Spatial-temporal characteristics and influencing factors of wildfire occurrence and correlation with WUI presence in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, China

AbstractWildfires not only directly affect ecology but also have a huge impact on social and economic stability. Enhancing the understanding of wildfire influences can guide the design of targeted strategies in mitigation plans and adaptation strategies. Here, we explored the spatial-temporal characteristics of wildfires in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region of China and the mechanisms of the effect of potential influencing factors on wildfire occurrence based on 2014–2020 wildfire data. The results show that wildfires mainly occur in spring and winter and decrease yearly. Among all the considered influencing factors, the occurrence of wildfire is most significantly affected by the temperature vegetation dry index (TVDI) and is also greatly affected by population and economy. Through interaction detection, it was found that the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) greatly interfered with wildfires. The high occurrence risk of wildfire was distributed in a blocky pattern in the middle and east of the study area. In addition, we also found a positive spatial correlation between the high wildland-urban interface (WUI) presence and high wildfire occurrence. These findings have improved our understanding of the impact of multiple influencing factors on wildfires and are supposed to facilitate the development of wildfire management strategies.