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The European Commission lends planes to France against forest fires in Corsica

(BRUSSELS2) European resources for fighting forest fires were made available to France on Wednesday to deal with a forest fire in Corsica. Two water bomber planes, Canadair CL 215, part of the European Tactical Reserve against forest fires (EFFTR in English), thus took off from Bastia, in Corsica precisely, on Wednesday, to intervene on the fire which was located not far from there, about 40 kms. The planes were operational in less than three hours (between the request and the intervention). And, they intervened for four hours, carrying out 36 water releases which made it possible to suppress and extinguish the fire.

European Tactical Reserve. This is the first intervention of this European system, set up this summer, on a European budget (endowed with 3,5 million euros paid 80% by the European Commission, 20% by France), according to a "pilot project", to strengthen the fight against forest fires in the EU and cooperation between Member States. Both water bomber planes can be used for a total of 150 flight hours between July 1 and September 30. Based in Marignagne, they are prepositioned for the summer in Corsica. They are rented... to the Ministry of the Interior (which responded to a European call for tenders) and made available to Member States who so wish, by decision of the European Commission. The Member State that uses them pays only the costs of using the planes (fuel, etc.). This system is coordinated within the European Commission by the MIC, the Observation and Information Centre, based at DG Environment and operational 24 hours a day (1). « This is a great example of European added value” explained thehe European Commissioner for the Environment, Stavros Dimas: " Solidarity between Member States remains at the heart of our cooperation on disasters, but we must ensure that we have the right tools at our disposal to react to any type of situation.
emergency
. "

A demonstrative intervention. Let's be clear: this intervention responds to an operational and political imperative. On the operational side, the water bomber planes were close to the fire. But let's be objective: France has other means available to respond to this type of fire. The objective was more political, in the noble sense of the term, to advance European policy. France has always supported the development of a European protection or civil security policy, particularly in the fight against forest fires. A policy based not on a single management by Brussels but on the coordination of resources and mutual assistance between Member States. It was necessary to demonstrate the existing system, to encourage the other Member States to use it, not to let it wither away. Since this is a pilot project. There is no doubt, however, that by the end of the summer, the two Canadairs will be used: in Greece, Italy, or even further east in Romania or Hungary.

(Summary) Following the spreading of major forest fires in Corsica, France made a request for fire fighting aircraft through the Commission's Monitoring and Information Center (MIC), which is based in Brussels. For the first time, the MIC responded to such a request by making use of the European reserve of fire fighting aircraft that it has established this summer to assist Member States that face major forest fires. The planes were operational less than three hours after the request. In 2008, the European Parliament earmarked € 3.5 million for a pilot project to step up cooperation between Member States on combating forest fires. As a result of the pilot project, two Canadair CL 215 fire-fighting aircraft – the European Forest Fire Tactical Reserve – are available this summer to assist Member States facing major forest fires, if and when other Member States are unable to provide the required assistance . They can be used for a total of 150 flight hours between 1 July and 30 September. The pilot project is run by France and the two planes are stationed in Corsica. The pilot project is a test for new arrangements in European civil protection.

(1) Some Member States did not want to hear European competence in the matter, hence this barbaric name to simply designate a center for the coordination of civil security means, a kind of embryo of European COGIC.

Nicolas Gros Verheyde

Chief editor of the B2 site. Graduated in European law from the University of Paris I Pantheon Sorbonne and listener to the 65th session of the IHEDN (Institut des Hautes Etudes de la Défense Nationale. Journalist since 1989, founded B2 - Bruxelles2 in 2008. EU/NATO correspondent in Brussels for Sud-Ouest (previously West-France and France-Soir).

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