The eucalyptus lobby has attempted a hearts and minds operation in a new manifesto that notes the percentage of the species burnt in last year and this year’s forest fires.
Several personalities and companies allied to the trade in this fast growing wood, state that the fires that broke out in Portugal were not due to the presence of eucalyptus, but due to the "very low level of management of the forest and of overgrown and unattended forests."
"The signatories have been watching with great concern the multiplication across different media of unrelenting or manifestly incorrect references to the forest management and the causes of the fires in Portugal."
The document signed by Celpa, Altri, Navigator, CIP, Forum for Competitiveness, CAP, among other entities, as well as by several municipal councils, educators and former politicians such as Bagão Félix, Mira Amaral and Daniel Bessa.
"This concern is aggravated by the fact that many of the statements claim, without any basis, that eucalyptus is responsible for the tragedy of forest fires, thus preventing efforts to focus on combating their true causes," states the manifesto.
The fires have been due to, "an excessive biomass load on the ground as a result the very low level of management of the forest and the excess of scrub in Portuguese territory."
According to data from the Institute of Nature Conservation and Forests cited in the manifesto, "more than 80% of the area burned in Portugal has not been eucalyptus," with around 17% being eucalyptus in the last fifteen years.
