In Cyprus, burnt areas represented 0.36% of protected areas in the country, one of the highest rates among EU Member States.
A moderate increase in forest fires occurred in Cyprus in 2024 compared to the two previous years, but not at 2021 levels, records a report by the European Commission’s Joint Research Center, entitled “Forest Fire in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa 20”.
Indeed, in Cyprus, the burnt areas represented 0.36% of protected areas in the country, one of the highest rates between Member States, third after Portugal (1.53% of protected areas) and Bulgaria (0.53%). 25% of burnt areas were in Natura2000 areas according to the report.
According to the findings of the exhibition, which utilize satellite images, the forest fires for 2024 was relatively mild in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, partly due to the rainfall intervals that occurred in the summer.
Concerning the broader picture, the report states that serious fires broke out since July, early in the period during which fires are observed, with more serious in some islands in Greece and in Madeira, Portugal. Multiple fires in Portugal also broke out in September, resulting in more than 100,000 hectares in the EU in a week.
A total of 419,298 thousand hectares were burned in the EU in 2024, just above the 2006 average with 2023. A total of 35% of the burnt land, which corresponds to 147,014 thousand hectares, was located in areas of the Natura200 network. Many fires were caused in Balkan countries, inside and outside the EU.
In 2024 it was also a record for forest fires in Ukraine, as satellite images show that almost one million hectares (965,000 HA) were burned last year in the country – twice as much as that was burned throughout the European Union.
The sites in which the fires occurred coincide with the war front between Ukraine and Russia, which was formed after Russia’s invasion of its neighboring country in 2022. In fact, the impact of the conflict was worse in 2024 compared to the periods of the forest in the past two years.
In 2024 28 forest fires in Cyprus
Especially in Cyprus, in 2024, 28 forest fires were recorded on the map, with the burnt areas covering a total of 3,529 hectares. These areas were somewhat increased compared to 2022 and 2023, when about 2.5,000 hectares and almost 2,000 hectares respectively burned.
In 2021, more than 6,000 hectares were burned, and in 2020 the area was proportional to 2024. Since 2010 for which the report presents data, the damage was recorded around or below one thousand hectares, with exceptions in 2012, 2013 and 2016 when the burnt areas were between 2 and 3 thousand hectares.
In 2024, more than two -thirds of land affected by fires were burned in June, including the largest year in Paphos province (1600 hectares).
Of the burnt areas, 860 hectares were located in areas of the Natura 2000 network, an area corresponding to a quarter of the burnt areas of 2024, and 0.36% of all protected areas in the country.
According to the same data, 55% of land burned in Cyprus in 2024 consisted of farms, while 39% involved bushy vegetation.
Source: KYPE