Balearics getting better at fighting forest fires

PALMA
THE Balearics is the fifth region with the greatest level of protection against forest fires and the least level of vulnerability to fires, according to the classification by the Spanish Ministry for the Environment.

The classification was based on 17 parameters which were evaluated relative to the forest structure in Spain, the serious fires which have taken place in the region, and the efficiency of the measures taken against forest fires.

With regard to this, the Balearics is the fifth region with the least vulnerability to forest fires.
The islands are only behind La Rioja, Murcia, Aragon and Navarra.
The Canary Islands are at the same level as the Balearics, although the classification was done before the outbreak of the serious fires which raged on the Canaries earlier this month.

The classification is an evaluation of the political efforts in forest managment, the risk of serious forest fires occuring, and the risk in relation to the efficiency of the measures for prevention and extinction of fires.

Before the forest fires in the Canary Islands, the Balearics occupied eighth place with regard to forest management, and also the eighth place with regard to least risk of serious fires.

However, the islands occupied third place for the efficiency of their measures for prevention and extinction of forest fires.
Earlier this week the Balearic minister of the environment, Miquel Angel Grimalt, inspected the fire-fighting equipment on the island, which includes two helicopters, two planes and a sea plane.

He announced at the time that the total forest area burned in the Balearics in the first seven months of the year was 85 hectares.