2nd Call of Forest Fires Research selected 18 projects

The Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) published this week the results of the evaluation of the 2nd Call of Projects of Scientific Research and Technological Development within the scope of Prevention and Fighting of Forest Fires - 2018, with 18 research projects recommended for funding. In total, the Call translates into an investment of nearly 5 million euros, over three years, for the implementation of the selected projects.

This annual Call , which will have a third edition at the end of this year, resulted from the Resolution of the Council of Ministers No. 159/2017, of 30 October, in which it was determined the creation of an R&D Program for the prevention and combat of forest fires, with a financial envelope of 15 million euros for research projects selected under three annual Calls , to be carried out by FCT between 2017 and 2019. The objective of this program is to reinforce R&D activities aimed at encouraging and strengthening scientific and technological competencies and capabilities in the prevention and fighting of forest fires, as well as ensuring the appropriation and incorporation of scientific knowledge in decision support in operational systems and facilitating the production of new knowledge oriented towards the solution of concrete problems.

The 18 projects proposed for funding in this latest Call, which received a total of 103 applications, are distributed over the following areas: Attitudes and behaviors towards fire prevention and fire fighting and land management, including its collaborative aspect (3 projects); Fire management and extreme fire behavior (1 project ); Management and valorization of biomass in rural spaces (3 projects); Planning models and preventive forestry (1 project); Meteorology, forecasting and risk management, including ignition detection and optimization of early flares and development of intelligent observation systems (2 projects); Post-fire restoration and forest management, at different temporal and spatial scales (1 project); Sensing, information and emergency communication systems and their integration in decision processes (2 projects); and Occupational health and safety of firefighting technicians (5 projects).