Update of the brochure on IC&DT Projects in the area of Forest Fires

The FCT has updated the brochure on IC&DT Calls in the field of Forest Fire Prevention and Fighting, which is available online for consultation.

A first version of this brochure, which reflected the IC&DT projects selected from the 2017 and 2018 editions, was presented in November 2019 at the meeting "Rural Fires: Better management based on scientific evidence," organized by FCT, ForestWISE – Collaborative Laboratory for Integrated Forest and Fire Management, and the Agency for Integrated Rural Fire Management (AGIF). In this new version of the brochure, the 19 projects selected in Call , the last under this program, have been added, and it is now complete with all 56 projects selected in the three editions held.

The creation of the R&D Program for the prevention and fighting of forest fires stemmed from Council of Ministers Resolution No. 159/2017, of October 30, following the fires that occurred in 2017. This program aimed to strengthen the development of R&D activities designed to encourage and strengthen scientific and technological skills and capabilities, as well as to ensure the appropriation and incorporation of scientific knowledge in support of decision-making in operational systems and to facilitate the production of new knowledge geared towards solving concrete and real problems.

The program had a budget of €15 million, which was distributed among Calls three Calls for the selection of IC&DT projects in the field of forest fire prevention and control. This resulted in the approval of 56 projects focused on forest fire prevention and control, covering the following topics and areas:

– Governance of forest resources, including fuel management in rural areas, integration and communication mechanisms for fire risk, as well as consideration of attitudes and behaviors;

– Valorization of biomass in rural areas as a factor in boosting the local economy and population participation;

– Models for the organization and management of forest areas in terms of protection, conservation, silvopastoralism, recreation, leisure, and production, integrating territorial, social, and economic components;

– Models for land use planning, preventive forestry, restoration, and post-fire management, at different temporal and spatial scales.