to report a veld fire or not to assist in putting out a veld fire therefore this cause is for everyone,” she said.
Insiza District recorded the highest cases of veld fires in Matabeleland South followed by Matobo and Umzingwane and then Bulilima and Mangwe districts.
Moyo said traditional leaders within the communities had to assume the task of penalising villagers that started fires in order for people to realise the severity of their life threatening actions.
The people of Watershed in Figtree have taken up the task of setting up fire guards in order to protect their land.
A villager, Sinanzeni Ncube said they have lost livestock and vegetation to veld fires as they did not have fire guards.
She said the fires started from surrounding plots but in the process they also suffered loss.
“I’m one of the villagers who lost a number of donkeys to the veld fires. When we experience fires, the eyes of the donkeys would be blown out. However, ever since we took the initiative to set up fire guards our land is now protected.
“Our area is prone to veld fires that come from neighbouring communities and they spread into our area,” she said.
Veld fires are common especially in resettlement areas, where people tend to clear grass or plant residue in order to clear land for building or curing timber. The fires end up getting out of hand and burning huge tracts of land that were not intended for burning.
Bulilima District Forestry Extension Officer Fortunes Matutu said besides causing damage to property and loss of life, bush fires were disturbing the ecosystem.
He said fire outbreaks resulted in the death of both flora and fauna.
“Fire outbreaks result in destruction of vegetation which results in the destruction of grazing land for animals. Affected animals are then forced to move in search for food and they end up relocating to protected areas or fields and this may lead to human/wildlife conflict,” he said.
Loss of biodiversity made it difficult for living organisms that had been disturbed by veld fires to survive.
Matutu said animals depend on each other for survival and there was a need for a balance of ecosystem.
He said when fire outbreaks were experienced, the ground was left exposed and bare which caused soil erosion and soil degradation. This latter causes siltation of dams and rivers thereby reducing the carrying capacity of these water sources and eventually impacted on human life.
“If the same area experiences fire outbreaks repetitively the woodland of that area deteriorates and so does the vegetation of that place. When this happens, invasive tree species like lantana camara and opuntia fulgida colonise the area.
“In place of the indigenous vegetation, these alien species take over the area and in most cases, they are harmful to livestock as they are poisonous. The indigenous vegetation desirable for grazing does not perform well in areas where the environment has been disturbed by fires,” he said.
Matutu said during the fire outbreaks excessive carbon dioxide was emitted into the air. He said this was a major contributor to global warming which caused climate change.
Plants were the major absorber of carbon dioxide but if destroyed by veld fires, the gases settled in the air.
Matutu said there was a need for communities to prioritise planting of trees in order to counter vast amount of forests that had been lost to veld fires.
The destruction of forests has been a major threat to food security and livelihoods.
Veld fire offences are subject to fines that vary with levels with the highest being $5,000.
The country last year recorded a 300 percent increase in the number of veld fire related deaths with 12 people dying compared to four in 2013.
In 2013, veld fires ravaged an estimated 1,2 million hectares on land.
Veld fire investigations have revealed that most fires are started by poachers, land clearing, charcoal making, smoking out bees and careless throwing away of lit cigarette butts.
Property worth thousands has in the past been lost to fires.
Property worth $100,000 went up in smoke at Fountains Farm, Blackwaters, Shangani during last year’s fire season when a farm house and citrus tree plantation were burnt in a veld fire reportedly started by illegal gold panners.
A few weeks before that, a gold panner was burnt beyond recognition in Bubi District after he failed to escape a veld fire due to drunkenness.
The gold panners reportedly started a fire to clear vegetation where they wanted to dig for gold causing damage to the property. The fire razed a gazebo and a storeroom with equipment and fire implements. It spread to the citrus field and destroyed 4,000 orange tree, about 2,000 bales of grass and 30 tonnes of oranges.
Online Reporter