SYSTEMATIC STUDY ON THE FIRE PROTECTION EFFECT OF EXISTING TREES

Abstract

 In the past urban fires and earthquake fires, the fire-blocking and fire-delaying effects of existing trees have been observed. Research on the fire protection effect of trees has categorized the arrangement of branches and leaves, the ratio between branches and the trunk below, and calculated the tree's void ratio. However, there is a lack of quantitative studies evaluating the fire protection capability of existing trees in actual urban areas. In this study, the author used a seismic fire spread simulation system incorporating the fire protection effect of trees and collected tree data in Matsuyama City. They quantitatively evaluated the fire protection effect of trees (referred to as reduction rate: the effect of having trees versus not having trees) by varying wind speed, wind direction, and ignition points. Furthermore, they visually and quantitatively demonstrated that existing green spaces significantly reduce evacuation time and provide additional fire protection effects through green space development.