Wiley InterScience

The aim of this work is to study Lithuanian stakeholders’ perceptions of fire impacts in protected areas. For this study, the stakeholders consisted of foresters, ecologists and farmers. A clear understanding of the opinions of stakeholders about fire effects on environmental, social and economic aspects of Lithuanian protected areas will allow an assessment of the stakeholders’ reaction to fire policy, including government measures towards fire prevention, suppression and application of prescribed fire to landscape management. The results showed that stakeholders in general think that fire is not a threat to Lithuania and to the ecological processes in the protected areas. However, they agree that fires have negative impacts on soil properties and fertility but are not to an irremediable or irrecoverable extent. Stakeholders disagree that fire has positive consequences for agricultural and cattle activities but agreed that vegetation recovers quickly. They do not see fire as a social and economic problem, do not agree that prescribed fire could be used to landscape management, and believe that mechanical thinning is a better management tool than prescribed fire. Stakeholders agree that fire does not have negative impacts on the biodiversity. These opinions depended on the age group of the respondent but especially on the respondent’s professional occupation.

In Lithuania, fire is frequently used by farmers as a tool to remove dry grass, improve soil nutrient status and help soil tilling. However, little is known about the ecological impacts of these fires, including vegetation recovery. The objective of this work is to study the impacts of a spring grassland fire on vegetation recuperation on an east-facing (A) and a west-facing slope (B), considering fire severity and slope position, 10, 17, 31 and 46 days after the fire. Because of their effects on fire behaviour, aspect, steepness and heterogeneity of topography favoured higher fire severity on slope B than on slope A. Three different slope positions were identified on slope A – flat top, middle slope and flat bottom – and five on slope B – flat top, middle slope, flat middle slope, slope bottom slope and flat bottom. Fire severity was high in top slope positions. The recovery of vegetation was very fast. By the end of the study, vegetation covered nearly 100% of the study area, although fire severity, aspect and slope characteristics had implications on vegetation recovery. Plant cover recovered quickly on slope A. Ten and 17 days after the fire, plant cover was high in the bottom positions, where fire severity was relatively low. The major vegetation recuperation was observed between 17 and 31 days after the fire, in response to high rainfall.

The objective of this study was to determine the presence of alcohol and drugs in drivers severely injured in traffic crashes in six European countries. Data were collected from 2492 seriously injured drivers of cars and vans in Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Lithuania, and the Netherlands, between 2007 and 2010. Toxicological analysis was performed with chromatographic techniques on whole blood for 23 substances. The percentage of drivers positive for at least one psychoactive substance ranged between 28% (Lithuania) and 53% (Belgium). Alcohol (≥0.1 g/L) was the most common finding with the highest percentage in Belgium (42.5%). Among the alcohol-positive drivers, 90.5% had a blood alcohol count (BAC) ≥0.5 g/L and 65.7% had a BAC ≥1.3 g/L. Benzodiazepines (0.0–10.2%) and medicinal opioids (0.5–7.8%) were the most prevailing medicinal drugs, but half of the concentrations were lower than therapeutic. Cannabis (0.5–7.6%) was the most prevailing illicit drug. Alcohol was found in combination with drugs in 2.3-13.2% of the drivers. Drug combinations were found in 0.5–4.3% of the drivers. This study confirms the high prevalence of psychoactive substances in injured drivers, but we observed large differences between the participating countries. Alcohol was the most common finding, followed by cannabis and benzodiazepines. Notable are the many drivers having a BAC≥1.3 g/L. The majority of the substances were found in combination with another psychoactive substance, mostly alcohol. The high prevalence of high BACs and combinations (compared to roadside surveys) suggest that those drivers are most at risk and that preventive actions should target them preferentially.

We analyse whether the European Community provides for articulating a common set of priorities for society and supports openness and participation in the area of forest policy at the Community level. In doing so, we review the institutional framework and, using the results of the internet-based stakeholder consultation, assess the presence of interested parties at the level of the European Community. In addition, from the same consultation we learn about the opinions of the interest groups concerning possible areas for enhancing coherence in forest governance in the European Union. The results of the study demonstrate that there is a range of possibilities for participation of different interest groups and flow of information between the European Commission and the stakeholders. However, the number of interest groups prepared to actively participate in Community-level forest and forestry-related policy- and decision-making is relatively low. We conclude that the present institutional arrangements should be sufficient for open and participatory priority setting in forest governance at the European Community level. However, based on the stakeholder consultation we also conclude that co-ordination and co-operation, and hence coherence, in forest and forestry-related policy- and decision-making at the Community level should be improved.

The cation concentration increases at medium temperatures and decrease at higher temperatures, especially the concentration of divalent cations. The monovalent cations showed a larger concentration at moderate temperatures, mainly in Albufeira ash slurries. The analysis of the Ca:Mg ratio also showed that for the same temperature, a higher severity results for Albufeira litter. Potential negative effects on soil properties are observed at medium and higher temperatures. These negative effects include a higher percentage of mass loss, meaning more soil may be exposed to erosion, higher pH values and greater cation release from ash, especially monovalalent cations (K+, Na+) in higher proportions than the divalent ions (Ca2+, Mg2+), that can lead to impacts on soil physical properties like aggregate stability. Furthermore, the ions in ash may alter soil chemistry which may be detrimental to some plants thus altering the recovery of these ecosystems after fire. Low intensity prescribed fire can be a useful tool to land management in these sites, due to the reduced effects of fire temperatures on the physical and chemical properties of surface litter, and can reduce the risk of high temperature wildland fires by reducing fuel loadings. From the perspective of water resources, lower fire temperatures produce fewer impacts on the chemistry of overland flow and there is less probability that the soil surface will be eroded.