Can Forest Fire Cognizance Garner Community Support for Fire Prevention? Evidence from the Sal Forest of Northern India.

Our study of forest fires in the fringe villages of the sal forest in Dehradun district of Northern India assesses the local communities' awareness of forest fires and willingness to pay for fire prevention measures. We also examined the effect of fire on the regeneration of sal. Our results indicate that the number of sal recruits in frequently burnt areas was significantly lower than in unburnt areas. Community perceptions revealed that around 80% of participants believed that fires were intentionally set to collect ectomycorrhizal fungi, thinking it would enhance the production of Astraeus hygrometricus. Furthermore, approximately 70.45% attributed the cause of fires to recreational activities of young people. All respondents acknowledged the negative consequences of forest fires, including loss of fauna (100%), adverse effects on air quality, and human-wildlife conflict (81.2%). A maximum likelihood estimator based multi-normal logit method was used to estimate WTP. Communities were aware of the consequences of forest fire and expressed a willingness to contribute (₹ 63.78 per month for 10 years) towards forest fire prevention efforts. These findings emphasize the importance of raising awareness and involving local communities in effective forest fire prevention strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]