The government has declared the summer fires a ‘natural disaster’ and has set aside €4 million to help farmers with the costs of replacing stock and machinery.
Farmers can apply for funds on the Portugal 2020 Community Support Framework website and should be submitted between 15 and 30 September this year, reads the order published on Thursday September 1st in the Official Gazette.
The area destroyed by fires this year was three times the rolling ten year average
The document offers "support for restoration or replacement of the productive potential of damaged farms due to the effect of the natural disaster." This includes animals, multiannual crops, machinery, equipment, warehouses and other agricultural buildings.
The aid is in the form of non-refundable grants, with the minimum amount of €1,000.
The Regional Directorates of Agriculture and Fisheries of the North and the Centre of the country will be responsible for the verification of losses declared by farmers and payments should go out after 31 October.
On 19 August, the Environment Minister, João Matos Fernandes, said fires in national parks were up 16% to 8,500 hectares, mostly in the Peneda Gerês park.
The area burned this year to the 15th of August was three times that of the ten years average, 103,137 hectares, according to a provisional report of the Nature Conservation Institute and Forestry (ICNF) which notes 8,624 outbreaks.
The €4 million on offer, though welcome, certainly will not cover all losses and many farmers will have their applications rejected or reduced proportionally.
With grassland consumed, many cattle farmers have no feed for their herds and are having to buy in expensive bagged feeds - a situation which can not carry on indefinitley.
