A community in the Benfeita region has called for support for those who lost homes and livelihoods in recent fires and urged a shift in forestry strategy to prioritize reforestation with native species and biodiversity while reconsidering widespread eucalyptus and pine monocultures.
Benfeita has attracted both foreign and national citizens seeking a lifestyle change over the past decades.
“Around 200 people or more live here, and the community is very united, with many days of communal work post-fire,” said Inês Moura, who moved to the Arganil area 11 years ago and participated in the statement expressing the community’s “widespread desire.”
These residents advocate for rethinking land use aimed at short-term financial gains, including monoculture plantations, solar panel parks, wind projects, and mining.
“Exploitation of the interior must stop as it is happening now. It’s becoming increasingly clear that monoculture of pine and eucalyptus fuels the spread of large-scale fires,” noted Inês Moura, who lost her home in the October 2017 fires.
After the 2017 fire, the community formed ARBOR, the Benfeita Region Association for Regenerative Objectives, which has undertaken reforestation efforts and set up three self-protection teams equipped with tank-bearing vehicles, among other initiatives.
ARBOR president Bárbara Sá reported these teams were active in August and played a crucial role in saving some homes threatened by flames in the region.
“We are pleased to see the teams worked. Furthermore, the community mobilized entirely. Now, we must invest to improve these efforts,” she stated.
Since 2017, ARBOR has spearheaded various reforestation projects, planting thousands of trees in the region, some of which were affected by the August fire.
Despite some efforts being lost—the young trees were too vulnerable to resist the flames—ARBOR plans to continue its work.
“There are many good ideas,” both in reforestation and resident self-protection, said Sá.
Despite cultural divisions between local and foreign residents, the fire has helped mend that gap.
“People trust us more,” she observed.
Looking ahead, Bárbara Sá hopes for a national policy change regarding forests.
“The interior is seen as a resource to sustain urban lifestyles, which is sad because the interior is much more than a collection of resources,” she noted.
Even with reforestation setbacks, Sá believes the large August fire reinforces the path taken after 2017.
“There are people willing to care for and protect the valleys, which makes people want to stay. The people’s resilience gives me hope, and I want to continue here,” she emphasized.
