Reacción a "An attribution study links climate change to the intensity of extreme fires in Spain and Portugal in August 2025"

This publication effectively highlights and summarises the connection between the new climatic and environmental realities generated by humans. In this case, it links the extreme weather conditions in the north-west of the Iberian Peninsula with the mega-fires that occurred in the same region during August 2025. The data analysis is clear and consistent with the best scientific evidence: we have changed the climate, which, combined with the accumulation of plant fuel in our forests (as a result of rural abandonment), means that increasingly devastating fires are now a reality.

This report shows that the authorities urgently need to invest significantly in prevention and adaptation policies in order to at least minimise the effects of the major fires that are to come due to the climatic and environmental conditions that we have all created.

Finally, I would simply like to mention that there is a statement in the report that I believe to be erroneous. On page 2 of the WWA scientific report, it states: ‘In the last two decades, 2006-2024, the annual average fell to around 80,000 ha (EFFIS data), mainly thanks to improved prevention measures and harsher sentences for those responsible for starting fires’.

I disagree with this statement, as it emphasises prevention and coercive measures, when in reality most fires caused by humans in Spain (and Portugal) are due to negligence (see paragraph below), and it is firefighting operations that are seeing an increase in funding, while forest fire prevention measures have remained unchanged for years in the case of Spain. Portugal has significantly increased its resources for prevention in recent years in the wake of the 2017 fires.

In fact, in the report itself (on the page before the last one), the authors mention: "The causes of wildfires are often unknown, but of the identified cases, human ignition accounts for around 90% of fires (Liz-Lopez et al., 2024). On average, between 2019 and 2023, 68% were accidental fires (e.g. certain agricultural activities, discarded cigarettes, barbecues or broken glass) and 24% were arson (e.g. deliberate fires) (2024 report of the Attorney General's Office). In Portugal, wildfire causes were mostly associated with social factors and a lack of knowledge and awareness of the risks involved in the use of fire. A review of fires in 2023 by public authorities in Portugal found that 62.1% were due to accident or negligence, while less than 2% of forest fires with known causes were due to natural causes (Ferreira et al, 2024).