Analysis of forest fire causes in Algeria – a case study of Tissemsilt region

Determining the causes is the first link in the chain of fighting forest fires and the key to an effective prevention strategy. This study aims to identify the causes of forest fires in Tissemsilt (Northwest Algeria) using the Delphi method. It is based on a survey conducted exclusively among 84 forestry professionals during the two fire seasons of 2023–2024 and 2024–2025, using a face-to-face questionnaire. Twenty-four local fire causes were consolidated into 5 categories and 16 classes according to the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS) which utilizes two primary classification frameworks to monitor, assess, and manage wildfires across Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. The results showed that negligence was the dominant perceived wildfire cause (56.2%), followed by deliberate causes (27.0%) and accidents (12.4%), whereas rekindles (4.1%) and natural causes (0.1%) remained marginal. From the point of view of the hierarchy of most probable causes, categorized into three levels of significance, the votes of forestry experts reveal that the deliberate fires motivated by profit or benefit received the highest number of votes (60), followed by other negligent uses of fire (honey harvest with smoker and fires lit to keep away harmful animals), (50) and agricultural burnings (42), whereas fire rekindling and mental illness-related causes received the lowest number of votes (1 each). Overall, the results highlighted human-related activities, particularly negligence and deliberate actions, as the predominant perceived drivers of wildfire occurrence, emphasizing the importance of monitoring and addressing these causes to improve wildfire prevention and management strategies.