When Ice Turns to Water: Forest Fires and Indigenous Settlements in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia)

In recent years, forest fires have covered many parts of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). The fires often threaten populated areas and Indigenous communities as well. In 2020–2021, the fires caused enormous economic and environmental damage and the exact amount is yet to be fully cal-culated. Concer...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Filippova, V. (Author), Solovyeva, V. (Author), Vinokurova, L. (Author)
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI 2022
Subjects:
Online Access:View Fulltext in Publisher
LEADER 01879nam a2200229Ia 4500
001 10.3390-su14084759
008 220517s2022 CNT 000 0 und d
020 |a 20711050 (ISSN) 
245 1 0 |a When Ice Turns to Water: Forest Fires and Indigenous Settlements in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) 
260 0 |b MDPI  |c 2022 
856 |z View Fulltext in Publisher  |u https://doi.org/10.3390/su14084759 
520 3 |a In recent years, forest fires have covered many parts of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). The fires often threaten populated areas and Indigenous communities as well. In 2020–2021, the fires caused enormous economic and environmental damage and the exact amount is yet to be fully cal-culated. Concerns about the sheer scale of carbon emissions into the atmosphere were widely dis-cussed by world media. Social scientists of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) raised the following questions: how do Indigenous communities live in a condition of constant threat from annual forest fires? What environmental, social, and economic challenges do they face, what do they fear, and what are their expectations? We reviewed Indigenous traditional knowledge related to fire management and firefighting techniques and analyzed Indigenous peoples’ perceptions of changes in the ecological balance of water resources and permafrost. The authors also discuss the causes of forest fires, connections with industrial and transport development, and social consequences. The article is based on 2010–2021 field studies. © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. 
650 0 4 |a arctic 
650 0 4 |a forest fires 
650 0 4 |a Indigenous 
650 0 4 |a Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) 
650 0 4 |a Siberia 
650 0 4 |a wildfires 
700 1 |a Filippova, V.  |e author 
700 1 |a Solovyeva, V.  |e author 
700 1 |a Vinokurova, L.  |e author 
773 |t Sustainability (Switzerland)