The European project SenForFire Interreg Sudoe has reached a key milestone in its strategy for the prevention and early detection of forest fires. After several months of work, the SenForFire teams have deployed smart sensors in the pilot areas of Fundão (Portugal), Guadarrama (Madrid), Andorra, and Cáceres (Extremadura). This infrastructure forms a pioneering monitoring network that collects crucial real-time data on the soil, vegetation, and atmosphere.
Bringing Technology Closer to Citizens and Professionals
To raise awareness of this work and the collaborative effort it entails, SenForFire has produced a series of informative videos, now available on its official YouTube channel. These productions, filmed on the ground, document the sensor installation process and the close collaboration among researchers, technologists, technicians, and forest fire professionals. They showcase the active participation of local entities, research teams, and professionals from the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITECO), forestry services, and fire brigades, all of whom have been crucial in deploying the equipment and carrying out practical field training.
In parallel with the deployment of the sensor network, the ICIFOR-INIA-CSIC team participating in SenForFire has trained members of the MITECO Forest Fire Prevention and Analysis Team (EPAIF), the Fundão forestry services, and the Andorran agency Recerca e Innovació (AR+I) in collecting vegetation samples and measuring their moisture content using the gravimetric method. Sample collection will be done weekly during the high fire risk period and less frequently during medium and low risk periods. The ultimate goal is to establish correlations between forest fuel moisture, soil moisture, and fire danger.
“The installation of this network is not just a technological advance, but an example of how science, technology, and field experience come together to protect our ecosystems. It is essential that administrations and society understand the benefit of having local data to improve management and response to a challenge as serious as forest fires,” explains Macarena Parejo, Professor at the University of Extremadura and Head of Communications for SenForFire.
With the deployment of this sensor-based monitoring network and the publication of these audiovisual materials, SenForFire consolidates its strategy to integrate technological innovation, transnational collaboration, and social awareness in the fight against forest fires in the Sudoe area.