FUEL THE
SOLUTION
FUEL THE
SOLUTION
NOT THE FIRE
NOT THE FIRE
NOT THE FIRE
NOT THE FIRE
Against the wildfire virus
let’s fuel the solution,
not the fire!
Europe’s wildfire seasons are becoming longer and more destructive. A seasonal disease that we know is coming, for which we should prepare to protect our most vulnerable landscapes. Treating the symptoms means emergency response but treating the cause means prevention: reducing fuel build-up, restoring resilient landscapes, and giving local communities the tools and incentives to keep forests cared for year after year. These local stories go behind the headlines to show what prevention looks like in practice and why locally designed, sustainable forest management is essential to make forests more resilient.
STORIES
- Reducing fire-hazardous vegetation next to urban areas
- Building skills and resources for wildfire prevention
- Turning fire risk into local opportunity
Renewable energy from woody biomass to reduce wildland-urban interface fire
Wildfires are getting closer to where people live. If peri-urban forests, the “green lungs” of the city, burn the impact is not remote; it directly affects public health, safety, and daily life. Local actors can reduce the risk by removing dead, dry, fire-hazardous vegetation that can turn a spark into a fast-moving fire. The Green Biomass Points make this work doable at scale by organising the collection and handling of this material at municipal level. With a local route to chipping and bioenergy use, what was a fire hazard becomes a usable resource, supporting regular maintenance instead of one-off clean-ups.
Bioeconomy and rural development for fire-resilient landscapes
Wildfire prevention also depends on what happens after forest care is carried out. In Catalonia, the 2005 devastating fires were a turning point that pushed local actors to strengthen a model based on active forest management to reduce fuel build-up and restore more resilient landscapes. The key is making prevention viable in the long run. Biomass removed from the forest is processed into wood chips and used for renewable heat in essential public services, including the Hospital de Terrassa and facilities at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, alongside other municipal buildings, households and businesses.
Preventing wildfires: strategic planning, dynamic training, bioenergy for local communities
Wildfire prevention requires organisation and local capacity. After the severe fires of 2017 and 2018, Tuscany strengthened prevention plans to prioritise the most exposed areas and set out practical measures such as maintaining firebreaks, creating buffer strips, and keeping open areas to slow fire spread. A dedicated training centre helps forestry operators and responders deliver this work safely and consistently. Bioenergy completes the system by giving residues from forest management a local outlet, turning them into affordable heat and helping keep prevention financially viable year after year.
Wildfire Prevention Library
