Forestry department director Savvas Iezekiel on Tuesday urged caution over demands for new firebreaks to be created with the aim of defending Cyprus’ countryside from wildfires.

Speaking to the Cyprus News Agency, he explained that firebreaks, which are strips of land which are devoid of vegetation and other potentially flammable material and strategically placed to halt the spread of wildfires, are “one of the measures” which can be used to protect against wildfires, but “not the only one”.

He said there are “points at which firebreaks cannot be created”, and that even in areas where they can be created, they may require that existing vegetation be removed.

On this matter, he pointed out that “green firebreaks” – strategically planted strips of vegetation which are designed to be fire-resistant and thus act as a barrier to slow or stop the spread of wildfires – can also be created, and that vineyards can perform this function.

Another method of wildfire control, he said, is to “carry out controlled burning” of some areas, with this method being utilised “all over the world”.

He then returned to the matter of firebreaks, explaining that their creation requires the express consent of the owners of the land through which they would pass.

This, he added, is “outside the area of responsibility” of the forestry department, which “can advise, but it cannot execute”.

“To be able to execute, it must have written consent from landowners and village councils covering the points through which the firebreaks will pass,” he said.

He added that there has recently been “excitement and fear” regarding wildfires and methods employed to protect against them, particularly in light of the wildfire which tore through the Limassol district last month and killed two people.

“While we have been talking about it for decades, we have now reached the point at which everyone is running around asking for firebreaks,” he said.

He added, “we do not always do firebreaks”, and stressed that “firebreaks mean removing land, which in the long run, is damaging”.

“These lands are what will give the first life to the place, and if we clear them out and clear them out again, we lose ground,” he said.