Question reference: S6W-18951
- Date lodged: 9 June 2023
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Current status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 16 June 2023
Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether Forestry and Land Scotland had an integrated wildfire management plan in place prior to the recent major wildfire at Cannich, and, if not, whether an integrated wildfire management plan will now be developed.
Answer
Scotland’s national forests and land is sub-divided into five geographical management areas, each has a local incident response plan in place.
Each Regional incident response plan covers all potential incidents that may occur on Scotland’s national forests and land, inlcuding wild fires. The incident response plan is produced in collaboration with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) and other agencies / public bodies and is reviewed annually.
In addition, Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) has guidance in place for staff regarding how to manage wildfires on Scotland’s national forests and land. The guidace covers roles and responsibilities and how to work in collaboration with SFRS. FLS staff are trained to respond to incidents when required, including wild fires.
FLS produces guidance for staff on the use of helicopters for firefighting, covering how and when to use a helicopter and the roles and responsibilites of FLS / SFRS staff.