For the current 9 months, 671 fires in the ecosystem were recorded in our region.
In spring and autumn, the number of fires in Lviv Oblast, as well as in other regions of Ukraine, increases. A significant part consists of fires in ecosystems caused by human negligence and elementary burning of dry grass.
The Department of Emergency Services of the Lviv region emphasizes that fires in ecosystems cause significant material damage and create an additional burden on the work of fire-rescue units, which is extremely important in wartime.
“This year, out of all 2,150 fires on the territory of our region, fires in ecosystems account for 30%. This is a high indicator. During this year, together with the State Inspectorate, the National Police and local self-government bodies, we organized more than 1,200 raids. 128 residents of the region were brought to administrative responsibility for violating fire safety rules. The largest number of violators, 27 people, were recorded in the Lviv district,” Ihor Bregin, head of the Department of Emergency Situations Prevention of the Emergency Situations Service of the Lviv Region, said during a briefing at the Official Media Center of the Lviv Regional State Administration.
By the way, raids take place every day and even outside of working hours, because according to the rescuers, citizens start burning dead trees more actively in the evening. And rescuers use quadcopters to more effectively record crimes.
“Most fires in the Lviv region are caused by people’s carelessness. It is about dry burning or careless behavior with fire during picnics in the open area. In order to avoid forest fires, this year our foresters made almost 400 kilometers of mineralized strips. 1.5 thousand kilometers of existing lanes were renewed. An additional 16 towers equipped with video surveillance cameras were installed in order to detect fires in time and put them out,” said the acting director. Oksana Viytyk, Director of the Department of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Lviv Regional State Administration.
Burning dry grass causes great harm to people. During dry burning, a lot of smoke is released into the air, which contains heavy metals: benzopyrene, dioxins and carbon monoxide. All together or separately, they cause oncological diseases in humans, poisoning of the body, dizziness and even deaths.
“There is an opinion that as a result of dry burning, ash is formed, which can be used as a fertilizer for the soil. In fact, it is not. First of all, this dry land contains many harmful heavy metals and pesticides that harm the soil. Secondly, during a fire, animals die in burrows, birds in nests, thereby causing great losses to the ecosystem. In steppe systems, during a fire, the seeds are destroyed, from which the grass cover is regenerated, and in the place of grass stands that enrich our flora, alien introducers grow – Sosnovsky’s borschivka, ragweed, Canadian goldenrod. That is, instead of having beautiful blooming fields, we have bushes of herbs that harm the environment,” Oksana Viytyk emphasized.
Violation of fire safety rules entails administrative responsibility. If we are talking about forest fires, then the minimum fine for citizens is 1.5 thousand hryvnias and 4.5 thousand for officials. If this fire caused damage to forest plantations, then the minimum fine for citizens will be from 4.5 thousand, and for officials – from 10,700 thousand. An additional fine is charged for each destroyed tree. If we are talking about control over the burning of dry vegetation, the minimum amount of the fine is stipulated in the legislation – 3,060 hryvnias, and the maximum – 30,600 hryvnias.
“Last year there was a case when, during a raid together with specialists of the State Emergency Service, we recorded a violation by an official on the territory of the Sambir district. The person was fined 15,000, of course, she did not agree and appealed the decision twice. As a result, the citizen paid a double fine. By the way, if a person was previously held administratively liable for burning dry matter, but continues to violate the law, he will be fined again in the maximum amount,” said Vasyl Stryshchak, deputy head of the State Environmental Inspection in the Lviv region.
If the fire spreads to larger areas, measures should be taken to eliminate it. First of all, call the emergency services on the number “101”. If it is possible to put out a small fire on your own (without harming your own life, of course), then you can cover the area of the fire with a blanket to limit the access of air or extinguish it with water to reduce the temperature and wait for the arrival of the emergency department.