Months after severe winter storms, tens of thousands of fallen trees still cover slopes across Catalonia’s Pyrenees. The worst damage is in Ripollès and Berguedà, while Cerdanya is also affected. The backlog has reached 44,000 tons, three times the original estimate, raising concerns about pest outbreaks and wildfire risk as colder weather approaches. The Department of Agriculture calls this one of the largest accumulations of storm-damaged timber in recent memory.
Efforts to clear the debris have slowed to a crawl. Lingering snow remains one obstacle. Local officials and forestry managers also point to slow administrative processes, alongside a shortage of companies able to take on the work. In some places, the field is a tangle of trunks, forcing extraction teams to move carefully. The Catalan government says releasing public forest assets for auction can take months, further delaying cleanup.
In March, the Catalan government declared a state of forest emergency in the affected Pyrenean regions, allowing municipalities to request extraordinary funding for cleanup efforts.
Ripollès has been hit hardest, with 845 hectares affected and 39,000 tons of timber still waiting to be cleared. In Cerdanya, 146 hectares and 4,700 tons are concentrated around Aransa and Lles. Berguedà faces 125 hectares and 2,070 tons, information from the Department of Agriculture. The best time for clearing, from March to June, has already passed. In many towns, timber contract auctions only started in July. The Generalitat says these delays have made timely action harder and increased the risk of pest problems.
Gerard Vila, technical director at the Consorcio de Espacios de Interés Natural (CEIN) in Ripollès, describes the process as a drawn-out struggle. Teams had to map the damage and calculate volumes. The Generalitat then needed to formally release public forest assets for auction. Some sites were so hard to reach that crews had to build over two kilometers of new tracks. In certain areas, cleanup was abandoned because of high costs or safety concerns. The regional forestry association says a lack of available contractors has been compounded by similar storms elsewhere in Spain, which have tied up heavy machinery.
Marc Figueras, head of forestry operations at Lignia Forestal, says Catalonia has a severe shortage of experienced contractors. His company sent 25 staff and nearly a dozen machines, some worth over €700,000, to tackle the Ripollès backlog. The region usually produces about 6,000 tons of timber a year. This year, the volume is five times higher, overwhelming local capacity. La Vanguardia reports that the sudden demand for forestry services has driven up costs and made skilled workers harder to find.
At first, mayors worried the fallen wood would fuel wildfires. Now, attention has shifted to bark beetle outbreaks: dead timber provides a breeding ground for pests that can damage healthy forests. The Catalan Fire Service says Catalonia had its worst wildfire season in over a decade in 2022, with more than 26,000 hectares burned. That history sharpens the need for proactive forest management and a rapid response to storm damage. Crews also face pressure to finish extraction before winter, but progress is uneven: some forests have had up to 70% of debris cleared, while others remain far behind. The Spanish Ministry for Ecological Transition says bark beetle infestations in unmanaged storm debris have caused major losses elsewhere in Europe, making timely removal impressive.
In August, the Catalan government and the four provincial councils agreed on a new forest management plan to help towns reduce fire risk as temperatures rise. It aims to thin 2,000 hectares a year and create buffer zones, while also speeding up administration. It is unclear whether these steps can address the problems exposed by this year’s storms. Experts at the Forest Science and Technology Centre of Catalonia say steady investment and closer coordination between agencies are needed to prevent future crises like this one.
The situation in the Pyrenees reveals a long-standing weakness in Spain’s forest management: when disaster hits, limited resources and slow bureaucracy can leave communities exposed for months. Without a fast, well-funded response, natural disasters risk becoming long-term ecological and economic problems for the region. Preparation and investment in forestry infrastructure are impressive to protect Spain’s mountain forests.
