# A Semantic Framework for Decision Making in Forest Fire Emergencies
## 5 Semantic Reasoning for Decision Support
### Decision Support for Prescribed Burning Process
For instance, 10 degrees is the minimum temperature acceptable (if cooler than this, the fire will not be able to spread as desired), and 25 degrees is the maximum acceptable (if warmer than this, it may be too dangerous to set the fire). Taking into account the above thresholds, the population of the ontology in the appropriate classes carried out and the execution of GeoSPARQL queries (Listing 2) return the information with timestamps and values of temperature, humidity, and wind speed for the areas where the prescribed burn process can be conducted. The results of these queries are transformed via semantic reasoning component to JSON and GeoJSON structures that are visualized via a dashboard in order to inform the decision makers whether the weather conditions are suitable to conduct the prescribed burns in specific areas and times. Figure 8 shows how the JSON message is visualized as a recommendation in the dashboard, whereas the (Figures 9 and 10) below show how the GeoJSON message is transformed into valuable maps. \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c} \hline \hline
**Variable** & **Low** & **Desired** & **High** \\ \hline Temperature (\({}^{\circ}\)C) & 10 & 17 & 25 \\ Humidity (\%) & 70 & 45 & 35 \\ Wind speed (Km/h) & 2 & 10 & 25 \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table} 
Table 2: Thresholds in temperature, humidity, and wind speed for prescribed burning process. ```
PREFIX safers: <[[http://www.semanticweb.org/certh/safers#](http://www.semanticweb.org/certh/safers#)]([http://www.semanticweb.org/certh/safers#](http://www.semanticweb.org/certh/safers#))> PREFIX gof: <[[http://www.opengis.net/def/function/geosparql/](http://www.opengis.net/def/function/geosparql/)]([http://www.opengis.net/def/function/geosparql/](http://www.opengis.net/def/function/geosparql/))> PREFIX ogc: <[[http://www.opengis.net/ont/geosparql#](http://www.opengis.net/ont/geosparql#)]([http://www.opengis.net/ont/geosparql#](http://www.opengis.net/ont/geosparql#))> PREFIX uom: <[[http://www.opengis.net/def/uom/OGC/1.0/](http://www.opengis.net/def/uom/OGC/1.0/)]([http://www.opengis.net/def/uom/OGC/1.0/](http://www.opengis.net/def/uom/OGC/1.0/))> SELECT DISITINCT?areaCode?timestamp (SAMPLE(?temperature) as?temperature) (SAMPLE(?humidity) as?humidity) (SAMPLE(?windspeed) as?windspeed) (SAMPLE(?region) as?region) (SAMPLE(?polygon) as?polygon) WHERE {?point safers:hasTemperature?temperature. ?point safers:hasHumidity?humidity. ?point safers:hasWindSpeed?windspeed. ?point safers:hasLatitude?lat. ?point safers:hasLongitude?lon. ?point safers:hasTimestamp?timestamp. ?point safers:hasRegion?region. ?point safers:hasLocationID?areaCode. ?point safers:hasLocation?polygon. ?point ogc:asWKT?fWKT. FILTER(?areaCode = 2) } GROUP BY?areaCode?timestamp
```  
More specifically, the boundaries represented by the polygons depicted in Figure 9 play a crucial role in implementing an effective wildfire management strategy. These boundaries efficiently divide the entire area, enabling efficient forest fire management. Additionally, in Figure 10, the polygons highlighted in green indicate areas where weather conditions are suitable for conducting prescribed burns at specific times. The rest of the areas are not suitable for prescribed burning as the conditions are not favorable. This visual representation of areas significantly supports fire managers in their decision-making processes. Figure 8: Recommendations regarding the prescribed burning in dashboard.