PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
Wildfires pose a growing threat to European forests and the biodiversity and ecosystem services they support, particularly in the Mediterranean region. In 2025, over one million hectares burned in the EU—its worst wildfire season on record. Spain and Portugal were severely affected, with clear ties to the climate crisis.
Although fire is a natural ecological process in many Mediterranean ecosystems, severe or recurrent wildfires can exceed their capacity to recover. Their impacts extend beyond the immediate loss of vegetation and wildlife: they release greenhouse gases, damage habitats, alter soil properties and microbial communities, and disrupt water regulation. The loss of vegetation cover can also increase runoff and soil erosion, with consequences for water quality and downstream communities.
Post-fire recovery is therefore a complex challenge. Restoration decisions must account for differences in fire severity, local environmental conditions and natural regeneration potential, while anticipating future climate pressures. Natural recovery may be sufficient in some areas, whereas others require targeted intervention to prevent further degradation. Identifying where, when and how to intervene requires reliable information on vegetation, soils, hydrology and fauna, alongside evidence on the effectiveness of restoration measures.
Effective post-fire management requires coordinated, site-specific approaches that support biodiversity, restore ecosystem functions and strengthen resilience to future disturbances. Accessible decision-making tools, long-term monitoring and the involvement of land managers and local communities are essential to translate ecological knowledge into appropriate restoration practices.
OBJECTIVES
The overall objective of LIFE POSTFIRE is to develop and demonstrate an integrated model for post-fire ecosystem restoration that enhances biodiversity, restores ecosystem services and increases the resilience of Mediterranean forest landscapes to climate change and future wildfires.
Specific objectives are to:
- develop a rapid post-fire ecosystem assessment protocol and a practical methodology for restoration planning
- design and validate an AI-based webGIS Decision Support System to support restoration planning and adaptive management
- demonstrate innovative Nature-Based Solutions for post-fire restoration, including soil microbiome restoration, assisted natural regeneration, hydrogeological protection measures and climate-smart reforestation
- restore forest biodiversity, soil functionality, hydrological processes and ecosystem resilience in fire-affected areas
- reduce future wildfire risk through the promotion of more resilient and less flammable forest structures
- strengthen stakeholder participation through Living Labs, community engagement and collaborative governance approaches
- facilitate replication and transfer of project methodologies across Mediterranean and European wildfire-prone regions.
RESULTS
Results:
- 298 ha of Mediterranean forest ecosystems restored through innovative Nature-Based Solutions (140 ha in Italy and 158 ha in Spain)
- 596 ha of forest landscapes protected from future wildfire risk through prevention measures, fuel-load reduction and fire-resilient restoration approaches185 ha of Habitat 9540 Mediterranean mesogenic endemic pine forests restored
- 50 ha of Habitat 9260 Castanea sativa woodlands restored
- 63 ha of Habitat 9230 Galician-Portuguese oak woods with Quercus robur and Q. pyrenaica restored
- development and deployment of one AI-enhanced webGIS Decision Support System (DSS) providing real-time guidance for post-fire restoration planning and adaptive management
- reduction of soil erosion risk from approximately 40% to 10% within intervention areas through integrated ecological restoration and erosion-control measures
- increase in soil fungal biodiversity from fewer than 550 species to more than 600 species, supporting ecosystem recovery and soil functionality
- recovery of mycorrhizal diversity, reaching 30-45 ectomycorrhizal species and 5 arbuscular mycorrhizal species in restored areas
- increase in macrofungal diversity from about 10 to 32 species, with productivity reaching up to 75 kg/ha
- reduction in vegetation flammability by up to 20-25% at stand level, contributing to long-term wildfire resilience
- additional carbon sequestration of approximately 42.8 t CO₂e/year establishment of 2 Territorial Living Labs to engage local communities, forest managers and public authorities in post-fire restoration and wildfire prevention
- training of approximately 1,000 forestry and wildfire-management professionals through dedicated restoration modules integrated into regional fire-training programmes.
