Portugal Strengthens Forest Management and Fire Prevention Collaboration

The Institute for the Conservation of Nature and Forests (ICNF) and the Fundação Mata do Bussaco signed a protocol on 18 June to deepen technical cooperation on forest management, rural fire‑risk mitigation, natural‑heritage conservation and ecosystem valorisation. The agreement was sealed in a meeting chaired by Forest Secretary Rui Ladeira and attended by ICNF President Nuno Banza, Fundação President Gonçalo Breda Marques and the mayor of Mealhada, António Jorge Franco. The partners said the pact will enable knowledge sharing, implementation of best‑practice forest stewardship and coordinated action to protect the iconic Bussaco forest.

A separate analysis by WWF Portugal found that Portugal’s Natura 2000 Special Conservation Zones (ZEC) burned only 2.9 % of their area between 2021 and 2025, roughly half the 6.1 % burn rate of the rest of the country. The study argues that integrating fire‑prevention measures with nature‑conservation policies and active land‑management can further reduce wildfire risk, especially in habitats such as heathlands, rocky zones and specific forest types. It also notes a higher share of intentional fires inside ZECs, calling for deeper investigation of social drivers.