Eduard Plana Bach is a Senior Expert and Head of Forest Policy and Risk Governance at the Forest Science and Technology Centre of Catalonia. He holds an MSc in Forest Science and Wildfire Risk Management. His expertise lies in the socio-environmental dimension of forestry policies, as well as in integrated wildfire risk management, risk communication, and governance.
Eduard has led several regional and European projects on the topic and has participated as an expert in various European Commission initiatives and international consultancies on wildfires. Currently, he is also leading the drafting of the Catalan Forestry Policy Plan and a policy coherence review on wildfire risk governance for the Government of Catalonia.
How would you describe the severity and extent of the wildfire season in your country this summer compared to previous years? Which regions or areas were most affected by wildfires in your country this summer?
The 2024 wildfire season in Catalonia has been the quietest in five years, with a significant decrease in the number of wildfires compared to last year. The Fire Service successfully managed to handle fewer incidents across forested, agricultural, and urban areas, particularly noting a drop in forest fires. As expected, most wildfires ignited during the peak summer months of June and July, followed by August and September. Specifically, there were 422 forest fires, burning a total of 516 hectares of forest land and 313 hectares of non-forest areas. This represents just 20% of the average annual burnt surface of nearly 4,000 hectares in the region.
Across Spain, the wildfire situation was notably different, with over 5,800 fires spreading across 48,550 hectares. Although this area is substantial, it remains roughly 53% of the average area affected over the past decade.
While Catalonia avoided any large-scale wildfires, other regions like Extremadura and Andalusia experienced several major incidents. Preventive evacuations were necessary in numerous cases, ensuring the safety of thousands of residents. Notably, significant evacuations took place in Ontinyent and Montblanc, where emergency measures, including the temporary closure of high-speed railways, were effectively implemented to manage the threats.
Overall, Catalonia's proactive approach to wildfire management this year has resulted in fewer and less severe fires, demonstrating the effectiveness of the region's preventive strategies and emergency response systems.
Raising societal awareness about wildfire risk, beyond just the summer season, is essential. People need to understand the role they play in prevention and preparedness
What environmental factors (e.g., weather patterns, climate conditions) contributed to the intensity and spread of the wildfires this summer?
In the case of Catalonia, a structural drought over the last three years has favoured wildfire behaviours that exceed suppression capacity. This long-term drought is creating cascading effects such as tree mortality, expansion of pests and diseases, and dead wood accumulation. The situation was extremely critical due to low rainfall in the spring. Nevertheless, in late spring, some rainfall across almost the entire territory decreased wildfire risk, except in some areas in the south of Catalonia where the situation remained critical. These differences in wildfire risk across the territory allowed resources to be allocated to the more critical areas and suppression means deployed accordingly in the event of a wildfire. Fortunately, no simultaneity or GIFs occurred in the most critical areas. Moreover, the air masses this summer were not particularly dry, although the persistent heat contributed to the spread of forest fires and the high intensity of the flames.
In the most critical areas, due to the accumulation of dry grasslands and herbs, wildfires burned very quickly and, when they reached forest patches, the fire accelerated, causing secondary fires hundreds of metres away. The fast tactical deployment of the Fire Service and collaborative work with farmers using tractors to ‘clean’ the edges of crop fields were key to creating opportunities and consolidating extinguishing manoeuvres. Later, more general rainfall throughout the territory in August ‘deactivated’ the extreme risk of GIFs in the remaining critical areas.
Overall, the 2024 wildfire season demonstrated how the situation can change under an appropriate rainfall regime, or, in other words, how a wildfire season may depend on rainfall in a structural drought context (still unresolved in Catalonia).
To what extent did human activities (e.g., land use changes, agricultural practices, accidental ignitions) play a role in the 2024 wildfires?
As usual, most fires were caused by human activities, mostly accidents or negligence. Among the accidents, the main activities are mechanical works (sparks from machines and tools) or agriculture (primarily tractors).
Pending access to the statistics, it must be said that the drought context facilitated raising the population’s awareness about the extreme wildfire risk. This contextual societal awareness probably complemented the contribution of the rainfall pattern in the low number and surface of wildfires (422 fires in 2024 vs. 592 fires per year as an average for the period 2011-2023).
The integration of farmers, landowners, and local volunteers into wildfire management has been key to Catalonia’s success. Their practical actions, like tilling fields to create firebreaks, complement professional firefighting efforts
How effective were the emergency response and firefighting efforts in managing the wildfires in Spain this summer? What were the key challenges faced by response teams during the 2024 wildfire season?
On one hand, as recognised by the regional Ministry of Internal Affairs, innovations in the organisational structure that the Fire Service has implemented over recent campaigns—particularly in structures and command centres—have enabled faster and more efficient decision-making and responses. Additionally, suppression strategies are planned using agricultural field infrastructure and strategically pre-planned areas where fuel management is conducted to support suppression manoeuvres in the event of a wildfire. These areas, known as Strategic Management Points (SMPs), are coordinated with the Forest Service, Protected Area managers, and local authorities, and are generally agreed upon with forest owners.
Inter-agency cooperation, along with the integration of voluntary Forest Defence Groups (ADF) into the Civil Protection Special Plan for Wildfires (INFOCAT), has significantly reinforced response capacity. These groups, composed of neighbours and farmers across almost the entire territory, play a crucial role, especially through farmers’ collaboration in tilling fields to create opportunities for effective suppression manoeuvres.
During fires that required confinement or evacuation of residents, the warning system was activated in coordination with Civil Protection and the regional Police (Mossos d'Esquadra). Most people followed the emergency instructions, likely due to heightened awareness of the drought conditions and the trust and credibility of the emergency system, which is focused on ensuring citizen safety. Additionally, several informative sessions were organised across the territory on how to act during a wildfire, including potential confinements and evacuations. These sessions involved multiple agencies—Fire Service, Civil Protection, Forest Rangers, Health Services, and Police—and were conducted at the beginning of the season before the rainfall. This timing ensured that hazard messages were strong and consistent, leveraging the widespread anticipation of a severe summer wildfire season. This collective awareness was shared among the population, public agencies, the media, and academia.
Throughout the summer, as in previous wildfire seasons, access restrictions to forest areas and swimming rivers were enforced on high wildfire risk days according to the INFOCAT plan. Introduced about ten years ago, this measure is generally well accepted as it ensures the safety of users and recreational activities. However, there is still room for improvement in its implementation. For example, restrictions were sometimes activated during weekends when conditions were not extremely severe, while the same areas remained open on Fridays and the following Mondays. There is no intermediate approach, such as easing access by implementing additional prevention measures or deploying suppression resources. This inconsistency can confuse people about the necessity of restrictions, impacting individual rights and local economic activities. It is acknowledged that access closures should be minimised, considering the potential economic impacts on outdoor recreational activities and rural tourism, which currently receives no compensation for losses due to these limitations (e.g., companies offering paragliding flights).
The combination of operational experience, scientific knowledge, and local collaboration creates a strong foundation for wildfire prevention and response.
What were the key lessons learnt from the 2024 wildfire season in terms of response and management?