Government authorises €1.2 million for forest recovery at Paul da Serra and Palheiro Ferreiro

The Official Journal published Portaria no. 612/2026, signed by the Regional Secretary for Tourism, Environment and Culture, António Eduardo de Freitas Jesus, and the Regional Secretary for Finance, Duarte Nuno Nunes de Freitas. The decree authorises the distribution of budget commitments for the acquisition of forestry services aimed at ecological recovery and the control of invasive species at Paul da Serra and Palheiro Ferreiro.

The portaria covers two lots:

• Lot 1: acquisition of forestry services for post-fire ecological restoration in the Paul da Serra Forest Perimeter, under the "Burned area management project of the Paul da Serra Forest Perimeter and Bica da Cana site". The total value is €1,041,984.00 (one million, forty-one thousand, nine hundred and eighty-four euros), plus VAT at the legal rate in force. The commitment is phased at €260,496.00 for the 2026 financial year and €781,488.00 for the 2027 financial year.
• Lot 2: acquisition of forestry services for ecological restoration at Palheiro Ferreiro, under the "Ecological rehabilitation and invasive species control project at Palheiro Ferreiro". The total value is €165,150.00 (one hundred and sixty-five thousand, one hundred and fifty euros), plus VAT at the legal rate in force. The commitment is phased at €41,287.50 for the 2026 financial year and €123,862.50 for the 2027 financial year.

Funding and budget framework

The expenditure arising from the contract(s) to be signed in 2026 is entered in the Private Budget of the Instituto das Florestas e Conservação da Natureza, IP-RAM, under organic classifications 438010100 and 431010100, economic classification D.02.02.25.S0.00, programme 44, measures 12 and 43, and funding sources 386 and 513. For the following year, the funds will be entered in the respective budget proposal.

The commitments were registered in the Central System of Multi-Year Commitments under numbers 21283 and 21284. The amounts set for 2027 may also be increased by balances recorded in 2026.

Legal framework

The portaria is based, among other diplomas, on Decree-Law no. 197/99, Decree-Law no. 155/92, Law no. 8/2012, Decree-Law no. 127/2012 and Regional Legislative Decree no. 8/2025/M, of 30 December. It enters into force immediately.

The measure strengthens the recovery of forest areas affected by fire and the fight against invasive species in two emblematic areas of Madeira, with a direct impact on nature conservation and the management of the region's forest heritage.