Trend Analysis of Wildland Fires and Their Impacts on Atmospheric Environment over East Asia

Abstract

Active fire products from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite observation during the 16 years from 2000-2015 were analyzed to estimate spatial and temporal variations of wildland fires over East Asia (region of interest: 20°N-55°N, 100°E-150°E). GLOBCOVER 2009 land cover data were also used to investigate the trend in wildfire occurrence with respect to each land cover type. Statistical analysis showed that the highest number of wildland fires occurred in the evergreen and vegetation covered areas, and strong seasonal variations were found in these areas. Total numbers of fires were 283,683 and 202,543, respectively. In particular, the wildland fires in croplands occurred mainly during summer season and distinguishable increasing trends were found. The correlations between number of wildland fires and air pollutants, such as black carbon, organic matter, and carbon monoxide, were also calculated in order to investigate the intensity of the air pollution caused by the wildland fires. Positive correlation between total column carbon monoxide contents and the occurrence of wildland fire was found. In addition, this correlation was higher than the correlation between fire occurrence and black carbon or organic matter. These results indicate that a significant amount of carbon monoxide originated from the wildland fires and influenced the regional atmospheric environment in East Asia.

Keywords

• wildland fire
• modis
• seasonal/annual trend
• black carbon
• carbon monoxide