Wildfires in Europe burns highest ever amount of land in 2025 – A greener life, a greener world

By Anders Lorenzen

Data from the European Union (EU) body, the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), have shown that the hectares of land lost in the 27 EU countries so far are the highest on record.

The collection of EU wildfire data is relatively new with records only going back to 2006, showing how quickly wildfires have intensified and become a serious problem on the continent.

The record-breaking 2025 EU wildfire season

Even as wildfires are still burning in some EU countries, the equivalent of the size of Cyprus – a total of 1,028,000 hectares of land in the EU has been lost as a result of an extreme wildfire season.

This beat the precious record set in 2017 when 998,000 hectares was lost to wildfires in the EU.

EU 2025 wildfires: The Iberian Peninsula hardest hit

In terms of land lost, Spain and Portugal account for the highest amount, accounting for two-thirds of the total burnt area. The dataset released by EFFIS showed a sharp increase in wildfires in the period between 5-19 August which coincided with a 16-day heatwave on the Iberian Peninsula.

While the Iberian countries accounted for the highest losses, even though no longer a part of the EU – in the UK where intense and widespread wildfires are highly unusual, the country is battling its most severe wildfire season on record.

EU 2025 wildfires: The EU is heading for new emissions record

The link between wildfires and climate impacts cannot be ignored, as climate change makes wildfires, heat waves, and droughts more frequent and severe. 

In return, wildfires exacerbate climate change by increasing emissions from the burned land and reducing vegetation’s ability to capture and store CO2 and other greenhouse gases (GHG). 

The EU wildfires have contributed to increased emissions in the EU this year, with 38 million tonnes of CO2 having been emitted so far—putting 2025 on track to breach the annual record of 41 million tonnes.

Anders Lorenzen is the founding Editor of A greener life, a greener world.