Forests are essential reservoirs of biodiversity and play a fundamental role in climate regulation, carbon sequestration, soil protection, and the maintenance of terrestrial ecosystem balance. However, they are increasingly exposed to growing pressures driven by climate change and human activities, particularly wildfires, deforestation, habitat fragmentation, and the overexploitation of natural resources, which compromise their ecological functioning and reduce their resilience.
Context and objectives
In Mediterranean ecosystems, wildfires are among the most significant environmental threats. Understanding their causes, risk factors, and impacts is a prerequisite for developing effective prevention, management, and restoration strategies. In Tunisia, data from the 2007–2022 period reveal an increase in both the number of wildfires and the burned area, highlighting the growing vulnerability of forest ecosystems under the combined effects of climate change and anthropogenic pressures.
This study was conducted as part of a final-year engineering project integrated into the MedFireWise project (Cross-Med Wildfire Resilience: Harnessing Nature-Based Solutions for Wildfire Risk Mitigation), funded by the Interreg NEXT MED 2021–2027 programme, with the National Research Institute of Rural Engineering, Water and Forests (INRGREF) serving as the Tunisian partner. The project aims to strengthen wildfire prevention and enhance the resilience of Mediterranean landscapes through the implementation of Nature-based Solutions (NbS).
The study focuses on the natural forest of Aïn Snoussi, a cork oak (Quercus suber) forest located in the Kroumirie–Mogods region of north-western Tunisia. Its objectives are to identify the main wildfire risk factors and vulnerabilities, map the most fire-prone areas, and propose locally adapted Nature-based Solutions to enhance ecological resilience and promote the sustainable management of this forest ecosystem.
Methodology and main findings
The study is based on an integrated eco-landscape assessment designed to characterise the current state of the forest and evaluate the combined effects of climate change and anthropogenic pressures. The methodology integrates land use, topography, spatiotemporal changes, and wildfire risk mapping with surveys conducted among local residents and officers of the Regional Forest Directorate. It also includes an assessment of risk and vulnerability indicators, complemented by a SWOT analysis.
To identify the mechanisms underlying forest vulnerability, the figure below presents a conceptual framework summarising the main wildfire risk factors through a systemic cause-and-effect approach. The assessment highlights six interrelated categories of drivers:
- Climatic conditions, characterised by severe water stress and high temperatures;
- Vegetation characteristics, including the presence of highly flammable species and continuous forest fuel cover;
- Topographic constraints, particularly steep slopes and rugged terrain;
- Limited accessibility, which delays firefighting operations and emergency response;
- Anthropogenic pressures, including overgrazing, illegal wood harvesting, and increasing human activity within the forest;
- Infrastructure-related risks, particularly those associated with power lines and the proximity of the Oued Ezzen forest massif.
The interaction of these factors promotes vegetation drying, increases fuel loads and landscape flammability, and complicates both prevention and firefighting operations. The findings demonstrate that, despite its high ecological, landscape, and heritage value, the Aïn Snoussi forest remains highly vulnerable to the combined impacts of climate change and human activities. Drought, habitat fragmentation, anthropogenic pressures, and the increasing wildfire risk emerge as the main drivers of ecosystem degradation, leading to reduced ecological resilience and the progressive loss of essential ecosystem functions.
Nature-based Solutions
To address these challenges, Nature-based Solutions (NbS) provide an effective approach for enhancing the resilience of forest ecosystems to wildfires. By relying on natural ecological processes, NbS reduce wildfire risk, restore degraded ecosystems, and safeguard ecosystem services over the long term. Their effectiveness, however, depends on their adaptation to the ecological, climatic, geomorphological, and socio-economic characteristics of each territory.
For the Aïn Snoussi forest, an integrated intervention plan is proposed, combining complementary actions such as natural and assisted forest regeneration, fuel load reduction, the establishment of vegetated firebreaks and fuel breaks, the restoration of ecological corridors, and the development of agroforestry systems integrated with the sustainable management of silvopastoral areas.
In mountainous sectors characterised by steep slopes and high erosion susceptibility, interventions focus on slope stabilisation, soil restoration, and improved water runoff management to reduce erosion processes and preserve water resources.
This spatially differentiated approach, which tailors interventions according to local ecological characteristics and levels of vulnerability, represents a fundamental principle of Nature-based Solutions. It maximises the effectiveness and long-term sustainability of management actions while strengthening the resilience of the forest ecosystem. These interventions aim not only to reduce wildfire risk but also to restore the ecological functions of the forest and promote the sustainable management and valorisation of its natural resources.
Find out more:
- Website: https://www.interregnextmed.eu/projects/medfirewise/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/medfirewise-project/posts/
- X: https://x.com/MedFireWise
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MedFireWiseProject
This contribution is the work of the MedFireWise research team in Tunisia: Saida Hammami, Hamdi Aouinti, Nour Ben Jdida, Makram Askri, Mohamed Hasni, and Issam Touhami.
