Bushfires in Burundi’s protected areas are prohibited by law, but runaway infernos are threatening the reserves and contributing to climate change. Espoir Iradukunda investigates A farm wiped out by a runaway fire. About 1,000ha are burnt to ashes nationwide each year due to wildfires. Photo: Espoir Iradukunda From the end of June to the beginning of September each year, wildfires occur nationwide in Burundi’s wildlife reserves, caused by farmers who use rudimentary agricultural methods and livestock breeders who need green pastures. The flames last around 16 weeks and have destructive consequences on the ecosystem, according to environmentalists. In Burundi, bushfires are prohibited within the boundaries of protected areas. “Approximately 1,000 hectares are burnt to ashes nationwide each year due to runaway bushfires in reserves and forests,” said Léonidas Nzigiyimpa, legal representative of Conservation and Community of Change-3C and a former director of the Burundi Environment Protection Authority (OBPE). “It’s a worrying phenomenon because the devastation caused by these bushfires is extremely widespread and harmful.” While the fires mainly destroy grasslands, some tree cover is lost as well. According to Global Forest Watch, from 2001 to 2021 Burundi lost 17ha of tree cover from fires and 31.8ha from all other drivers of loss. Nzigiyimpa said slow-burning fires in April and May are used as a management tool for the natural ecosystems in protected areas. They help to control forest canopy and create pastures for grazing wildlife living in protected areas such as the Ruvubu National Park. It’s the late fires that occur from June to October that must be avoided because they are violent and destructive, he said. Claver Sibomana, lecturer and researcher at the National University of Burundi in the faculty of science, said biodiversity is lost as a result of these late fires. The soil is denuded, leading to erosion. And there is the disappearance of trees that serve as carbon sinks and water towers. “Almost all the protected areas in Burundi are water reservoirs. When you light late fires, the vegetation cover is erased. As a result, during the rainy season, the water is no longer retained and does not infiltrate into the shallows,” Sibomana said. “The other consequence is that when greenhouse gases, particularly carbon dioxide, are released back into the atmosphere, you are contributing to the worsening of the harmful effects of climate change,” added Sibomana. A family coming from Parc National de la Kibira in Kayanza with firewood. Photo: Arthur Bizimana Nzigidahera Bénoît, an environmental consultant who conducted research on vulnerability and adaptation to climate change in Burundi, said the management fires implemented in the wet season between April and May include firebreaks. “These are paths that we clean up. They vary in width from three to six metres. The taller the grass, the wider the firebreaks have to be. When there are bushfires, the flames won’t jump these spaces. This is an ancient technique, even used around artificial woodland,” he said. Advanced techniques, mostly practised by specialists, include setting fire to a 100m strip and extinguishing it. If criminals set a fire and the flames reach this strip, the fire will stop. It’s a way of putting out fire with fire, of getting ahead of accidental fires. “Other, more sophisticated techniques use new information and communication technologies for surveillance. With remote sensing and satellites, fires can be monitored from a distance, from an office or a base. Unfortunately, Burundi does not have this technology,” Bénoît said. A burnt section in the northern part of Rukoko reserve in Bubanza after it caught fire in July. Photo: Arthur Bizimana Burundi’s Forestry Code established in 1984 and amended in 2016, aims to prevent the destruction of forests by bushfires. It provides for fines of up to BIF2-million (about US$700) and prison sentences of up to five years. However, the enforcement of these laws is problematic. Nzigiyimpa testifies that he has seen cases of people who were apprehended for burning a nature reserve who were quickly released. Experts, advocates and scientists agree on the lack of proper resources to protect the various reserves. “The officers in charge of protecting protected areas are not sufficiently equipped. They are barefoot. They can’t intervene quickly,” said Kazungu Pierre, representative of the hub of cooperatives to protect reserves in Bururi. “They have no means of transport or communication.