Fire dynamics in the South American Chaco and their link to agriculture and drought

Autores
Baumann, Matthias; Maillard, Oswaldo; Gasparri, Nestor Ignacio; Burton, Jamie; Gavier Pizarro, Gregorio Ignacio; Kuemmerle, Tobias
Año de publicación
2026
Idioma
inglés
Tipo de recurso
artículo
Estado
versión publicada
Descripción
Fire is a key process in tropical dry woodlands and savannahs, shaping their vegetation and ecological functioning. Yet, fires in these systems are increasingly a major sustainability concern, causing carbon emissions, biodiversity losses and human health impacts. Land-use change can lead to fewer fires (for example, through fire suppression) or more fires (for example, fires used for pasture management or land clearing), and climate change amplifies fire dynamics through hotter and drier conditions. Here we uncover a tight coupling between agriculture and drought as drivers of fire in the Gran Chaco. We reconstruct detailed fire histories from satellites to reveal that most of the Chaco (~65%) has experienced burning since 1985. Patterns of fire, land use and drought show that the majority of fires are attributable to either agricultural expansion into forests or pasture management and that such fires become frequent during drought. Overall, this challenges the notion that intensifying droughts are a principal driver of changing fire regimes in tropical woodlands and savannahs.
Instituto de Fisiología y Recursos Genéticos Vegetales
Fil: Baumann, Matthias. Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Geography Department; Alemania
Fil: Maillard, Oswaldo. Fundación para la Conservación del Bosque Chiquitano; Bolivia
Fil: Gasparri, Nestor Ignacio. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Instituto de Ecología Regional; Argentina
Fil: Gasparri, Nestor Ignacio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Ecología Regional; Argentina
Fil: Gasparri, Nestor Ignacio. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo; Argentina
Fil: Burton, Jamie. Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Geography Department; Alemania
Fil: Burton, Jamie. Humboldt-University Berlin. Integrative Research Institute on Transformations in Human-Environment Systems; Alemania
Fil: Gavier Pizarro, Gregorio Ignacio. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Fisiología y Recursos Genéticos Vegetales; Argentina
Fil: Gavier Pizarro, Gregorio Ignacio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Unidad de Estudios Agropecuarios; Argentina
Fil: Kuemmerle, Tobias. Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Geography Department; Alemania
Fil: Kuemmerle, Tobias. Humboldt-University Berlin. Integrative Research Institute on Transformations in Human-Environment Systems; Alemania
Fuente
Nature Sustainability 9 (5) : 674-681. (May 2026)
Materia
Incendios
Agricultura
Sequía
Sostenibilidad
Fires
Agriculture
Drought
Sustainability
Gran Chaco
Nivel de accesibilidad
acceso abierto
Condiciones de uso
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
Repositorio
INTA Digital (INTA)
Institución
Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
OAI Identificador
oai:localhost:20.500.12123/28202
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spelling Fire dynamics in the South American Chaco and their link to agriculture and droughtBaumann, MatthiasMaillard, OswaldoGasparri, Nestor IgnacioBurton, JamieGavier Pizarro, Gregorio IgnacioKuemmerle, TobiasIncendiosAgriculturaSequíaSostenibilidadFiresAgricultureDroughtSustainabilityGran ChacoFire is a key process in tropical dry woodlands and savannahs, shaping their vegetation and ecological functioning. Yet, fires in these systems are increasingly a major sustainability concern, causing carbon emissions, biodiversity losses and human health impacts. Land-use change can lead to fewer fires (for example, through fire suppression) or more fires (for example, fires used for pasture management or land clearing), and climate change amplifies fire dynamics through hotter and drier conditions. Here we uncover a tight coupling between agriculture and drought as drivers of fire in the Gran Chaco. We reconstruct detailed fire histories from satellites to reveal that most of the Chaco (~65%) has experienced burning since 1985. Patterns of fire, land use and drought show that the majority of fires are attributable to either agricultural expansion into forests or pasture management and that such fires become frequent during drought. Overall, this challenges the notion that intensifying droughts are a principal driver of changing fire regimes in tropical woodlands and savannahs.Instituto de Fisiología y Recursos Genéticos VegetalesFil: Baumann, Matthias. Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Geography Department; AlemaniaFil: Maillard, Oswaldo. Fundación para la Conservación del Bosque Chiquitano; BoliviaFil: Gasparri, Nestor Ignacio. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Instituto de Ecología Regional; ArgentinaFil: Gasparri, Nestor Ignacio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Ecología Regional; ArgentinaFil: Gasparri, Nestor Ignacio. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo; ArgentinaFil: Burton, Jamie. Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Geography Department; AlemaniaFil: Burton, Jamie. Humboldt-University Berlin. Integrative Research Institute on Transformations in Human-Environment Systems; AlemaniaFil: Gavier Pizarro, Gregorio Ignacio. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Fisiología y Recursos Genéticos Vegetales; ArgentinaFil: Gavier Pizarro, Gregorio Ignacio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Unidad de Estudios Agropecuarios; ArgentinaFil: Kuemmerle, Tobias. Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Geography Department; AlemaniaFil: Kuemmerle, Tobias. Humboldt-University Berlin. Integrative Research Institute on Transformations in Human-Environment Systems; AlemaniaSpringer Nature2026-10-21T13:57:18Z2026-10-21T13:57:18Z2026-03info:eu-repo/semantics/articleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersionhttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501info:ar-repo/semantics/articuloapplication/pdfhttp://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/28202https://www.nature.com/articles/s41893-026-01793-z2398-9629https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-026-01793-zNature Sustainability 9 (5) : 674-681. (May 2026)reponame:INTA Digital (INTA)instname:Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuariaenginfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccesshttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)2026-11-05T11:51:41Zoai:localhost:20.500.12123/28202instacron:INTAInstitucionalhttp://repositorio.inta.gob.ar/Organismo científico-tecnológicoNo correspondehttp://repositorio.inta.gob.ar/oai/requesttripaldi.nicolas@inta.gob.arArgentinaNo correspondeNo correspondeNo correspondeopendoar:l2026-11-05 11:51:41.791INTA Digital (INTA) - Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuariafalse
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Fire dynamics in the South American Chaco and their link to agriculture and drought
title Fire dynamics in the South American Chaco and their link to agriculture and drought
spellingShingle Fire dynamics in the South American Chaco and their link to agriculture and drought
Baumann, Matthias
Incendios
Agricultura
Sequía
Sostenibilidad
Fires
Agriculture
Drought
Sustainability
Gran Chaco
title_short Fire dynamics in the South American Chaco and their link to agriculture and drought
title_full Fire dynamics in the South American Chaco and their link to agriculture and drought
title_fullStr Fire dynamics in the South American Chaco and their link to agriculture and drought
title_full_unstemmed Fire dynamics in the South American Chaco and their link to agriculture and drought
title_sort Fire dynamics in the South American Chaco and their link to agriculture and drought
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Baumann, Matthias
Maillard, Oswaldo
Gasparri, Nestor Ignacio
Burton, Jamie
Gavier Pizarro, Gregorio Ignacio
Kuemmerle, Tobias
author Baumann, Matthias
author_facet Baumann, Matthias
Maillard, Oswaldo
Gasparri, Nestor Ignacio
Burton, Jamie
Gavier Pizarro, Gregorio Ignacio
Kuemmerle, Tobias
author_role author
author2 Maillard, Oswaldo
Gasparri, Nestor Ignacio
Burton, Jamie
Gavier Pizarro, Gregorio Ignacio
Kuemmerle, Tobias
author2_role author
author
author
author
author
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Incendios
Agricultura
Sequía
Sostenibilidad
Fires
Agriculture
Drought
Sustainability
Gran Chaco
topic Incendios
Agricultura
Sequía
Sostenibilidad
Fires
Agriculture
Drought
Sustainability
Gran Chaco
dc.description.none.fl_txt_mv Fire is a key process in tropical dry woodlands and savannahs, shaping their vegetation and ecological functioning. Yet, fires in these systems are increasingly a major sustainability concern, causing carbon emissions, biodiversity losses and human health impacts. Land-use change can lead to fewer fires (for example, through fire suppression) or more fires (for example, fires used for pasture management or land clearing), and climate change amplifies fire dynamics through hotter and drier conditions. Here we uncover a tight coupling between agriculture and drought as drivers of fire in the Gran Chaco. We reconstruct detailed fire histories from satellites to reveal that most of the Chaco (~65%) has experienced burning since 1985. Patterns of fire, land use and drought show that the majority of fires are attributable to either agricultural expansion into forests or pasture management and that such fires become frequent during drought. Overall, this challenges the notion that intensifying droughts are a principal driver of changing fire regimes in tropical woodlands and savannahs.
Instituto de Fisiología y Recursos Genéticos Vegetales
Fil: Baumann, Matthias. Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Geography Department; Alemania
Fil: Maillard, Oswaldo. Fundación para la Conservación del Bosque Chiquitano; Bolivia
Fil: Gasparri, Nestor Ignacio. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Instituto de Ecología Regional; Argentina
Fil: Gasparri, Nestor Ignacio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Ecología Regional; Argentina
Fil: Gasparri, Nestor Ignacio. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo; Argentina
Fil: Burton, Jamie. Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Geography Department; Alemania
Fil: Burton, Jamie. Humboldt-University Berlin. Integrative Research Institute on Transformations in Human-Environment Systems; Alemania
Fil: Gavier Pizarro, Gregorio Ignacio. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Fisiología y Recursos Genéticos Vegetales; Argentina
Fil: Gavier Pizarro, Gregorio Ignacio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Unidad de Estudios Agropecuarios; Argentina
Fil: Kuemmerle, Tobias. Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Geography Department; Alemania
Fil: Kuemmerle, Tobias. Humboldt-University Berlin. Integrative Research Institute on Transformations in Human-Environment Systems; Alemania
description Fire is a key process in tropical dry woodlands and savannahs, shaping their vegetation and ecological functioning. Yet, fires in these systems are increasingly a major sustainability concern, causing carbon emissions, biodiversity losses and human health impacts. Land-use change can lead to fewer fires (for example, through fire suppression) or more fires (for example, fires used for pasture management or land clearing), and climate change amplifies fire dynamics through hotter and drier conditions. Here we uncover a tight coupling between agriculture and drought as drivers of fire in the Gran Chaco. We reconstruct detailed fire histories from satellites to reveal that most of the Chaco (~65%) has experienced burning since 1985. Patterns of fire, land use and drought show that the majority of fires are attributable to either agricultural expansion into forests or pasture management and that such fires become frequent during drought. Overall, this challenges the notion that intensifying droughts are a principal driver of changing fire regimes in tropical woodlands and savannahs.
publishDate 2026
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2026-10-21T13:57:18Z
2026-10-21T13:57:18Z
2026-03
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501
info:ar-repo/semantics/articulo
format article
status_str publishedVersion
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/28202
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41893-026-01793-z
2398-9629
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-026-01793-z
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/28202
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41893-026-01793-z
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-026-01793-z
identifier_str_mv 2398-9629
dc.language.none.fl_str_mv eng
language eng
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
rights_invalid_str_mv http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)
dc.format.none.fl_str_mv application/pdf
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv Springer Nature
publisher.none.fl_str_mv Springer Nature
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv Nature Sustainability 9 (5) : 674-681. (May 2026)
reponame:INTA Digital (INTA)
instname:Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
reponame_str INTA Digital (INTA)
collection INTA Digital (INTA)
instname_str Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
repository.name.fl_str_mv INTA Digital (INTA) - Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
repository.mail.fl_str_mv tripaldi.nicolas@inta.gob.ar
_version_ 1881032529445650432
score 13.334379

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