In July, Syria lost 15,000 hectares (ha) of agricultural and forestry land, of which 2,194.7 ha were agricultural land and 12,805.3 ha were forested areas. The Syrian Ministry of Agriculture estimates these figures are equivalent to 2.42% of the country’s forest cover. Despite the horror of the figure and the severity of the loss, this is not surprising in a country where environmental mistakes and corruption have accumulated. Syria has lost much of its green areas due to war and conflict at one time, excessive logging and charring on another, a lack of capabilities to protect its forests at a third, and perhaps even to total neglect towards these spaces.

Dr. Mahmoud Ali, professor of environment and forest protection, Department of Forestry and Environment at the Faculty of Agricultural Engineering at Latakia University, explains that the preventive measures taken by the Ministry of Agriculture are less than modest, as he puts it. This is primarily due to the Forest Directorate’s meek plans and lack of resources allocated to it. He cites that the annual plan for forestry and development activities for 2024 in Latakia governorate – the most important forestry governorate – is 1,000 ha, although according to the ministry’s records, there are more than 60,000 ha of forests in this governorate. Ali argues that according to this plan, “we need a sixty-year cycle, which is completely unacceptable, because fires wait for no one.”

Ali draws attention to one of the main priorities of forest protection: to keep high-risk sites clean of natural fuels (i.e. flammable organic materials), including cleaning road sides passing through forests; maintaining a protected area around power lines; electrical housing, and other existing infrastructure located in forests; preserving a protected area for railway lines from flammable materials; cleaning a protected area around agricultural lands that overlap with forests; and controlling agricultural activities during high-risk periods. Ali adds that these were almost non-existent due to the lack of resources and commitment by their custodians to carry out these duties, even though the Ministry of Agriculture can oblige them under Forestry Law No. 26 of 2023. Ali cites the Mashqita fire in 2023, al-Rabiah fire in 2007, and al-Basit fire in 2004, all of which were caused by failures in the electrical grid, according to the Ministry of Agriculture.

Frequent fires

Syria’s forests and woodlands make up 2.7% of the country’s total area, according to recent Ministry of Agriculture estimates obtained by the Arab Reform Initiative. These green spaces have been subjected to several fires and encroachments during recent years of war. The Global Forest Watch website reveals that between 2011 and 2023, Syria lost about 28% of its tree cover, equivalent to 29,500 ha. In 2024, the Center for Environmental Research and Forest Applications in Barcelona published research revealing that the highest rate of deforestation occurred between 2010 and 2015, causing the total forest cover to decrease by 11.5%, or 37,900 ha.

A PAX study, titled Axed and Burned, explained that armed groups were the main driver of heavy logging in natural forests, with nearly 60% of trees chopped down. The war also directly caused the destruction of large-scale commercial orchards, which affected livelihoods. The few remaining nature reserves and reforestation projects around Raqqa and Tabqa were also severely impacted during the Islamic State occupation.

According to the Syrian Athar website, in 2019, the area burned amounted to 16,123 dunams (1,612.3 ha). In 2020, the burned forest area was estimated at 132,772 dunams (13,277.2 ha), and in 2021 it amounted to 9,107 dunams (0.910.7 ha). In 2022, the burned forest area amounted to 1,816 dunams (0.181.6 ha).

This bitter environmental reality in Syria, and the massive spread of the latest fire that lasted for twelve days, prompted many to ask why the fires are so frequent and widespread. An agricultural engineer who previously worked in the Forestry Directorate and prefers to remain anonymous explains that there are three reasons for this: The first is environmental climatic, as the 2025 Summer season is considered one of the driest in more than sixty years, according to meteorologists. The second reason is due to the fact that the foci of the fires had spread near military areas, some of which were former army bases, and it was nearly impossible for forestry personnel to enter them. This meant the forests were subject to neglect, without undergoing rehabilitation of forest roads, or cleaning up of their fire lines, or monitoring dams where water is collected for firefighting. In addition, mines and unexploded materials were scattered around the area. The third reason for the widespread fires is the lack of preparation for the current fire season.

For his part, Dr. Wael Saleh al-Matni, an expert in agriculture and sustainable development, emphasizes the role of climate change, explaining that this year’s rainfall is between 20-30% of its normal rate. As a result of this dryness and lack of moisture, the pines secrete highly combustible substances that help fires spread more rapidly. The second reason, according to al-Matni, is administrative and organizational: the Forest Protection Foundation was dismantled, its workers laid off, its activities scaled down, and its vehicles withdrawn, whether under the former regime or the current one.

In addition to the above, Ahmed Ghassoun, an engineer specialized in environmental systems, said that one of the reasons for the increased spread of fires was the delay in first responders, and the absence of early intervention teams using appropriate equipment for the nature of mountainous and rugged areas. Ghassoun emphasized the the Civil Defense’s tremendous efforts as well as support from neighboring countries, however, they lacked field coordination and geographical distribution: there was no prior risk-map on which to base the distribution of teams, roads, corridors, observation points, or reservoirs; even fire lines were not maintained; and there was no control and response center based on geographic information systems (GIS).

After the fire

The question then becomes: How do we stop these fires from continuing, and how do we regain our lost forests?

The answer to the first question, according to a former forestry engineer, is through restoring support to the forestry sector and adopting an early fire management system, like other countries. He explains that during the days of the previous regime, prevention relied on observation towers and rapid intervention teams, but these were also primitive solutions. He hopes new firefighting and prevention systems will be available in light of Syria’s openness to outside organizations and to help from other countries, as these actors can be asked to provide them. In his opinion, this will be a key point to reducing fires, because the first point to fighting fires is early intervention. These systems will identify the most dangerous months for fires as well as the most dangerous areas.

Ghassoun adds that preventing the recurrence of large fires requires several measures: creating protection corridors 25-50 meters wide inside forests and around villages, criminalizing entery into forests during the summer months without a permit, building fixed water tanks, activating summer monitoring using drone and thermal cameras, strictly enforcing the forestry law to hold accountable those who neglect or deliberately cause fires, and finally adopting a GIS technology to build annual hazard maps.

The ousted president, Bashar al-Assad, issued Law No. (39) of 2023 on forests and forest lands, which set strict penalties for anyone who encroaches on them, but these were rarely enforced. Article 43 of the forestry law stipulates a penalty of 10 to 20 years imprisonment and a fine equal to three times the value of the damage caused. The penalty is increased to life imprisonment and a fine of three to 10 times the value of the damage caused if the fire results in permanent disability, and increases to death if the fire proves fatal. Article 44 stipulates a penalty of imprisonment from one to three years, and a fine equivalent to three times the value of the damage caused for anyone who causes a fire in the state forest as a result of negligence or failure to observe the laws and regulations in force. This penalty increases to five years or 20 years in prison, depending on the size of the damage.

When do we reforest?

Sometimes, reforestation campaigns follow these fires, and at other times, nature is left to recover on its own. Rushed and hasty reforestation campaigns may carry environmental damage when compensating for the loss. Al-Matani stressed that the biggest mistake is to rush to reforestation. A fence must be placed around the burned forest to let it restore itself on its own, because within a few years, it will be covered in shrubs. He explains that in the face of a vast burnt area, Syria does not have sufficient seedlings for planting, nor enough water or machinery.

Ghassoun emphasized this idea, saying: “Before thinking about reforestation, we have to think about what the forest needs to heal, not what we want to plant. All organizations confirm that immediate reforestation after a fire often fails and may even hinder natural regeneration, especially in Mediterranean forests that have a self-restoring ability, such as pine and oak.” He explains that the first thing to do is to assess the environmental impact and identify areas that show signs of natural regeneration, while those that have lost all vegetation cover should be monitored for about a year. Burnt trees that are still standing should be removed because they hinder vegetation recovery and pose a new fire risk.

In addition to calls for reforestation, there is talk of changing the species planted in these forests, which are mostly conifers. The pine trees are indigenous to the local Syrian environment and cannot be changed, but they coexist with other species. The past mistake was that all reforestation campaigns focused on planting pine alone, ignoring other species, such as carob, terebinth, cedar, and others. Their reason is that pine is evergreen and has a beautiful color.

The Syrian Ministry of Agriculture has developed an artificial afforestation plan for the upcoming 2025-2026 season, through which it intends to target an area of 1,000 ha, and has developed a plan that targets the production of 1.4 million forest plantations, a modest figure compared to the past. Before 2011, Syria used to produce about 30 million tree seedlings annually, which were allocated for afforestation campaigns across the country. The figure is also lower than Syria’s production in the years following the crisis. In 2019, Syria produced about five million saplings, and six million saplings for the 2020 season, including “pine, cypress, eucalyptus, acacia, fan palm, reishi, oak, and others”.

Local community

When talking about forests, the local community adjacent to these forested areas cannot be forgotten, as they are the people of the region and can be the first line of defense if they feel that they have a role in benefiting and protecting these forests, through obtaining some privileges that do not harm nature. Ghassoun suggested establishing trained volunteer teams from these areas to respond to emergency fires, involving these residents in monitoring and early reporting of fires, in exchange for an acceptable salary, organizing annual campaigns to clean and rehabilitate fire paths, and providing financial incentives to farmers who cooperate in protecting the forest. He concluded by suggesting launching awareness campaigns in schools and centers.

Ali emphasizes that involving the local community in forest management is very important to achieve the required protection from all encroachments and risks. He explains that the main blocks of Syrian forests are located in the vicinity of local communities. Many houses are located within the forests or adjacent to them, and they infringe on neighboring forests when expanding their farms, whether intentionally or unintentionally. Extreme poverty characterizes these local communities, so they head to the forest to collect wood and take medicinal and aromatic plants, edible plants, and some fodder materials for their animals. Ali concludes that the solution lies in involving local people in the management of these forests, in exchange for an acceptable income from forest products, especially from the residues of breeding and development work (pruning, stripping, and cleaning); from fire remains; from medicinal, aromatic, edible, and fodder plants; and in return, earning the friendship and assistance of these communities in protecting the forests from all encroachments, reporting fires, and helping to extinguish them if they occur.

Ali adds that it is necessary to work with local communities to improve their agricultural activities in areas overlapping or adjacent to forests, so they do not cause fires to their farms or forests. It is known that a good percentage of forest fires in Syria result from agricultural burning. This takes place at high-risk times and without taking the minimum precautions to prevent the fire from getting out of control, and dealing with it when it occurs.

Supporting initiatives

The role of the local community was perhaps most evident during the recent fire crisis, when residents rushed to help extinguish the fires using their own simple tools. Relief campaigns spread throughout Syria, including aid that was launched and organized by businessmen from Aleppo. Fadi Homsiyeh, a member of the White Hands of Aleppo initiative, explains that the group consists of one hundred businessmen and wealthy individuals and was established after the liberation of the country. Its mission is to provide material and logistical support in Aleppo. However, when the fires broke out in the coastal forests, the group decided to go support the local residents and firefighters, providing them with essential resources. After consulting with the Ministry of Emergencies, the team prepared and distributed what was requested, including Walkie-Talkie communication devices, fuel, hoses, fireproof boots, and long-lasting foodstuffs. The Aleppo initiative went viral on social media, prompting other governorates to take up similar initiatives.

Several Syrian women’s associations came together and launched an initiative called Women for the Earth. When the fires occurred, the participants raised the issue to the group and suggested organizing a campaign, collecting donations to provide logistical support, food, and drink for the civil defense and volunteers who helped them. In addition, they provided psychological support to those affected, secured housing, and empowered women. Posters were published on the associations’ social media pages, and people interacted with them, said engineer Lynn Deribati, head of the board of directors of  “You” for the Advancement of Rural Women in Latakia, and a member of a platform that includes women-led associations across Syria.

Deribati commented that what distinguishes this campaign is that each member is from a different place and environment, united by their love for their country. This is why they were able to provide several services. They plan to keep the campaign going and never stop.

Syrian forests deserve more attention and awareness. In addition to their environmental role, they play an aesthetic and touristic role that brings good income to the residents of those areas, and we reiterate here the role of the local community: the first guarantor in forest protection and the speediest entity at reporting fires and violations.