Mapping burn severity in the Bejaia region, Algeria (2021), using Landsat 8 satellite data on the GEE platform

In the recent past, Forest fires are a severe environmental risk that occurs continually in the Mediterranean region. The province of Bejaia, located in the northeastern part of Algeria, is an illustrative example of forest fires. In this research, we used multi-source remote sensing data (MODIS and Landsat 8) and the Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform to assess the impact of forest fires in August 2021. In addition, the Differenced Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (dNDVI) and Differenced Normalized Burn Ratio (dNBR) were employed to identify fire-affected areas and estimate the degree of damage. Our results showed that 2.24% of the study area experienced high fire severity, covering 7223 hectares. This high fire sensitivity is probably due to topographic and environmental factors. This study demonstrates how Geographic Information System (GIS) and remote sensing can be valuable tools for forest managers, helping them make better decisions for sustainable forest management.