A fire management plan was last developed for the
MMNR in 1993. However, since this time there
have been significant changes in the management of the
area, notably the division of the MMNR between
CCN and CCTM, and the intensification of land-use
practices and the use of fire as a management tool in
areas around the Reserve. As such, the first action
under this objective focuses on the development of a simple
and practical fire management action plan for the
entire MMNR, which will provide managers with clear
guidance on the management and control of fire across the
area. This action plan will also serve to ensure the
coordination of fire management practices within the MMNR, and
enhance compatibility with the approaches used by TANAPA in the neighbouring Serengeti
National Park.
The new MMNR Fire Management Action Plan will
include the division of the Reserve into burning
blocks with associated prescriptions detailing the
timing, frequency and rotation of burns, and the identification
of areas where firebreaks will need to be developed
and/or maintained. Currently, managers on the
CCTM side of the Reserve burn around 1 block per year
as soon as possible after the long rains, which accounts
for approximately 15 percent of the Mara Triangle area
per year, with an interval of 3-5 years between
burns.
Alongside the lessons learnt from this ongoing
management regime, the new plan will also incorporate
any appropriate prescriptions and recommendations from
the 1993 plan, which include:
-
Early burning
(around June) in: Talek/Olemelepo grasslands; Possee/Meta Plains;
between Sand River and the Tanzanian border; south of Serena between
the road and Mara River; and the
Musiara/Emarti areas
-
Early patch
burns along the whole of the Siria Escarpment
-
No burn areas
around woodlands or thickets, and in the Ngama, Olopilokonya and
Ololoitikoishi Hills (by early contolled burning to isolate the
hills)
-
Establishment of
firebreaks along the Tanzanian border between the Triangle and
Lemai Wedge, and around the Ngama and Ololoitikoishi
Hills
Once the action plan has been developed (in
collaboration with the planned MMNR Ecologist, see
Action 5.1 below, and other researchers as appropriate)
rotational burning of blocks within the MMNR will then
be carried out, and firebreaks established and
maintained, ideally through the conversion of existing
security tracks wherever possible. Action 3.4 below, and
the MMNR Ecological Monitoring Plan, will provide
feedback on the impacts and effectiveness of this plan, and
inform any management adaptations as necessary.
