The High Fens Are Burning: Belgium Must Prevent Rather Than Cure

Context

Vegetation fires are no longer a phenomenon confined to southern Europe. From Spain to Scotland, fires are becoming more frequent, more intense, and increasingly difficult to contain. Belgium is no longer immune to this reality: the High Fens are on fire.

More than 3,000 hectares have already been affected by the flames in the High Fens, and hundreds of residents have had to be evacuated. The peatlands and heathlands of the High Fens are among the most valuable ecosystems in our country, particularly for their role in carbon storage, biodiversity, and water regulation. These habitats, formed over thousands of years, cannot simply be recreated or restored within a few years.

The fire, which broke out on Friday, August 14, has still not been fully extinguished. It is the most severe wildfire ever recorded in Belgium.

Volt expresses its full solidarity with the firefighters, farmers, forest rangers, and the many volunteers mobilised to fight the flames. We also welcome and encourage European solidarity and the arrival of reinforcements from neighbouring countries.

But putting out the flames is not enough...

The priority is to tackle climate change

Scientists warn about climate change for decades. It is primarily driven by human activities, particularly the burning of fossil fuels. Among others, it contributes to longer and more intense periods of heat and drought, increasing the risk of wildfires.

Belgium is particularly vulnerable to water scarcity. It ranks 18th globally among the countries most exposed to water stress, notably due to its high population density, pollution, extensive soil sealing and rapid water drainage. This situation increases our exposure to the risk of drought.

In Wallonia, nearly 85% of the population lives near an area identified as being at risk of vegetation fires. 234 forest fires have already been recorded there since January this year, more than twice the number recorded during the whole of 2025. CERAC experts also warn of a significant increase in the risk of vegetation fires over the next 10 to 15 years.

Faced with this reality, the political response should be clear: prevent and prepare.

And yet…

As the risks associated with wildfires and climate change increase, Belgium does not have sufficient resources to address them: our civil protection services and firefighters are understaffed and remain underfunded. At the same time, several parties currently in government have, in recent years, sought to slow down or roll back certain climate and environmental measures.

This is why Volt calls for:

• Jointly purchase firefighting helicopters with Luxembourg and the Netherlands and assess the use of Belgian A400Ms for aerial water or retardant drops;

• Strengthen early detection and warning systems, in order to intervene before fires gain momentum;

• Create a federal body for coordinating vegetation fires and strengthen cross-border cooperation, in order to coordinate response efforts and rapidly mobilise additional resources in the event of a major fire;

• Adapt the management of our forests, land and water to climate risks, notably by diversifying tree species and gradually reducing fire-prone conifer monocultures;

• Create strategic firebreaks and restore wetlands to limit the spread of wildfires.

• Compensate farmers mobilised in the Hautes Fagnes for the hours worked and any material damage incurred;

• Increase staffing, specialised training and equipment for firefighters, the Civil Protection and forest rangers;

• And above all, gradually phase out our dependence on fossil fuels, in order to limit the worsening of climate change.

Tomorrow’s wildfires are not inevitable. But they will become more frequent and more devastating as climate change intensifies.

Let’s not wait for the next disaster to act.