The Generalitat grants 500,000 euros in aid for fire-fighting grazing

The General Directorate for Forest Fire Prevention of the Generalitat Valenciana has resolved to grant 500,000 euros in aid destined for the control of natural vegetation through extensive livestock farming in strategic management areas linked to forest fire prevention for the 2026 fiscal year. The resolution, signed on September 3, 2026, by the general director José Antonio Rueda Guijarro, is published in the Official Gazette of the Generalitat Valenciana (DOGV) number 10446, dated September 8, 2026, with reference DOGV-C-2026-28381.

The grants are awarded on a competitive basis and are aimed at sheep, goat, equine, and/or cattle farmers who use extensive grazing as a vegetation management tool in strategic areas against fire. The call is supported by the regulatory basis resolution of June 15, 2026, which established the regulatory framework and opened the call for the current fiscal year.

Financing and beneficiaries

The program has a budget allocation of 500,000 euros charged to own funds, through the subsidy line S0549, subprogram 442F00, and management center G01080205. The resolution grants aid to 70 individuals and entities listed in Annex II, for a total amount broken down as follows:

• 435,220.22 euros for validated grazing (price per hectare).
• 64,779.78 euros for other concepts (supplements for organic farming, indigenous breeds, priority holdings, women, and youth).

Among the beneficiaries are both natural persons as well as companies and cooperatives, such as Nuevos Horizontes Ganaderos SL, Ganados Santa Lucía SC, PC Organicoop Coop V, Ganadería Chorques Pareja SL, or SAT Nº6810 Hermanos Verdu, among others. The validated grazing area ranges from just over 5 hectares to 75.76 hectares per file.

Evaluation criteria and order of priority

The grant was carried out according to the order of priority established in Annex I, resulting from the scoring of the files based on criteria such as location in high-use zones (ZAU), public utility forests (MUP), protected natural spaces of the Natura 2000 Network, organic farming, indigenous breeds, priority holdings, female ownership, or youth status. The processing of the files was carried out in the three territorial services of the Third Vice-Presidency and Department of Environment, Infrastructure, Territory and Recovery, and the evaluation commission issued its report on August 12, 2026.

Deadlines and appeals

The maximum deadline to submit the justification and request payment of the grants expires on October 16, 2026. Against the resolution, which ends the administrative process, a contentious-administrative appeal may be filed within two months before the Contentious-Administrative Chamber of the High Court of Justice of the Comunitat Valenciana, or an optional appeal for reversal within one month, provided that both avenues are not pursued simultaneously.

Annex III lists the applications not granted, for reasons such as denial (non-compliance with the requirements of base 2 or not being up to date with obligations to the ATV), withdrawal, or inadmissibility due to late submission.

The measure reinforces the role of extensive grazing as a tool for forest fire prevention, while supporting the viability of livestock farms in the Valencian territory. By linking vegetation management with livestock activity, the Generalitat combines the reduction of fire risk with the maintenance of a key primary sector in rural areas.

Source: Official Gazette of the Generalitat Valenciana, no. 10446, September 8, 2026, section III (official reference: DOGV-C-2026-28381).