EUSTAFOR Publishes Approach on EU Integrated Wildfire Risk Management

On 30 January 2026, the European State Forest Association contributed to the European Commission’s High-Level Roundtable “Towards a Truly Integrated EU Approach on Wildfires.”

As a response and ahead of the official EC communication, EUSTAFOR published its comprehensive approach to Integrated Wildfire Risk Management, reinforcing its call for prevention-centred, landscape-based solutions that place forests and forest management at the core of Europe’s wildfire strategy.

From Emergency Response to Integrated Prevention

As wildfire seasons grow longer, more intense and increasingly widespread across Europe, including Central and Northern regions, EUSTAFOR used this strategic policy moment to advocate for a fundamental shift:

Wildfire policy must move beyond reaction and suppression.

Instead, it must fully integrate prevention, preparedness, response and recovery within a coherent land-use and resilience framework.

EUSTAFOR emphasised that proactive, landscape-scale forest management is not optional, it is the foundation of effective wildfire risk reduction. Forest structure, fuel loads, land abandonment, rural depopulation, and territorial planning all influence fire behaviour long before a spark occurs.

Key Advocacy Messages

Through its written contribution and technical paper, EUSTAFOR highlighted several priorities for EU policymakers:

• Adopt a landscape and territorial approach that integrates forestry, agriculture, biodiversity, civil protection and urban planning
• Recognise active forest management as a core prevention tool, not a secondary measure
• Ensure wildfire prevention is embedded across EU legislation, including agricultural and environmental policies
• Strengthen the role of sustainable forest-based value chains in financing long-term prevention
• Promote public awareness and local preparedness, acknowledging that most ignitions are human-related
• Improve governance coordination, cross-border data sharing and multiannual funding for prevention

EUSTAFOR also stressed the importance of aligning conservation objectives with wildfire safety requirements. Fragmented governance and policy silos currently remain major obstacles to effective collaboration across sectors.

A Bioeconomy That Supports Prevention

A central element of EUSTAFOR’s message is that wildfire prevention cannot rely solely on public subsidies. A resilient forest bioeconomy, including sustainable wood use, biomass valorisation and rural value chains, is essential to finance fuel management and maintain economically viable, low-risk landscapes.

Economic vitality in rural areas is not separate from fire prevention, it is one of its strongest enablers.

Bringing Field Expertise to EU Policy

Representing state forest organisations managing more than one-third of Europe’s forests, EUSTAFOR brought operational, on-the-ground experience to the Roundtable discussions. Its contribution reflects decades of practical fire management across Mediterranean regions, as well as growing challenges in countries previously less exposed to wildfire risk.

By publishing its integrated approach and engaging directly with the European Commission, EUSTAFOR reinforces its position as a key partner in shaping the EU’s evolving wildfire governance framework.

Wildfire risk is no longer a regional issue. It is a European resilience challenge.

EUSTAFOR will continue advocating for coherent legislation, stable multiannual funding, and governance structures that enable true cross-sector collaboration. Prevention must become the political priority, not only during extreme fire seasons, but as a permanent pillar of EU climate and land-use policy.

An integrated approach to wildfires requires integrated decision-making. EUSTAFOR stands ready to contribute expertise and practical solutions to make this shift a reality.

See all the future developments HERE