The EU is urging member states to step up investments in nature-based management to reduce wildfire risk after AccuWeather estimated this summer's fires cost €15.6–€19.1bn. Commissioner Jessika Roswall said prevention must be prioritised, warning that climate change is expanding fire risk across Europe. Brussels will monitor how member states use EU climate and environment funds and will review national restoration plans due by September.
EU Urges Member States to Boost Nature Investments as Wildfire Costs Surge
FILE PHOTO: Firefighters work on a burning area near Loumpa, as wildfires hit West Attica, Greece, August 3, 2026. REUTERS/Louisa Gouliamaki/ File Photo
The European Union will press member states to increase investment in nature-based environmental management to reduce wildfire risk, EU Environment Commissioner Jessika Roswall told Reuters, after experts estimated this summer's fires have already caused more than €15 billion in economic damage.
Rising Costs and Growing Risk
AccuWeather on Thursday published estimates that extreme wildfires across France, Spain and Greece this summer have produced between €15.6 billion and €19.1 billion in economic costs. Those figures include damage to property and infrastructure, firefighting expenses, debris clearance and expected insurance claims.
Scientists say human-caused global warming made the extreme weather that fuelled these blazes more likely. At the same time, the speed and intensity with which fires spread have raised questions about whether countries are doing enough to manage landscapes—for example, by removing dry undergrowth from forests or restoring wetlands that can act as natural firebreaks.
"Prevention is the first line of defence... it is obvious that we need to invest more in nature," Commissioner Jessika Roswall said in the interview.
Policy and Funding
Investment needs differ across the EU's 27 member states, with Mediterranean countries typically most exposed to summer fires. But Roswall warned that climate change is increasing wildfire risk in northern countries as well, naming Finland and Sweden, and stressing that "no area of Europe is spared." She described the need for funding as "really urgent."
Brussels proposed last year that 35% of the EU's next joint budget be allocated to climate or environment measures. Environmental groups have criticised bundling climate and nature funding, arguing it could channel money into low-carbon energy and infrastructure projects that show larger immediate returns while sidelining nature restoration.
Roswall said the European Commission will monitor whether member states use funds for nature-based measures and specific wildfire prevention actions. Brussels will also scrutinise how wildfire prevention is addressed in national plans submitted under the EU's law on restoring damaged nature, which member states must file by September.
"It's not a luxury, because the cost, if we don't do that, is growing," she said, noting she is working with member states and ministers on the urgency of investing to protect homes, lives and industries.
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