Castilla y León mandates the removal of wood burned in the 2026 fires

The Regional Ministry of Environment and Energy of the Junta de Castilla y León has published Order MAE/806/2026, dated August 24, which mandates the cutting and removal of burnt pine wood in areas affected by the 2026 forest fires in order to curb the risk of pests. The regulation, signed by Minister María González Corral, appears in the Official Gazette of Castilla y León number 164, dated August 25, 2026, pages 39 to 45.

A framework to avoid phytosanitary collapse

The order is a response to the fires that throughout 2026 devastated a significant forest area in the Community. Among the most relevant are those in Burgohondo (Ávila), Castropodame (León), Murias de Ponjos (León), and Fermoselle (Zamora), the first of which was the subject of Order INT/748/2026, dated July 23, which declared a national interest emergency.

In most areas, the affected trees are predominantly pine conifers (Pinus spp.). Burnt wood and trees weakened by fire increase the risk of forest pest outbreaks; therefore, the regulation establishes an agile extraction framework and simplifies administrative procedures.

Deadlines and obligations for owners

The mandatory extraction affects pine trees with a normal diameter greater than 8 centimeters, measured 1.30 meters from the ground, and extends to a 10-meter strip outward from the fire perimeter. Owners of harvesting rights in forests not managed by the Administration must carry out the cutting without the need to request prior authorization.

• Execution period: from the publication of the order until March 31, 2028, with the possibility of a justified extension.
• Priority: all mandatory material must be extracted by March 31, 2027, starting with the wood from the perimeter and green islands.
• Permanence in the forest: pine wood may not remain for more than 2 weeks between April 1 and October 30, nor more than 4 weeks during the rest of the year.
• Residues: those with a diameter of less than 8 cm must be left in windrows according to contour lines, used for soil protection, or shredded in situ.

If the owner does not carry out the cutting within the deadline, the Regional Ministry may proceed, following a formal warning, to subsidiary execution at the interested party’s expense, in accordance with articles 99 and 100 of Law 39/2015, of October 1.

The threat of pests and the pine nematode

The regulation is based on Law 3/2009, of April 6, on the Forests of Castilla y León, which empowers the regional ministry to intervene in harvesting operations in defense of the general interest and to demand the extraction of products that pose a serious risk of pests. The greatest harmful potential is presented by the bark beetle Ips sexdentatus, which is capable of attacking almost all pine species.

Added to this is the danger of introducing the quarantine organism Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, the pine wood nematode, which is transmitted via the cerambycid Monochamus galloprovincialis and can kill all infected trees in less than three months. The order also recommends the felling of other nearby conifers, such as the genera Cedrus, Picea, Abies, or Pseudotsuga, to promote regeneration.

Relevance for forest owners

The order directly affects the owners of forests and wooded areas in the burned provinces, who must plan the felling and removal of timber within the established deadlines or bear the cost of subsidiary execution. Against the resolution, which concludes the administrative process, an appeal for reversal may be filed within one month, or a contentious-administrative appeal may be filed before the High Court of Justice of Castilla y León within two months.

Source: Official Gazette of Castilla y León, no. 164, August 25, 2026, section I.D (Other Provisions), pp. 39-45 (official reference: BOCYL-D-25082026-164-12).