Forest fires in France
19.8.2017
Question for written answer E-005221-17
to the Commission
Rule 130
Nadine Morano (PPE)
This summer, major forest fires have broken out in a number of European countries, in particular in Portugal, Italy and now France. Each time, members of the fire and emergency services have risked their lives doing outstanding work, but they need support.
These crises prompted the activation of the European civil protection mechanism, which enables the Commission to coordinate the sharing of emergency resources among Member States on a voluntary basis. Recently, under this mechanism, France and Italy have begun exchanging water bombers.
In the light of this:
- —Will the Commission specify what resources were made available to France under the mechanism in July 2017 to fight forest fires?
- —Does the Commission plan to overhaul the mechanism in order to enhance the cooperation between Member States which is so essential when dealing with natural disasters?