The Agency of Protected Areas has secured a European Union grant to strengthen forest fire prevention.

The Agency of Protected Areas has become a partner in the new grant project Co-NatureGuard, which aims to enhance forest fire prevention and protect natural ecosystems within protected areas across the Black Sea Basin countries.

The initiative brings together organizations from Georgia, Turkey, Bulgaria, and Greece that are responsible for forest management and nature conservation. The project will run for 26 months and will cover more than 75 protected areas across Europe. It focuses on national parks and nature reserves where the risk of forest fires is particularly high and where improved monitoring and coordinated response are needed.

Within the framework of the project, partner countries will develop forest fire risk analyses for protected areas and introduce modern monitoring technologies, including thermal drones and early warning systems. International training courses are also planned.

The Co-NatureGuard project will contribute to improving the management of protected areas, protecting biodiversity, and strengthening forest fire prevention systems in the Black Sea Basin region.

The total budget of the project is 1,665,494.72 EUR, of which 1,498,945.23 EUR (90%) is provided by the European Union through the Interreg NEXT Black Sea Basin Programme.

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