Governing wildfire in a global change context: lessons from water management in the Netherlands

Abstract

Abstract Background Wildfire management is increasingly shifting from firefighting to wildfire prevention aiming at disaster risk reduction. This implies fuel and landscape management and engagement with stakeholders. This transition is comparable to the history of water management in the Netherlands, which shifted from fighting against water to flood risk reduction and living with water. Here, we draw lessons from water management for integrated fire management that are useful for society, agencies, and government. To this end, we review the literature on integrated and adaptive water management in the Netherlands. Results Based on the results, we argue that (1) a holistic and integrated approach, (2) adaptive management, and (3) resilient landscapes through stakeholder participation are necessary to improve the resilience against and prevention of wildfires within integrated fire management. Conclusion To make society more resilient to wildfires and shift to a greater focus on prevention within disaster risk reduction, there is a need to take a more long-term perspective and include a wider range of stakeholders to develop new wildfire policies. Integrated fire management should facilitate and promote community initiatives to implement fire risk reduction measures in different landscapes and the wildland urban interface (WUI) including the use of nature-based solutions. Inspired by the successes in Dutch water management, fire management needs greater participation of stakeholders and collaboration between stakeholders to share responsibility and knowledge to make wildfire prevention more attractive and implementable by society, landowners, civil protection, and policymakers.