FOREST FIRES IN 2020 - ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL CONSEQUENCES

The continuing climatic anomalies and the changed social realities caused by the global COVID-19 pandemic impose new responsibilities and new solutions for the management and use of forests. Experts have proved that overexploitation of the forests and the annual burning of huge forest areas seriously jeopardize food security on a regional and global scale, the economic stability of communities reduces, and the environmental degradation increases. The fiery hell in Australia in 2020 is one of the worst wildlife disasters in modern history. There are more than 115,000 square kilometers of bushes and forests devastated, thousands of homes destroyed, people and over three million wild animals killed. In 2020, 499 fires were registered in the forest territories of Bulgaria with total area of 52455 dka. Deciduous and coniferous vegetation, grasses, border farmland and infrastructure are affected. The paper summarizes the financial damage and resources used to extinguish the fires in the forests of Bulgaria in 2020, regardless of their ownership.