RURAL LANDSCAPE IN SARDINIA a difficult struggle to survive
"A land made from fire and stones by a pact between the Creator and the Devil": this is how Gavino Ledda, author of Padre padrone, a novel portraying the struggle for survival of the rural poor in Sardinia, describes the tortuous terrain of his native region.
Many years later it seems as if that pact is still being sealed, for Sardinia has been depleted by forest fires more than any other area in the Mediterranean basin. Wooded areas account for a total of 414266 ha, of which 269367 are privately owned. Now, they are being systematically reduced and impoverished year by year. Once a producer of enough wood for all its domestic purposes, Sardinia now imports thousands of tonnes per year.
Says Dr Giuseppe Barberis, Forestry Inspector, Sassari, "Since ancient times when the Phoenician Roman and Spanish invaders cut down forests to prevent the Sardinians hiding in them, forested areas have been constantly destroyed either by overcutting or by fire. For example, soap making at the beginning of the century, when wood ash was mixed with other ingredients, took its toll as did charcoal production during the Second World War."
Barberis also points to the exploitation of virgin forests by Genovese speculators in the early nineteenth century. Although a lack of statistical information for this period inhibits a true assessment of damage done by fire, it was recorded by Canon Spano that a 3-day fire near Cuglieri (Oristano) produced "flames so high it was possible to read at night as if it were daylight".
Rarely are fires a result of natural causes (1 percent). More frequent are those caused by negligence, a negligence aggravated by the upsurge in tourism and by the problems of rubbish disposal. Blame has also been placed upon "malicious fires" caused by vendetta rivalry, farmer-proprietor friction, political grievances or even the hope of creating fire-fighting jobs. Another factor is the ancient practice of burning undergrowth to prepare pastureland for sheep grazing. There are at present more than 3 million head of sheep in Sardinia compared to only 900000 at the end of the last century.
The result has been an unprecedented explosion of fires on thousands of hectares of cork oak, holm oak, juniper, chestnut and pine, creating stark black moonscapes devoid of life. In the summer of 1985 alone, 4900 fires were registered in Sardinia, destroying 55000 ha, 8000 of them forested. In the exceptionally hot dry summer of 1983, 124216 ha burned, 37505 of them forested.
Wildlife Fires have also destroyed vast areas of natural habitat, and Sardinian forests, once a haven for wildlife, now risk becoming death-traps for species such as the wild boar, deer and the wild ram, which are protected as species but are not included within a national park or other kind of reserve. Only a few examples of the sheep-eating griffon vulture survive in inaccessible rocky domains in Sardinia and the once common eagle is now found only in remote places. Up until 50 years ago the wild ram could be seen in many areas until it was driven from its natural habitat by environmental changes caused by man.
The fire weapon The Assessorato della Difesa dell'Ambiente, accusing the sheep farmers of indiscriminate burning of pastureland, makes what is perhaps a brutal assessment: "The sheep-farmer is not interested in a technology that is, by definition, not traditional; his is a static culture; his ideas reflect only tradition; his archaic mentality prevents him from accepting any kind of innovation. He does not see nature as an element that may be activated, oriented and used, but as a continuous obstacle against which he must combat day by day, an obstacle that reveals itself in the scarcity of the soil and poverty of the pasture. In the face of this, the only technology he can conceive of to eliminate underbrush is the most simple and basic technology - that of fire."
TRADITIONAL SARDINIAN TOOLS for clearing and planting
Rural life In the past the small farmer fought a seemingly continuous battle against the forces of nature, uprooting encroaching vegetation with pickaxe and hoe. For Gavino Ledda, reality began at an early age when he was removed from school by his father to help support the family. "We wanted to plant some crops," he says, "but first it meant clearing the undergrowth, no easy task as the previous tenants had given up trying. My father, brother and I attacked the stubborn mass with curved machete knives and wood-axes, then heaped the fine wood into rows. The thicker spiny brush was amassed well away from the trees and burned until reduced to ashes. It took several months to clear 20 ha. Nowadays people spend less time on agricultural and pastoral activities because they no longer have to face the problem of survival."
Firefighting Over the past few decades, thousands of sheep farmers, like Ledda, have abandoned the countryside in search of more remunerative work in urban areas. As a consequence, they have left behind a buildup of highly combustible material in wooded areas and have thus dropped a fire-prevention problem of gigantic proportions into the lap of the undermanned Forestry Corps.
High summer temperatures (27-45°C) with little or no rain, low humidity (30-50 percent) and often strong winds combined with terrain possessing very little water-holding capabilities these factors make ideal conditions for fire in both deciduous and "resinous" conifer areas. It seems ironic that an island which boasts some of the most beautiful waters of the Mediterranean should lack terrestrial water resources.
A low and very few reservoirs, coupled with the problem of often inadequate inland roads, have opened the way to a more controversial type of fire-fighting that of direct attack from the air. It is controversial not only because of the lack of coordination between air and ground forces, but also because of the negative effect the wrong kind of publicity that which dwells on the excitement of spectacular air intervention rather than prevention may have on the public.
Dr Giancarlo Calabri, Chief of Italy's fire services, worried about the nightly firefighting shows on television says, "My French colleagues have written to me of their concern about the attraction of these programmes, which make firefighting look like children's games. Not long ago a shepherd boy, when asked why he had set fire to the side of a mountain, replied, "I wanted some excitement because I'm always alone. At least if I start a fire the aeroplanes or the firefighters come'.''
Fire prevention More than hall' the total area of Sardinia is in the hands of private landowners, and fire prevention (e.g., establishing and maintaining fire-breaks) rests on the shoulders of the individual proprietor. In the larger estates vast wooded areas therefore present a hazardous fire risk when the fire-breaks envisaged by law become too costly or complicated to maintain. In government-owned areas, inadequate fire prevention because of an undermanned firefighting service often leads to reliance on firefighting "troops'' who arrive from the Italian mainland during the busy summer period.
Since ancient times when the Carta de Logu (1 April 1395) set out severe punishments for arsonists prison or the severing of the right hand - penal laws have changed considerably. Strict regulations controlling the opening of fire-breaks and the burning of pastureland during the summer months and at certain times of the day, however, are not always easy to enforce and it seems that these laws are not sufficient to curb the "summer epidemic".
Gavino Ledda cites several things that are necessary: an adequately manned in situ firefighting unit; continuous fire prevention programmes by the bodies concerned, including the reforestation of native trees; and an education programme oriented toward environmental awareness, including the reintroduction of a tree-planting day in school.
"Positive steps must be taken to preserve our natural heritage," he says, "such as the creation of national parks so that wildlife and our natural resources are adequately protected. The transformation of sheep rearing from a purely pastoral activity into a modern zootechnic industry is necessary. It is very important to separate sheep-rearing activities from tree plantation areas because they are natural enemies."
Perhaps that is why in Sardinia, this land of fire and stones, the pact between the Creator and the Devil is still being contested.
Susan Riddle Rome
Forest fires in Italy by region, 1900
The International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticides was adopted by the 23rd Session of the FAO Conference in November 1985. The objective is to set out responsibilities and establish voluntary standards of conduct for public and private entities engaged in the distribution and use of pesticides.
The Code recognizes the need for a cooperative effort between governments of exporting and importing countries to promote practices that ensure the efficient and safe use of pesticides, while minimizing the health and environmental problems caused by improper use. The Code is designed to be used, within the context of national Law, as a basis whereby government authorities, pesticide manufacturers and others concerned may judge what constitutes acceptable practices.
Those wishing to receive a copy of the Code should ask for the International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticides, C 85/25, Rome. FAO (1985).
