APA Itacaré-Serra Grande and Parque do Conduru Draw Up a Wildfire Plan

The management councils of the Costa de Itacaré-Serra Grande Environmental Protection Area (APA) and the Serra do Conduru State Park (PESC) have been working since August on a Forest Fire Prevention and Control Plan for both territories. The working group's next meeting is scheduled for October 22.

One plan for two territories

The initiative was reported in a text by Instituto Tijuípe, published on October 13 and reproduced by Gazeta da Semana. According to the material, the discussion seeks local tools to reduce the effects of climate change, especially those of the ongoing El Niño. The plan is being developed with the State Department of the Environment and involves actions by civil society and by the municipal administrations of Itacaré and Uruçuca.

The APA includes stretches of coastline familiar to visitors to the town, such as the beaches of Ponta do Xaréu and Itacarezinho, shown in aerial images by Adriano Kirihara for the Pulsar Imagens photo agency, from November 2023. The neighboring Parque do Conduru protects areas of Atlantic Forest. For that reason, planning against fire matters both to those who live in the region and to those who visit it.

What the records show

According to the survey carried out by the organizations that make up the two councils, fires in the region occur in a localized and sporadic way. They are mostly associated with roadsides and areas under human influence. The causes listed include clearing of farmland, burning of waste and garbage, improper disposal of cigarette butts, and irregular occupations that involve clearing land.

MapBiomas data cited in the text indicate that about 88 hectares of forest areas were hit by fire in the territory between 2014 and 2025. The largest records coincide with El Niño periods, especially 2015-2016 and 2022-2023.

Local structure and training

Itacaré already has a Civil Defense, and 17 fire brigade members have been trained. The text points out, however, the need to strengthen the supply of personal protective equipment and of tools for controlling and putting out fires. As for Uruçuca, there was no information yet about the equivalent structure.

A guide for fire brigade members

The same publication covers the launch, by Fundo Casa, of "Muito Além do Combate: O Guia do Brigadista sobre a Política Nacional de Manejo Integrado do Fogo" (Far Beyond Firefighting: The Brigade Member's Guide to the National Integrated Fire Management Policy). At 93 pages, it translates Law No. 14,944/2024 into accessible language, drawing on the experiences and needs of brigade members from different regions of the country. According to the text, community and volunteer brigades are now an official part of the national policy.

The guide is organized into six chapters: concepts defined by the law; principles, guidelines and objectives; governance; instruments, such as the Integrated Fire Management Plans and the Forest Brigades Program; rules for the use of fire; and a final chapter with the 11 questions brigades ask most often, ranging from life insurance to formalizing the group. The material also points out that the work of the brigades includes prevention, environmental education, monitoring, planning and recovery, and not only fighting flames.

Beatriz Roseiro, Programs Manager at Fundo Casa, says in the text: "We want the guide to reach brigades, communities, organizations, public officials, researchers and everyone working to build responses to the climate emergency".

Details

• What: meeting of the working group for the Forest Fire Prevention and Control Plan
• When: October 22
• Territories: APA Costa de Itacaré-Serra Grande and Parque Estadual da Serra do Conduru (Itacaré and Uruçuca)
• Brigade Member's Guide: available for download on the Instituto Tijuípe page

With information from Instituto Tijuípe (text by Márcio Leal), via Gazeta da Semana, and Pulsar Imagens.