Decoding wildland-urban interface fire regimes in Hong Kong

Abstract

Wildfire threats in highly urbanized landscapes remain poorly characterized, particularly in high-density regions such as Hong Kong, where unique wildland-urban interface (WUI) dynamics prevail. Here, we analyzed a comprehensive wildfire dataset of 12,545 events spanning 2010-2024 in Hong Kong, revealing a human-dominated regime in WUI zones. Our fire-behavior-based clustering delineated pyroregions, and revealed the small-scale (< 1 ha) fires dominant in Hong Kong, accounting for 58.6% of all grids and clustered in WUI zones. Anthropogenic factors, rather than climatic drivers, predominate in shaping wildfire dynamics in Hong Kong. Vegetation fraction, population density, and WUI zones were identified as the most important factors contributing to wildfires in Hong Kong. Our findings provide critical insight into wildfire risk in high populated density urban environments, underscoring the escalating threats of human-induced wildfires in WUI zones.