2014 saw lowest number of wildfires in 10 years

Of the 9,754 incidents in 2014, 6,741 were minor fires (fires affecting less than one hectare) and 3,013 were large fires affecting over one hectare. In 2013, the number of large fires stood at 3,089 and minor fires at 7,708. It should also be noted that the average for the last ten years stands at 15,638 incidents.

Furthermore, the total forest area affected by fires is the lowest it has been in the last 10 years. Specifically, fire affected 46,818 hectares in 2014 while the figure for the same period in 2013 stood at 61,737 hectares. The average for the last ten-year period is 117,034 hectares. Until now, the lowest figure in the last ten-year period was recorded in 2008, when 50,322 hectares were affected by wildfires.

Of these 46,818 hectares, 29,343 comprised thicket and open countryside; 11,300 comprised woodland areas; and 6,175 comprised pasture land and meadows. These figures are slightly lower than the average for the last ten-year period, which stood at 63,840, 39,932 and 13,260 hectares, respectively.

Furthermore, a total of seven major fires (over 500 hectares) had been declared in Spain by the end of 2014, while 17 such fires took place in the same period in 2013. An average of 28 major fires have taken place per year in the last 10 years.

Minister Isabel García Tejerina believes that the fight against wildfires has been a major priority for her ministerial department since the start of this legislature. In 2015, efforts to combat this phenomenon will be given a budget of 79.3 million euros. Similarly, Isabel García Tejerina stressed on more than one occasion how public awareness is key in the fight against wildfires.

Figures by autonomous region

42.85% of all incidents that took place between 1 January and 31 December 2014 were declared by regions in the north-west of Spain, including Galicia, Asturias, Cantabria and the Basque Country, as well as the provinces of Leon and Zamora.

Another 36.04% took place in inland regions (comprising all other non-coastal regions, except Leon and Zamora), while 20.46% were declared by coastal regions along the Mediterranean, including their inland provinces. 0.66% of all incidents were declared in the Canary Islands.

52.45% of the woodland areas affected were located in inland regions; 26.82% in the Mediterranean regions; 20.7% in the north-west regions; and 0.03% in the Canary Islands.

46.25% of the forests affected were located in the north-west regions; 29.86% in inland regions; 23.81% in the Mediterranean regions; and 0.08% in the Canary Islands.

For the 2014 season, the ministerial department had access to a total of 67 aerial resources for providing support to the regional governments - one more than in 2013 following the purchase of a new amphibious aircraft. Of those, 22 are owned by the ministerial department (18 amphibious aircraft and four surveillance helicopters) and 45 are contracted from external sources.

Furthermore, the aerial resources are complemented by significant land support consisting of 545 qualified professionals in 10 Forest Fire Support Brigades (Spanish acronym: BRIF) and 11 Mobile Meteorology and Transmission Units.