LAUSR

Fire is one of the main problems of the Atlantic Rainforest biome, even in protected areas such as Protected Areas (PAs or UC, in Portuguese). Thus, the aim of this study was to know the profile of forest fires in the Serra do Brigadeiro State Park (PESB-MG) and surroundings, as well as their responses in environmental variations. For this, we analyzed the information of Fire Incident Report (FIR or ROI, in Portuguese) and their interrelations with the environmental PESB systems through the analysis of spatial plans (land use and land cover and topography) and temporal (climatological elements). According to the results, only 38% of the records showed the causes of fires, of these, 77% were identified as anthropic. Analyzing the burned area, there was the highest number of occurrences within the class III (4.1 – 40.0 ha). The herbaceous vegetation, because of their favorable characteristics, was hardest hit. The relief also influenced the events, slope, aspect and height participated  significantly in the fire regime in the Park. The anthropic activity showed its influence to increase the size of the area burned in the vicinity of access routes. The climate controlled the temporal arrangement of events, where periods of lower Relative humidity of air, made the months of August and September as belonging to the normal fire season and accumulated rainfall determined the most problematic years. The results presented here provide information to support the making of more safe and reliable decisions in the prevention of forest fire occurrences in PESB and surroundings, as they contribute to a better understanding of the factors that control the fire occurrences in the region.