La lucha ante los incendios forestales y la intervención y organización de los entes locales

Abstract

Wildfires have frequently and very severely devastated the Spanish territory. This article analyzes the legal-institutional and administrative organization of local intervention regarding the prevention and firefighting of wildfires, with particular attention to the management models—both direct and indirect—that the legal system makes available to the competent public administrations, placing special emphasis on local authorities. Thus, a preliminary study is conducted on the multi-level framework of competencies regarding wildfires, a domain where regional governments (comunidades autónomas) play a highly significant and leading role. This framework, in turn, integrates the functions performed by local entities and their corresponding organizational management structures. In this sector, due to the very nature of the risk faced, it is essential to address management that is mostly in the hands of supra-municipal organizations and resources, within which the functions to be provided by local entities are embedded.

Keywords:

wildfires, administrative organization, local entities, local competencies, multi-level framework of competencies, autonomous communities, direct management, indirect management, TRAGSA (instrumental in-house provider), wildfire prevention, wildfire firefighting, municipal associations and consortia, civil protection, mandatory local public services