How Europe's emptying countryside is fuelling a new wildfire crisis

How Europe's emptying countryside is fuelling a new wildfire crisis By Kate Abnett , Pietro Lombardi and Mariano Zafra Published Oct. 22, 2026 5:00 a.m. GMT Crops Crops Crops Fire Trees Shrubs Young forest Fire Europe is emerging from one of its worst wildfire seasons on record. Deadly blazes this year ripped through countries including Spain, France and Greece, forcing hundreds of thousands to evacuate and burning 699,000 hectares (1.7 million acres) - an area more than four times the size of London. 2026 fires Paris ROMANIA GERMANY FRANCE ITALY BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA Rome Madrid SPAIN UKRAINE 2026 fires Paris ROMANIA FRANCE UKRAINE ITALY BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA Rome Madrid SPAIN GERMANY The disasters highlighted how climate change is fuelling hot and dry conditions that amplify wildfires.

But another, often-overlooked factor played a pivotal role in some instances: How governments and private landowners are managing Europe’s emptying countryside. In the 1950s, the countryside west of Madrid, Spain’s capital, was a mosaic of crop fields and pastures, intersected by rural roads. If a fire ignited, the fragmented landscape would limit its spread, half a dozen experts told Reuters. By 1975 , the first signs of declining rural activity were visible in aerial photographs: shrubs and trees were starting to take over abandoned farmland, building up vegetation in the landscape.

In the decades that followed, young forests took root. The woodland spread across old parcel boundaries, growing denser and joining together to form more continuous forest. Now, if a fire starts, the continuous vegetation provides fuel for the flames to spread. If another breaks out nearby, the two can quickly merge into a vast blaze that overwhelms firefighters. A s climate change pushes temperatures to new peaks , the consequences of this landscape evolution are becoming clear: This summer, tinder-dry stretches of untended forest and shrubland served as the perfect fuel for Spain’s biggest wildfire in recent history.

It began on July 22, when sparks from heavy machinery ignited a fire near Burgohondo, a mountain village about 90 km (56 miles) west of Madrid, in the central province of Avila, according to Spain’s Civil Guard police force. Propelled by strong winds, the fire spread fast and far , prompting the evacuation of more than 60,000 people. By July 26, it had merged with two other fires that started near the towns of Almorox, in Toledo province, and San Martin de Valdeiglesias, in the Madrid region.

By the time the last hotspots were extinguished on October 3, the blaze had consumed 63,000 hectares, according to regional tallies, destroying homes, restaurants, sports facilities and farms. Avila (Spain) fire July 22 Satellite fire detections N 5km Fire origin Burgohondo ÁVILA Almorox TOLEDO MADRID San Martín de Valdeiglesias MADRID Satellite fire detections 5km Fire origin Burgohondo ÁVILA Almorox TOLEDO San Martín de Valdeiglesias MADRID MADRID Satellite fire detections 5km Fire origin Burgohondo ÁVILA Almorox TOLEDO San Martín de Valdeiglesias MADRID MADRID Source: Active fire detections are from NASA’s Fire Information for Resource Management System (FIRMS), using Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) observations.

Points indicate thermal anomalies associated with active fires. It was one of dozens of large wildfires in Spain this summer. More than 300,000 hectares were burned in all, according to the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS). That is roughly three times the country’s average annual burn area over the past two decades. At least 21 people died, making 2026 one of Spain’s deadliest wildfire seasons in decades. A wildfire spreads over the Burgohondo mountains in Spain’s Avila province on July 23, 2026.

REUTERS/Ana Beltran Flames rise above the forest near the town of San Martin de Valdeiglesias in the Madrid region on July 26, 2026. REUTERS/Ana Beltran The charred remains of a deer lie in the forest near the small Avila town of El Tiemblo on July 28, 2026. REUTERS/Umit Bektas Reuters analysed aerial and satellite imagery in the area affected by the megafire, reviewed land cover inventories and ownership records, and interviewed more than a dozen wildfire experts, forestry officials and landowners to understand how changes to the landscape and the way it is managed increase Spain’s vulnerability.

The people who spoke to the news agency all said land maintenance and fire prevention efforts in the country’s expanding forests fall short of what is needed in today’s hotter climate. MADRID AVILA City of Madrid 35 km TOLEDO Area analysed Fire perimeter July 22-31, 2026 MADRID AVILA City of Madrid 35 km TOLEDO Area analysed Fire perimeter July 22-31, 2026 MADRID AVILA City of Madrid 35 km TOLEDO Area analysed Fire perimeter July 22-31, 2026 Secondary annotation @14px Tertiary annotation @12px Primary annotation @16px Locator map showing the wildfire perimeter west of Madrid and the area enlarged in the aerial and satellite image comparison below. 2026 1956-57 Sparse trees New forest New forest New forest New forest Rural road Crops Crops Crops Crops Sparse trees New forest New forest New forest New forest New forest Dense forest Crops Crops Rural road Crops Crops Crops Crops Sparse trees New forest New forest New forest New forest New forest Dense forest Crops Crops Rural road Crops Crops Crops Crops Sparse trees New forest New forest New forest New forest New forest Dense forest Crops Crops Rural road Crops Crops Crops Crops Sparse trees New forest New forest New forest New forest New forest Dense forest Crops Crops Rural road Crops Crops Crops Crops Before-and-after comparison of aerial imagery from 1956–57 and satellite imagery from 2026, showing how a patchwork of farmland west of Madrid has become more continuous woodland.

Sources : The 1956–57 orthophoto is from the Spanish National Geographic Institute (American Flight, 1956–57). The 2026 satellite image is from Google Maps. A changing landscape In the second half of the 20th century, millions of people moved out of Spain’s countryside, an exodus spurred by the mechanisation of farming and new employment opportunities in rapidly industrialising cities and towns. In 1960, about 56% of Spaniards lived in urban areas, World Bank data shows.

By 2024, that had risen to 80%. Over time, the rural landscapes people left behind became neglected and overgrown with vegetation. Spain’s forest cover increased 38% between 1990 and 2025, to 19.1 million hectares, United Nations-compiled data shows, a trend driven in part by European Union-backed schemes to plant trees on former farmland. Agricultural land 20 Scrubland 15 10 Woodland In 2005, Spain’s woodland exceeded its agricultural land. 5 0 1860 1900 1930 1950 1970 1990 2009 25 million hectares Agricultural land 20 Scrubland 15 10 Woodland In 2005, Spain’s woodland exceeded its agricultural land. 5 0 1860 1900 1930 1950 1970 1990 2009 25 million hectares 25 million hectares Agricultural land 20 Scrubland 15 10 Woodland 5 0 1860 1900 1930 1950 1970 1990 2009 In 2005, Spain’s woodland exceeded its agricultural land.

Chart showing changes in Spain’s agricultural land, scrubland and woodland from 1860 to 2009, with woodland overtaking agricultural land in 2005. Note: Some historical figures are estimates. Points show available data. Source: Spanish Society of Forest Sciences (SECF), Report on the State of Forests and the Forest Sector in Spain (2010). Inside the perimeter of the July megafire, forest cover increased 54% between 1990 and 2018, to 35,000 hectares, the Reuters analysis found.

That’s 12,000 additional hectares of pines, oaks and other vegetation added to the landscape in less than three decades. New forest Fire perimeter N 5km Between 1990 and 2018, the area classified as forest within the fire perimeter increased by 54.1%. SPAIN Existing forest New forest Fire perimeter Between 1990 and 2018, the area classified as forest within the fire perimeter increased by 54.1%. 5km SPAIN Existing forest New forest Fire perimeter Between 1990 and 2018, the area classified as forest within the fire perimeter increased by 54.1%.

SPAIN 5km Existing forest New forest Fire perimeter Between 1990 and 2018, the area classified as forest within the fire perimeter increased by 54.1%. SPAIN 5km Existing forest New forest Fire perimeter Between 1990 and 2018, the area classified as forest within the fire perimeter increased by 54.1%. SPAIN 5km Existing forest Map comparing CORINE Land Cover data from 1990 and 2018, highlighting areas classified as forest in 2018 that were other land cover types in 1990.

Note: The map compares CORINE Land Cover inventories for 1990 and 2018, the latest available in the series. Forests include broad-leaved, coniferous and mixed forests. “New forest” refers to land classified as forest in 2018 that was listed in other land-cover categories in 1990, mainly shrubland and transitional woodland. Source: Copernicus Land Monitoring Service’s CORINE Land Cover dataset (1990, 2018) Land-cover inventories compiled by the European Environment Agency’s Copernicus Land Monitoring Service show how farmland transitioned to shrubland and woodland inside the burn zone between 1990 and 2018, the most recent year for which data is available.

SHRUBLAND OTHER 38.0 5.1 1990 AGRICULTURAL LAND 13.3 GRASSLAND 8.2 2018 26.5 10.0 5.2 3.6 FOREST 54.7% Of the area mapped as forest in 2018 within the fire perimeter, 34.9% was classified as shrubland or transitional woodland in 1990, and 5.7% agricultural land. FOREST 35.5% FOREST 35.5% SHRUBLAND OTHER 1990 38.0 13.3 5.1 GRASSLAND 8.2 2018 26.5 10.0 5.2 3.6 FOREST 54.7% Of the area mapped as forest in 2018 within the fire perimeter, 34.9% was classified as shrubland or transitional woodland in 1990, and 5.7% agricultural land.

AGRICULTURAL LAND SHRUBLAND AGRICULTURAL LAND OTHER 38.0% GRASSLAND 1990 13.3% 8.2% 5.1% 2018 26.5% 10.0% 5.2% 3.6% FOREST 54.7% Of the area mapped as forest in 2018 within the fire perimeter, 34.9% was classified as shrubland or transitional woodland in 1990, and 5.7% agricultural land. FOREST 35.5% SHRUBLAND AGRICULTURAL LAND OTHER GRASSLAND 38.0% 1990 13.3% 8.2% 5.1% 2018 26.5% 10.0% 5.2% 3.6% FOREST 54.7% Of the area mapped as forest in 2018 within the fire perimeter, 34.9% was classified as shrubland or transitional woodland in 1990, and 5.7% agricultural land.

FOREST 35.5% AGRICULTURAL LAND GRASSLAND OTHER FOREST 35.5% 38.0% 1990 13.3% 8.2% 5.1% 2018 26.5% 10.0% 5.2% 3.6% FOREST 54.7% Of the area mapped as forest in 2018 within the fire perimeter, 34.9% was classified as shrubland or transitional woodland in 1990, and 5.7% agricultural land. SHRUBLAND Sankey diagram showing how land cover changed between 1990 and 2018, highlighting which land cover types became woodland and contributed to the new forest area.

Note: CORINE Land Cover is a European inventory of land cover and land use with more than 40 categories. Reuters consolidated detailed classifications into five broad groups — forest, shrubland and transitional woodland, agricultural land, natural grassland and other land cover — to track how areas changed classification between the 1990 and 2018 maps. Source: Copernicus Land Monitoring Service’s CORINE Land Cover dataset (1990, 2018) Similar shifts have been taking place across Spain and in other Mediterranean countries, where wildfire risk is high.

Europe’s forest cover increased 11% between 1990 and 2025, to 232 million hectares, the UN-compiled data shows. Alex Held, a wildfire expert at the European Forest Institute, said there was less vegetation to fuel blazes in parts of Spain, Portugal, Italy and Greece, when more land was used for farming, grazing animals and firewood collection. Now, many areas have become overgrown, Held said, “and very often this recolonisation is with very flammable vegetation.”

The growing risk to lives and property If these new forests aren’t managed, it can create conditions for fires to burn out of control, said Victor Resco de Dios, a professor of forest science at Spain’s University of Lleida. Wet winter weather in Spain fuelled explosive growth in vegetation this year, much of which dried out over the summer due to record-breaking temperatures and drought. In areas where dead wood and dry undergrowth weren’t cleared away, fires built to an intensity far beyond what firefighters can manage, Resco de Dios said.

Flames can climb a fire ladder of grass, shrubs and low branches into the treetops. When this happens, firefighters say they can become impossible to control. Reducing undergrowth through controlled burns, brush clearing and animal grazing