FOREST FIRES - Sparking firesmart policies in the EU

Since the 1980s, a decreasing trend in the number of fires and areas burned has been observed in some countries, but larger and more damaging fires (i.e. megafires) are a new emerging challenge for suppression in many wildfire protection programmes across Europe. This trend is the result of unbalanced policies that can be effective in fire suppression in normal weather conditions but are insufficient to prevent extreme events such as megafires.

The report critically reviews the results of EU research on forest fires with a view to explore policy adaptation to face the new challenges imposed by megafires. The review demonstrates that EU-funded research has stimulated advances in fire knowledge, operational management and decision-support mechanisms while enhancing cooperation between the key actors. The review also highlights specific areas for improvement and opens up new perspectives for forest fire risk management in the face of climate and environmental changes, social and cultural trends and growth dynamics.

Key recommendations are, finally, proposed for a more extensive dialogue between the key actors to improve forest fire risk management in Europe.