Mapping and development of 30 m landscape fuel data for Ukraine

This study presents an ∼30 m gridded dataset of landscape fuel parameters for Ukraine, compiled from global satellite-derived vegetation data as well as information from catalogues on existing biotopes and species diversity in Ukraine, and from other literature sources. The data have been structured into 80 fuelbeds according to the Fuel Characteristic Classification System. For direct validation of the developed data, we compared above-ground biomass (AGB) with similar data from European Space Agency (ESA) Climate Change Initiative (CCI), as well as AGB and fuel loading parameters with the 300 m global fuel dataset. Indirect validation involved modelling, the dispersion of pollutants (CO, PM2.5, and PM10) from wildfires in the Kyiv region on 23 March 2022. The comparison showed good agreement between AGB for mature forests and the ESA CCI data, and an overall consistency between the created product for Ukraine and the global fuel map. However, substantial differences in the distribution of fuel characteristics were obtained for the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone, which might be explained by different approaches to fuel parameterization. Pollutant concentrations were predicted with acceptable accuracy taking into account the large uncertainties in fire time localization. This fine-resolution digital product has great potential for various applications, including the assessment of the war-induced environmental impact.