Spain bears the cost of a nightmare wildfire summer

Spain faced what officials described as a nightmare wildfire season, with fires ripping through some of the country’s most rural regions and burning roughly 0.8% of Spain’s land area. The blazes, concentrated in the northwest near Galicia and Castile y León and spilling into Extremadura, forced thousands to evacuate and inflicted broad economic damage across farming, beekeeping and tourism. Authorities said the fires were especially uncontainable this year and that the impact will be felt long after the flames subside.

In the northwest, beekeepers bore heavy losses. José Antonio Bruña, a honey producer, watched as lightning ignited a wildfire that tore through the hillside near Porto de Sanabria. While his own 1,500 hives were spared, he warned that the fires will likely wipe out half of his honey production this year, with further declines expected next year as flowers regrow slowly in the scorched countryside. “This August has been a nightmare for me personally, but also for the local farmers and everyone here in the village,” Bruña said. “I’m 47 and I’ve never seen a fire that fierce.” Insurance, he noted, will not cover his losses because there was no structural damage to the hives. He is considering moving many of them to locations farther away in a bid to shield the operation from future fires. Flowers that bees rely on may not regrow for years, Bruña added, complicating recovery for the apiculture sector.

The damage extended beyond beekeeping to livestock farming. Fernando García, a cow farmer from Castromil, said he spent hours with volunteers and firefighters to contain a blaze on the village’s edge. He has lost around 30 cattle this summer, with 11 animals euthanized after suffering severe burns. At times, farmers kept cattle enclosed to reduce risk, even when pastures were still scorched. García warned that while insurance payouts may arrive, they will not compensate for the broader economic toll. “They may pay us, but next year, instead of costing us, for example, €5,000, insurance premiums will cost €10,000 or €15,000,” he said, noting insurers’ reluctance to take on future risk.

The scale of agricultural damage prompted broad estimates of harm. The COAG national farmers’ association estimated in August that the sector had sustained damages of at least €600 million, with the biggest losses in burned fields, damaged properties and casualties among livestock. In addition to direct losses, beehives and antennae used by farmers to locate their livestock suffered damage that will complicate recovery efforts. Farmers’ representatives and regional governments have been negotiating how public funds will be distributed to support recovery in the sector.

Tourism, a cornerstone of Spain’s economy that represents about 13% of GDP, also suffered as fires closed hotels, holiday homes and campgrounds in affected areas. The region around Sanabria Lake, a popular destination, saw occupancy drop sharply when authorities closed the lake due to smoke and safety concerns. Óscar David García López, who operates two lakeside bars, estimated a loss of €80,000 in the second half of August when the lakeside area was shut. “The regional government has said it will pay me €5,500,” he said with a wry laugh. “They are going to have to come up with some other kind of compensation because I didn’t want to close, they forced me to.”

The fires also highlighted a long-building divide between urban and rural Spain. Decades of migration to cities have left about 90% of the population living on roughly 30% of the country’s territory, with the remainder known as la España vacía, or “empty Spain.” Residents in rural areas have long complained about infrastructure gaps, transport limitations and the burdens of EU environmental and sanitary rules for farmers. The latest fires have intensified these tensions as local leaders and residents weigh the enduring costs of a warming climate against the urgency of economic relief. Miguel Ángel Martos, the mayor of Galende near Sanabria Lake, said the area was operating at full capacity in August before the fires closed the lake on August 18, dramatically reducing tourist activity. “In August, this area was at full capacity in terms of tourism and people who have second homes here,” he recalled. “And then, on 18 August, it dropped down to 10% of capacity.”

As the smoke clears, regional authorities and industry groups face a familiar calculus: how to fund recovery without long-term distortions to land use, farming practices and rural livelihoods. The fires have tested the resilience of a country that has benefited in recent years from a tourist-led rebound and a diversifying rural economy, but which remains exposed to the climate-driven risk of more intense wildfire seasons. While some regions have signaled readiness to accelerate aid and reconstruction programs, others worry about the timing and scope of payments, as farmers contend with not only immediate losses but the specter of rising insurance costs and longer-term environmental damage.

The summer’s events underscore the climate-related threat to Spain’s rural heartland and to the communities that rely on farming, beekeeping and nature-based tourism. With fire seasons growing more frequent and destructive, officials say the focus will be on prevention, rapid response and targeted relief to help communities rebuild while safeguarding livelihoods for years to come. The coming months are likely to determine how Spain, and other wildfire-prone regions, adapts to a climate that remains ripe for extreme fire events.

With the fire season receding in some areas, attention has shifted to the enduring economic and ecological costs, particularly in areas where crops, pastures and wild flora will take years to recover. The picture remains incomplete, but the balance sheet from this summer’s fires already shows how quickly a community’s livelihood can hinge on a single event—and how long it can take for a landscape to rebound. Officials stress that climate change is not a distant threat but a current, unfolding challenge, and one that will require coordinated, sustained support for farmers, foresters and communities across Spain.