Mexico City Forestry
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Forest Fire Telo 3s are listed under Emergencia #s on the City Website - please find them
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From the City website - 14 May 2000
published June 1999 - Forest Fires - 376 fires this fire season - 800 hectares burnt - last year there were 1,800 fires that burnt 5,000 hectares - there are 1,900 brigadistas working in "prevention" - helitanque - 34 campings - 11 lookouts - 900,000 trees pruned - 58% of the DF is susceptible to being declared protected area (1998/1999)
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May 14, 2000 - info from Mexico City website at www.ddf.gob.mx under ?politico under ?actualities - translated from Spanish to English at www.world.altavista.com
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"The Present Thing"
The Secretariat of the Medio.ambiente presents...
RESULTS OF THE PROGRAM AGAINST FOREST FIRES PERIOD 1998-1999. ::: MEXICO, D.F., to 5 of 1999 July.
During the season of forest fires period 1998-1999, appeared a total of 434 wrecks that less represent a 80 percent of the happened ones during season 1997 - 1998.
In relation to the affected surface, satisfactory results were obtained. 888 hectares were damaged , that are equivalent less to a 85 percent than the previous year, without it has been affected hoisted adult. The 95 percent of the burned vegetation corresponded to grass, hojarasca and shrubs, the 5 remaining percent was of reforested surfaces and sprouts.
These numbers are still more significant when it is framed to them in national scale: the number of happened forest fires in the Federal District during the season, represents as soon as the 0,4 percent of the affected national surface . The affected surface average by fire in the Federal District is of little than two hectares, more being the second lowest one in all the country.
Whereas in the Federal District the time average of detection, arrival, and fights [suppression/firefighting time] of forest fires is of 5 minutes; 26 minutes; and one hour with four minutes, respectively ------ the times averages on national scale are of one hour 18 minutes, one hour 41 minutes, and 23 hours 32 minutes, corresponding. The total duration of this type of incidents, until its suppression, is in average of one hour 35 minutes in the Federal District, whereas the national average is of 26 hours 31 minutes.
IMPACTS IN THE QUALITY OF THE AIR AND THE HEALTH PUBLISH.
During the first semester of 1998 131 days in which the registries of the Metropolitan Indice of the Quality of Aire (IMECA) of particles smaller to 10 microns (PM10) were mayores to the 100 points established by the norm of protection to the health, in the first semester of 1999 were registered have only registered in 17 occasions those indices outside the norm.
In terms of hour registries of the IMECA of PM10, in the first semester of the last year the population of the Federal District was exposed to the registries outside the norm during thousand 528 hours, that are equivalent to the 56 percent of the total of hours of that period. In resistance, in the first semester of 1999 the population was exposed to those registries in only the five percent of the total of hours of the mentioned period.
Due to the program of prevention and combat of forest fires, as well as to the program of reforestation and other actions of the Government of the Federal District, the frequency of associated chronic and acute sufferings to the particulate emissions in his breathable fraction (PM10), which is pronounced in the demand of ambulatory and hospitable medical services, has diminished of significant way during the first semester of 1999 with respect to the same period of 1998.
In agreement with information of the Secretariat of Health, the sintomatolog�a of sufferings associated to the atmospheric contamination has been reduced in a 24 percent as far as the difficulty to breathe, in a 21 percent to the dry cough, in a 20 percent to the pain throat, in a 17 percent to the lagrimeo and in a 16 percent to the headache.
PROTECTION OF THE NATURAL RESOURCES
During 1998 the Government of the Federal District planted more than 9 million trees in the rural areas , reforesting with it 7 thousand 200 hectares, with an average of sobreexperience superior to the 80 percent. For the present season of rains and reforestation 14 million trees will stand covering a surface with almost 11 thousand hectares. The works in the matter of reforestation, increase of urban green areas, forest fire prevention and combat that, as well, have been translated in smaller diseases associated to the contamination will continue reinforcing, in order to guarantee one better quality of life of the inhabitants of the Federal District.
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Created - 14 May 2000