French wildfires: are undergrowth clearance laws strong enough?

Undergrowth clearance rules in France have been criticised in light of recent wildfires, with forest authorities urging that rules be updated to better align with environmental regulations. 

Investigations into the wildfire in Gironde point towards undergrowth clearance under electric wires as the origin of the blaze.

The site is managed by electricity grid operator Enedis, who were responsible for the work being carried out.

However, there is no indication that rules were not being followed investigators have said, without detailing the exact nature of the works. 

Around 90% of forest fires in France start due to human activity, authorities have said during the current wildfire season.

A lack of forest maintenance, caused by clashes in regulations and restrictive measures on work carried out in forests, only increases the risk of this, forestry groups say.

Undergrowth clearance rules in place to prevent fires 

As a reminder, undergrowth clearance is required in the 52 mainland departments across France where obligation légale de débroussaillement (OLD) regulations exist. 

These require homeowners and companies to clear garden undergrowth, cut back shrubbery, and clean gardens for at least 50 metres around all buildings – possibly up to 100 metres in some areas – as well as cut back bushes and other vegetation in a 10m radius around paths leading to buildings.

In urban areas, smaller gardens must be fully cleared of undergrowth to prevent blazes spreading easily.

Actions are usually carried out in the autumn, but must typically be done by July 1 at the latest or owners/tenants risk a fine. 

An in-depth overview of the rules can be seen in our article here. 

One major aim of the rules is to reduce the threat of wildfires spreading to homes by creating a break in vegetation and providing firefighters and emergency services with better access to homes and wooded areas to fight blazes. 

The head of France’s Office National des Forêts recently explained to The Connexion the importance of individual owners carrying out these works.

French authorities state that in around 90% of cases where a home is destroyed by a wildfire, owners or tenants did not carry out effective undergrowth clearance around the property.

Clash with environmental regulations 

However, firefighters point out that the current regulations can clash with environmental rules and often prevent companies, businesses, and farmers from effectively carrying out work. 

European regulations mean that hedges cannot be trimmed between March 16 - August 15 in a bid to protect European biodiversity and bolster bird populations by providing safe nesting grounds. 

The rules generally do not apply to individual property owners – only professionals and farmers are always covered by the ban – but they have led to confusion. 

Certain local bylaws aimed at improving biodiversity can ban homeowners from cutting bushes in spring despite the general exemption, and there are annual campaigns asking homeowners to refrain from the practice to help bird populations for the same period where the laws are in place for professionals.

This leads to a complicated mix of messages, with homeowners needing to check local rules before carrying out and trimming. 

If your area is not under bylaws preventing homeowners from carrying out hedge-trimming, then you are still required to follow national undergrowth clearance rules.

Companies and farmers who are limited by the regulations also struggle to complete undergrowth clearance before the spring deadline.

Individual property owners are recommended to cut back hedges and heavier vegetation in autumn and winter, and then in spring carry out tasks such as grass trimming, storing fuel etc.

“Perhaps people need to be better informed, or face stricter penalties. We need to move away from this mindset of 'sanctuarising' nature,” said Vice-President of private forest association Fransylva Anne Dunoyer to Le Figaro.

She gives an example of some of the frustrations faced.

“In the spring of 2025, a mayor asked a property owner to cut down trees along a road. However, the Office français de la biodiversité (French Office for Biodiversity, OFB) intervened because the work was taking place during the nesting season.

“But what would have happened if a tree had fallen on a car? A balance must be struck between public safety and the destruction of a potential habitat for a protected species… and in this case the animal was not even endangered.”

Companies face difficulties

For companies and farmers operating along a larger radius this timeline is difficult and only further complicated by the hedge-trimming ban.

“The interpretation of Article L. 411-1 of the Environmental Code [which transposes the European directives]... leads to any forestry operation being treated as a threat to biodiversity [during the hedge trimming ban]” said the French timber union (Syndicat des exploitants de la filière bois, SEFB), quoted in Le Figaro.

“The layering of several regulations (Natura 2000, ZNIEFF, protected species, etc.) further increases the administrative burden and restricts access to the forest,” it adds.

“Prefectural orders issued during heatwaves or storms now account for 40 to 50 days of |additional] work stoppage per year.”

“In winter, the ground is too wet; it mustn’t be damaged by our heavy machinery. From March onwards, it’s nesting season… To put it simply, we only have three months left to work,” said SEFB member Samuel Bellée to Le Figaro.

“My company operates in 12 departments… Last night [I spent two hours checking] the websites of all the relevant prefectures to see if we would face restrictions or constraints in the coming days.

“And when we are forced to stop working, naturally, we receive no financial aid. It is no wonder the industry is on the brink of collapse… Yet, if there are no companies left tomorrow to maintain the forest, it will be all the more vulnerable to the risk of fire,” he added.

There are also concerns that cutting brush back too early is less efficient than doing so in spring.

“Clearing brush in March and April helps mitigate fire risks. Yet, you can be fined for doing so if you disturb wildlife too much. It makes no sense,” said secretary general of the Union de la Coopération forestière française (French forestry union) Tammouz Helou to FranceInfo. 

The union represents owners of more than two million hectares of private forested land, in many places owned by companies which are effectively banned from undergrowth clearance in spring by European regulations. 

Rules not always followed

Even outside of this confusion however, there are worries that not enough people follow rules.

“Currently, undergrowth clearance compliance is estimated at just 20 to 25%. We need to enforce the law [or] improve it,” Mr Helou said. 

This is not an isolated estimation. A 2022 Senate report cites only around 30% of required undergrowth clearance was carried out nationally, by both individuals and farmers. 

Mairies can officially demand that those who do not complete the task by July deadlines carry out undergrowth clearance, via an official notice sent to their homes. 

If they do not comply within one month, the mairie can hire a private contractor to do the work, billing the non-compliant owner or tenant. 

Otherwise, fines can be issued for failing to effectively clear the land, but in some cases these are theoretical (not mandatory) and are not always imposed.

Hiring private contractors is a time-consuming practice and with the wildfire season this year beginning around two weeks earlier than usual, blazes sprang up well before private contractors could be hired even in communes committed to ensuring work was carried out.

What should change?

Currently, there are no official plans to change the laws, however with 2026 already being one of the most destructive for wildfires on record, there are growing calls for them to be updated. 

One prominent voice seeking change is mayor of Cannes and head of the association of mairies (Association des maires de France, AMF) David Lisnard. 

He called for clearer rules following a visit to Pontevès, the site of a major fire in the Var department, at the weekend. 

“The Forestry Code mandates brush clearing, while the Environmental Code restricts it for the sake of protected species,” he said, reaffirming the confusion facing professionals and homeowners. 

He cited a 2024 decree that said undergrowth clearance that complied with all other rules did not harm bird species and could therefore be carried out. 

However, as recently as 2026 France’s Council of State (Conseil d’Etat) ruled otherwise, arguing that derogations remain necessary when there is a ‘distinct risk’... without this risk being made clear and obvious.

“We need to provide legal certainty for property owners and enshrine the presumption of compliance in law,” said Mr Lisnard in a post on social media. 

He is also calling for stricter issuing of fines to non-compliant owners, to increase the number of people complying with regulations, as well as calling on insurance companies to make claims and deductibles following a fire dependent on compliance with undergrowth clearing rules. 

Outside of undergrowth clearance changes, Mr Lisnard has called for fire departments to manage their own funding and a more straightforward process for mayors to create water reserves to tackle wildfires.