In 2023, the “green fund” provided financial support to more than 7,000 project leaders concerning nearly 6,000 municipalities in mainland France and overseas. That is an envelope of 2 billion euros invested. The Gard firefighters received a little more than 650,000 euros.
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In 2022, as part of France Nation Verte, the State decided to allocate specific aid to communities working towards the ecological transition. The Gard Department put together a file to obtain funding for the fire and rescue service. The aim was to acquire cutting-edge equipment and engineering for fighting forest fires.
In 2023, Gard firefighters were eligible for the “green fund”.
This is a unique mechanism intended to finance projects presented by local authorities in three areas: environmental performance, adaptation of the territory to climate change and improvement of the living environment.
To support elected officials in the implementation of these actions, the “green fund” devotes a section dedicated to engineering so that they can have recourse to the help of professionals.
The funded projects will enable better protection of people and property against forest and vegetation fires.
On August 3, 2023, the SDIS du Gard was awarded a grant of €665,365 as part of the ecological transition acceleration fund, in particular the prevention of forest fire risks, to equip itself with:
- Fire detectors
- 2 Drones
- Horus Camera
Two drones were thus able to be acquired by the Gard firefighters, they are added to the fleet existing for 5 years.
These devices are increasingly important in Occitania to effectively combat fire outbreaks. This is part of the end of the prevention chain. Detecting and immediately locating a fire outbreak reduces the response time of the emergency services and therefore limits the consequences and the extent of the fire.
In 2022, 72,000 hectares burned across the whole of France, including 10,000 hectares of vegetation, and 14,000 fires were recorded. In 2023, 22,500 hectares burned and 18,000 fires were recorded. Thus, while the number of fires was significantly higher, the number of hectares burned was divided by more than 3.
Area burned per year in France:
- 2023 = 22,500 hectares.
- 2022 = 72,000
- 2021 = 31,000
- 2020 = 15,000
These national figures demonstrate the commitment of all stakeholders, particularly firefighters, to intervene as soon as possible after a fire is detected. They also demonstrate the effectiveness of the means of fighting it, which have been increased from 2023 and also in 2024.
To support the mobilization of local authorities, the government has decided to extend the green fund until 2027 to help meet the challenges of ecological planning.
