Neglect and abandonment of rural areas increases risk of forest fires in Malaga province

This summer, major wildfires and smaller outbreaks are occurring almost daily across Malaga province, giving no respite to the Junta de Andalucía's Plan Infoca forest fire brigade. It's not easy to answer the question of why there are so many and why so serious. However, there is one thing on which the governing bodies, independent experts, farmers, livestock breeders and university researchers are all in agreement: the loss of the rural population and, consequently, of agricultural and livestock activities and forestry use, make up a state of affairs that, while these might not generate the initial spark, are definitely causing the flames to spread more quickly and hundreds of hectares more of land to burn.

"The main causes of so many fires are neglect, lack of productivity and legislation that prevent people from living a decent life in rural areas," said José Antonio Gómez, a forestry engineer and expert in fire prevention and recovery. "In these more than 40 years of democracy, no work has been done to promote more life and a proper rural economy."

So that neglect of the land manifests itself in unmanaged growth of vegetation, which is fuel for forest fires. "Let's not confuse forest cover with more trees... All those hillside and dryland agricultural crops that have been abandoned have become scrubland, not forests."

Gabriel Gutiérrez Tejada, forestry engineer and technical advisor to the Junta's directorate-general for forestry policy and biodiversity, explained: "The problem is the forest structure that fire encounters. For example, in an abandoned pasture, bushes and shrubs move in, increasing in density and height and developing under the shade and protection of the rest.... Until you find a forest that averages 15 metres in height with large tree canopies and very tall bushes and shrubs."

In other words, the entire volume of that forest is packed with biomass, which is the breeding ground for a major wildfire. On the other hand, a forest without any undergrowth, or with a gap between pasture or fallow land, reduces the severity and surface area of such fires.

Therefore, when these 'wild' woodlands and forests are combined with the lack of farmers and livestock breeders who have managed it for centuries, the fire spreads and causes lots more damage. This is a controversial point, since some political positions have advocated allowing the vegetation to spread freely.

The ban on grazing in the mountains and forests led to the abandonment of lots of livestock farming years ago. Now those farmers are needed to clear the land. Antonio Rodríguez, head of the livestock sector with Coag (trade association for farmers and livestock breeders) and owner of a farm with 1,500 goats in Sierra Tejeda, in the Axarquía, described the reality of the trade.

"In the '70s and '80s they began to dismantle livestock farming in the mountains, led by engineers and politicians who believed that livestock caused harm to the land. But in the last ten years the attitude has changed, with a new wave of agronomists who view livestock as very necessary and that, in areas where there are animals, the fires are less serious."

"The thing is the government still doesn't believe it," said this Coag official. The fact is that, once the former infrastructure has been dismantled, returning livestock farmers to the mountains can't happen "by magic", but rather with a specific plan. "It's necessary to invest in proper pastureland for goats where farmers can keep their goats and so on with good access, water and electricity." He continued: "But, above all, they have to stop charging us. Now, livestock farmers have to pay up to 50,000 euros to use pastures in public forests"

"If you've already given up this trade and then you have to pay to do it and there's no way to do it, then there's no chance of young people returning to the mountains." On the contrary, Antonio Rodríguez called for subsidies to be paid to livestock farmers for the firebreak work done by their animals as fire prevention workers.

On this same point, José Antonio Gómez also called for logging to be allowed in protected areas, such as the Sierra de la Nieves national park. He warned of the real risk that it could suffer the same fate as the nearby Sierra Bermeja, which suffered one of the most serious wildfires in recent years in Malaga province. "Logging is sustainable, because here we always forget the human aspect of development... It's not a question of providing more firefighting resources, what's missing is a fundamental approach [to land management], which is the abandonment of the rural world, of productivity and absurd legislation.

"If the circumstances were optimal, at least the participants in the training centre for livestock farming that trains 15 to 20 people every year who are willing to dedicate themselves to this trade, could be given a job. In reality, however, very few take the final leap to dedicate themselves to the profession due to economic constraints.

"If we really want to help, the least we can do is pay shepherds the minimum wage in exchange for keeping the firebreaks clear. How much is any of the governing bodies saving by having someone there keeping vigil, who removes weeds and who, on top of that, is providing top-quality products? In the end, the forest will burn again because there is no real strategic plan."

Gabriel Gutiérrez Tejada agreed that the abandonment and neglect of the rural world is a determining factor. "It's true that when everyone leaves the village, the arsonist and the one who started it through negligence also leave. But the loss of the rural population brings with it a lack of surveillance and an end to the activities that have traditionally maintained the landscapes that prevented or halted fires, due to the lack of incentives or profitability of such resources."

This expert also refers to the necessary use of wood and other byproducts to reinvest in conservation: "We're not rich, we cannot maintain a team of people to tidy this 'garden', which is what has been done here for 20, 30 years or so."

There is yet another factor crucial to understanding this state of affairs. Enrique Salvo, Chair of climate change at the University of Malaga, initially agreed with the rest of those consulted that the key factor is the abandonment of forests. On this point, he noted that all this undergrowth is highly competitive for space and light, so some species reach "abnormal sizes: if normal growth for them is up to half a metre, this spring they reached up to 1.5 metres."

"We are faced with a large amount of vegetation that does not encounter its usual controllers", such as livestock. Moreover, there are also metabolic changes being observed, due to the type of rainfall and high temperatures, which cause these plants to become combustible fuels, catching fire and burning more easily than before. "Heatwaves cause cellular ageing, not only in animals and humans, but plants are also more sensitive."

Enrique Salvo went on to warn that strong heatwaves are linked to global warming. "Temperatures that exceed 35 degrees Celsius daily, with stronger than normal winds, have a serious impact on plant matter, and some plants respond by shedding their leaves and fruits to slow down water loss, and so they too become plant fuel."

The challenge, therefore, is to combat fires while accepting the reality that it will be almost impossible to recover many of the traditional land trades. "We must design new models, everything depends on sustainable forest management and investment and not just on prevention," said Gutiérrez, the forestry policy expert with the Junta.

To this end, he focused on all the efforts that have a positive impact on prevention: "If I fix the roads to facilitate access to a livestock farm, so that milk production is profitable and the sheep aren't abandoned, it's an action with a productive purpose. But, in the event of fire, Infoca can use that route for a faster response and that has an impact on prevention."

As for forestry management methods, in addition to preventive measures such as firebreaks, making use of the forests (as with logging) also reduces biomass and hinders the propagation of too much undergrowth. "What we need to do is to invest in forest management, promote the use and resources of the forest and to foster greater appreciation among the scant, local population, so that they can make a living from the forest." Gutiérrez continued: "Leaving it to its own devices leads to what we're experiencing now. If there isn't more investment in forest management and if the perception that chopping down a tree is inherently bad doesn't change, it will cost us in blood, sweat and tears."