Gironde and Landes: reconstruction and forest management after wildfires

At the end of October 2026, residents who lost their homes in the summer wildfires in Gironde called on senators to speed up reconstruction procedures. In early November, scientists proposed turning affected pine plantations into a nature reserve, while the harvesting of burned wood remains hampered by a sluggish market and the pine nematode risk is a concern. The Gironde prefecture has waived property tax for 1,550 forest owners affected by the Saumos megafire, and the government has announced aid for forest owners in Landes and Pyrénées-Atlantiques. The summer wildfires caused around 22,500 claims at a cost potentially reaching 563 million euros, without weakening the insurance sector according to the supervisory authority. In mid-November, a European audit on the pine nematode is taking place in Landes, a golf course project on a firebreak is causing controversy in Lège-Cap-Ferret, and the first convoy of wood from burned Landes forests has arrived in the Ardennes.