Portuguese forests in the 21st century and forest fire prevention

Abstract

The problem of forest fires began to take on a large national dimension towards the end of the 1970s, as they reached vast areas of the territory in huge swathes of forest, and greatly jeopardized its productive capacity.
In view of the need for coordination, the National Specialized Commission on Forest Fires (CNEFF) was set up under the Ministry of Internal Administration.
To achieve its objectives, the CNEFF drew up a set of programmes, these being: forest infrastructure; clearing undergrowth; mobile land surveillance, infrastructure to support aerial firefighting resources; air surveillance; raising awareness of the school population; raising awareness of the general public; scientific research; supporting environmental protection groups.
Inasmuch as it is impossible to describe all these lines of action in detail, by way of example we refer to some of those that have been carried out.