Abdelkrim Chelghoum appelle à la multiplication des campagnes de reboisement

Abdelkrim Chelghoum calls for an increase in reforestation campaigns

Fight against fires

The president of the Algerian Club of Major Risks, Professor Abdelkrim Chelghoum, called, yesterday Tuesday in Algiers, for the multiplication of reforestation campaigns to develop the plant cover. “We have practically 4 million hectares of plant cover that it must be preserved and developed,” he recommended.
Welcoming, on the occasion, the investments made by the State to counter fires and natural disasters but also and above all the decision of the President of the Republic, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, to resume the ”green dam”.
Speaking on the airwaves of Channel III of the National Radio where he was the guest of the program ”Editorial Guest”, Professor Abdelkrim Chelghoum estimated that the recent acquisition of convertible water bombers is an excellent initiative from the Government which will enable both the fight against fires and the fight against locusts to be strengthened.
Highlighting the need to strengthen awareness campaigns and preventive measures in order, he indicated, to reduce the impact of disasters on people and property.
Recently, the president of the Algerian Major Hazards Club, Professor Abdelkrim Chelghoum, warned of the multiple climatic challenges facing the region, including floods, fires, desertification and the invasion of locusts.
“Algeria is directly confronted with these climate risks, requiring a complete review of the natural disaster management strategy,” he said on Channel III of the National Radio. Underlining the urgency of reviewing the management strategy for these phenomena, given their increasing unpredictability.
To significantly reduce the number of fires, Professor Abdelkrim Chelghoum recommends the application of basic preventive measures such as the opening of forest tracks, the creation of water points and the control of urbanization. Particularly insisting on strengthening systems to fight forest fires. “The country only has 4 million hectares of forest,” he said. Criticizing, in passing, the traditional approaches of the General Directorate of Forests, before pleading for the implementation of spatial risk mapping. According to him, this mapping would be a crucial tool for risk management, making it possible to locate and quantify dangers across all the wilayas of the country.
Note that for this season, a fleet of 25 aerial devices has been mobilized to fight fires in addition to drones used for fire detection. “This is the fourth year that we have used aerial means of extinguishing fires, whether chartered or acquired. On the plan to acquire seven water bomber planes in 2024, six have already been received at Algiers airport, the seventh will arrive in the fourth quarter of this year. Six other aircraft were chartered,” said Hamid Afra, the general delegate for major risks at the Ministry of the Interior and Local Authorities.
Asked about the availability of water to put out the fires, Hamid Afra wanted to reassure. “We have 12 dams eligible for scooping, because they have a body of water with a length of at least 500 meters, a condition for an airplane to be able to refuel there. There are also water basins made in the forests and sea water available along the coast,” he said. Rabah Mokhtari