An Evaluation of Wildfire Vulnerability in the Wildland–Urban Interfaces of Central Portugal Using the Analytic Network Process

Abstract

Vulnerability assessment is a vital component of wildfire management. This research focuses on the evaluation of wildfire vulnerability in the Central Region of Portugal, an area historically affected by catastrophic fire events. The overall methodology entailed applying an analytical hierarchy process (AHP) to the relevant spatial variables for evaluating vulnerability associated with exposure, sensitivity, and response capacity at landscape and the wildland–urban interface (WUI) scale. Of the selected criteria, the existence of fuel in direct contact with built-up areas, population density, and firefighters’ travel time were considered the most important criteria for inclusion in the vulnerability map. At landscape scale, 31% of the Central Region presents high and very high classes of vulnerability, while 22% of WUIs are classified as highly vulnerable to fire. Although the inland areas emerge as the most vulnerable, this approach enables scattered vulnerable hotspots to be identified in almost all of the Central Region. The results could be very helpful in terms of developing and enhancing local policies to mitigate human and material damage.

Keywords

• vulnerability
• wildfires
• urban interface
• analytical hierarchy process
• central Portugal