For more than six days, photos of the raging fires spreading through Chongqing tugged at the heartstrings of countless Chinese people. Staring at the scene of slew of fires and complete devastation, I’m writing in distress to propose several tactics about limiting wildfires, and clarify the consequent benefits.

Undoubtedly, the severity of wildfires in China can by no means be overlooked. A single wildfire could damage the intense and painstaking efforts made by generations. According to the State Forestry and Grassland Administration, in our country, the number of young-growth forests burned down by wildfires exceeds 10 million every year, which equals to 40% of the trees we take pains annually to plant (compared to the statistics from Bloomberg).[中国日报网记者]In September, 2019, China recorded 163 forest and grassland fires, the highest number since 2007[Bloomberg]. Hill fires are destroying the biodiversity greatly, not only burning the trees and other wild plant resources, but also endangering wildlife’s life and damaging their habitats. Worst of all, they would threaten people’s lives and property. For instance, the lighting-sparked forest fire in Sichuan Province in March, 2019, killed 27 firefighters and four local assistants in a single day, which made that Monday “the deadliest day for emergency workers in China since the Ministry of Emergency Management was formed last year”[Associated Press]. Besides, the pollution and greenhouse effect would also be aggravated from carbon emissions and rising temperature.

Such being the case, what are the reasons for the frequent occurrence of wildfires? Without doubt, under the circumstances that global warming is already leading to more spontaneous combustion in forest, people’s improper behaviors are adding fuel to the fire. According to the statistics of China’s Forest and Grassland Fire Prevention Division, burning charcoal was the most likely source of forest fires, followed by burning paper in graves, smoking in the wild, afforestation in the mountains, and children playing with fire, which five human factors accounted for more than half (57.91%) of the identified fires.[马世雯等] Several cultural traditions of certain festivals including burning joss sticks and Paper Money directly cause fire hazards. It is estimated that during the Tomb Sweeping Holiday, tens of millions of people would return to their hometowns to burn incense and paper offerings at their forefathers’ graves, which as well pose great threat on the adjacent woods[Bloomberg].

In that case, what can be done? From my perspective, first and foremost, the administration can put more emphasis on the wildfire prevention education. On one hand, the department could propagandize the severity of wildfires and the relevant laws and regulations, to familiarize the general public with sense of fire prevention. Offline actions can be taken to spread fire prevention knowledge into communities by preaching tuned in to the tastes for young and old alike. For example, firemen and community workers can give lectures, hold quizzes, and play games concerning fire-preventing knowledge at the community centers. Also, as technologies improves by leaps and bounds, it is advisable that we make full use of digital information dissemination online, including popular social networks and video platforms, as to publish some intriguing short videos or documentaries on websites as Tik Tok and bilibili for wider coverage, and invent several funny slogans for better publicity. As a successful case, the tense CCTV documentary 119! has over 286,000 views on bilibili so far, with a great many comments on the knowledge that the audience has learned from it. It’s fair to say that, the more people get to know about the gravity of this issue, the fewer wild fires.

Moreover, there’s no doubt that the development of fire prevention technology should be further promoted. To be specific, for one thing, we should develop high-tech robots and drones that could spot and fight fires faster, either on land or in air, to break the limitations of terrain and traffic, and prevent firefighters from having to enter deep into the fire. From October, 2022 to the Spring Festival in 2023, the drones played an important role in wildfires in different districts and counties in Hechi, Sichuan for multiple times.[河池市应急管理局] Thus, huge investments should be made to advance the research. For another, cultivating fire-resistant tree breeds, like gingko rich in moisture, or oak with thick bark, is also a good way out since it can prevent fires from ever starting. There are as well other feasible methods include establishing firebreaks for isolation and fire suppression. A forest firebreak is an open area between forests and other areas such as villages, schools, factories, etc. [国家林业和草原局] The purpose is to divide forests into smaller pieces to stop the sprawl of broader fires. In short, the utilization of technology could contribute a lot to minimize losses.

Last but not the least, attention ought to be paid to the cultivation of personnel who are to be capable of preventing and extinguishing fire. Firstly, it’s necessary to set up majors in wildfire prevention, fire-fighting command, and aviation fire control. Colleges and universities, vocational schools, and research institutes should be encouraged to open relevant disciplines to train professionals with fire preventing and fighting expertise, so as to cultivate more reserve talents for fire prevention. Secondly, more policy support and more complete regulations is in need, which may reasonably ensure the benefits package of fire prevention practitioners. Feasible measures includes taking out personal insurance for firefighters, and carrying out recognition and rewards. The social climate of honoring firefighters will greatly benefit the recruitment of talent and advancement of the whole industry.

To put it in a nutshell, in the name of contemporary youth, I sincerely wish that my proposal would be taken into consideration, and the indispensable attention be paid to prevent and extinguish wild fires. As mentioned above, the acts of enhancing public awareness towards wildfires, vigorously developing fire-fighting technologies, and encouraging the training of firefighters will significantly protect economic and biological values. As Xi Jinping puts it: “The struggle with natural disasters is the eternal subject of human survival and development. We ought to be more conscious of the relationship between people and the nature.”[习近平] Hope that we will make joint efforts on fire prevention to “make our country's sky bluer, and mountains lusher” in the near future.[Xinhua].

Works Cited

[1]国家林业和草原局. 国家林草局将建850公里防火隔离带[EB/OL]. www.forestry.gov.cn/main/586/20230414/123322097613467.html. 2023年5月14日访问.

[2]河池市应急管理局. 厉害了！无人机“硬核”助力森林防灭火[EB/OL].yjglj.hechi.gov.cn/zwdt/t15835338.shtml. 2023年5月16日访问.

[3]马世雯,刘昱圻,朱瑾奕,张海芳.数说中国森林火灾这十年[EB/OL]. www.forestry.gov.cn/slga/3122/20210723/104902888131917.html. 2023年5月14日访问.

[4]人民网. 习近平谈防灾减灾：从源头上防范 把问题解决在萌芽之时[EB/OL].

www.qstheory.cn/zdwz/2020-05/12/c_1125972870.htm. 2023年5月16日访问.

[5] 中国日报网记者.【中国那些事儿】美媒：中国40年植树10亿棵 造林工程经验启迪世界[EB/OL].

cn.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202009/15/WS5f607509a3101e7ce97247ff.html.2023年5月14日访问.

[6]Associated Press. “Lightning Sparked Wildfire That Kills 31 People in China.” Claims Journal, 3 Apr.2020.

weather.com/news/news/2019-04-01-china-wildfire-sichuan-mountain-deaths. Accessed 16 May 2023.

[7]Bloomberg. “China Wildfire Provokes Public Anger as 19 Emergency Workers Die.” Bloomberg, 3 Apr.2020.

www.bnnbloomberg.ca/china-wildfire-provokes-public-anger-as-19-emergency-workers-die-1.1417106. Accessed 16 May 2023.

[8]Xinhua. “Xi Jinping participates in Beijing's tree planting activity.” Chinadaily, 31 Mar.2022. www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202203/31/WS6245008aa310fd2b29e544b7.html.Accessed 14 May 2023.

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