The ranchers of Pallars Sobirà regret the cessation of controlled burning in mountain pastures and ask the administration to resume them immediately.
These are burning to prevent the proliferation of bushes that replace grass for animals.
In mountains such as Seurí, Olp, Montardit or Enviny, all in the municipality of Sort, ranchers have not been able to do any type of burning for between three and four years due to lack of authorization.
Rancher Carlos Juanmartí assures that they cannot wait any longer given that each year that passes without being able to burn, the forest area invades the pastures and it will become increasingly difficult to burn safely. The ranchers ask the administration for a solution "immediately."
These ranchers have recalled how every summer they get tired of hearing that fires go out in winter. They consider that with this administration policy the only thing done is to generate fuel, they stated.
Eva Tarragona, from the community of owners of the Seurí mountain, explained that for centuries it was the local community that managed the burning to maintain the pastures and be able to take the animals to graze. It was until the administration believed it was more appropriate for the Special Forest Fire Prevention Group (GEPIF) to deal with these creams with the support of the Rural Agents. For two or three years, they do not know the reason, but it is not done or it is not authorized.
Not carrying out controlled burning in the mountains "has very dire consequences," says Eva Tarragona, who asks the administration to authorize the local population to do so again if it has few means to do so.
Loss of pastures, loss of a high-value ecosystem, increased risk of fires and increase in forested areas are some of the consequences caused by the lack of creams, according to Tarragona.
Albert Baqueró, a rancher from Olp, explained that with each year that passes without being able to obtain authorization to carry out a burn, "the risk is higher." Having less pasture in the mountains means that fewer animals will be able to go there and that its management will be "more complicated" because the land will be more "dirty," said Baqueró, who added that it will be increasingly "more expensive and more dangerous." make creams if they are not done periodically.
Juanmartí recalled that the administration forces ranchers to have a few hectares of "clean" pasture and that they do it with mechanical means, but that in the mountains where they cannot access with machinery they only have to do it with burning. Fire is "a tool" that, when well managed, should not be scary, said Juanmartí.
