Those forest fires suppression efforts were verified and confirmed by the official records collected since 1980 by Thailand’s Forest Fires Control Division of the National Park, Wildlife, and Plant Conservation Department, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (a former division in the Thai Royal Forest Department, Ministry of Agriculture). Those statistics clearly showed that most of those fires almost 100% were ignited by human beings. Therefore, in this context, it is safe to conclude that all forest fires in Thailand are man-made. And their major causes are directly related to activities of the inhabitants in the rural areas who live near the forests. These activities include, for example, gathering of forest non-timber products, agricultural debris burning, incendiary fire starting, hunting, and carelessness (Akaakara 1999 and 2003).
References
Plodpail A, Akaakara S, Manirat B, Parnnakapitak W, Songporn N (1987) The Management of Forest Fire Control in Thailand, Natural Disaster Office, Royal Forest Department, Thailand.
Akaakara S (2001) Forest Fire Control in Thailand, Forest Fire Control Office, Royal Forest Department, Thailand, 2-5.
Akaakara S (1999) Forest Fire Control for Thailand, Forest Fire Control Office, Royal Forest Department, Thailand, 1-18, 80-109.
Akaakara S (2003) Forest Fire Control Office Web Page, http://www.dnp.go.th/ forestfire/, the National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department, Thailand.
Veerachai Tanpipat, Forest Fire Management Technical Advisor to DG of Royal Forest Department
https://www.linkedin.com/in/veerachai-tanpipat-6596816b/
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