The Andean Patagonian Forest in southwestern Argentina was ablaze again. Between December 2025 and March 2026, more than 77,000 hectares burned in the provinces of Neuquén, Río Negro, Chubut and Santa Cruz. (1) Entire families watched flames surround their homes, while they tried to save what they could: work tools, animals, and a lifetime of memories. Hundreds of houses were reduced to twisted metal sheets and blackened foundations.
This came after the immense damage caused by fires the previous summer, when at least 32,000 hectares burned; a large portion of this land was in the interface zones between rural and urban areas. (2) In the town of Epuyén, in Chubut, the fire that started in a vast area of exotic pine trees consumed more than 70 homes the first day, January 15, 2025. Families from Mallín Ahogado, 60 kilometers to the north, were amongst those who came to help out; two weeks later, they had to stop helping in Epuyén and organize to face another massive fire in their own territory, which had broken out in an area covered with Oregon pine trees. “The fire rapidly approached our area, fueled by intense gusts of wind, and also by the stands of pine trees – which are more abundant to the east. It destroyed everything in its path,” recalls Darío Anden, a resident. The fire claimed one life and destroyed 370 structures – including homes, barns, sheds, orchards, vegetable farms, and animals. It burned for almost two months and wiped out almost 4,000 hectares. (3)
One of the main factors that increases the intensity of fires each year are monoculture pine plantations, which have become a plague in the Argentinian Patagonia. Not only are pine trees highly flammable, but fire also causes pine seeds to germinate. Therefore, each fire contributes to the spread of more fires. (4) Pine trees also absorb a lot of groundwater. Numerous accounts and studies show that springs have dried up, and river flows have dropped by more than 60 percent when watersheds become covered in pine trees. (5)
According to official figures, there are currently around 116,000 hectares of monoculture tree plantations in the Andean Patagonia, of which 90 percent are pine plantations. Most of these are located in the provinces of Neuquén, Rio Negro and Chubut (6). And it is not only the pine plantations that invade territories. Pine trees are an invasive species in this region, they spread far beyond the plantations where pine trees have been planted. In some areas, invasive pine trees cover larger areas than those initially planted to set up the monoculture plantations.
The establishment of monoculture plantations began in the 1960s, when forests started to be replaced with plantations of fast-growing exotic trees through forestry programs and subsidies promoted by provincial and national governments. At first, the claimed purpose was to reduce the logging pressure on native forests; later, the goal was to supply a future pulp industry. In recent decades, the establishment of plantations has been driven by the government’s commitment to carbon markets. Pine plantations have frequently served as a pretext to appropriate and privatize public lands and expel their inhabitants. (7)
Many plantations have been abandoned, left without supervision or maintenance. These abandoned plantations spread much more rapidly than native forests, becoming a dangerous fuel source.
During the fires of 2021, Mirta Ñancunao of the Mapuche community of Las Huaytekas in Río Negro explained what pine trees mean for her People: “Those of us who still remain in the territory have clear evidence and experiences of imposition, subjugation, abuse, expropriation, forced displacement, legal proceedings, modification of habitats, disruption of ecosystems and water sources, loss of grazing lands for animals, loss of spaces from which to collect lawen [Mapuche medicine], fruits and firewood.” (8) In November of that year, the young 29-year-old Mapuche man, Elías Garay Cayicol, was murdered while participating in the recovery of ancestral territory in the province of Río Negro. Two men with ties to forestry businessman Rolando Rocco were convicted of the crime. (9)
Every time there is a fire, the State tends to criminalize the Mapuche People. (10) This summer, while the fires were still raging, Ignacio Torres, the governor of Chubut, launched a media campaign with his aides that blamed Mapuche communities for the fires. Social organizations, residents and local leaders swiftly denounced these baseless accusations. (11) Such accusations sought, on the one hand, to criminalize communities and their struggle for their ancestral territories; and on the other hand, to deflect attention from the debate about the conditions that really do lead to fires: pine tree monoculture plantations; the lack of public policies to manage exotic tree plantations and prevent fires; and the lack of financing for policies to protect native forests. (12) All of this has occurred against the backdrop of climate crisis with recurring droughts.
Below, we present accounts from members of affected communities that show how, in the face of scarce or absent state assistance, community organizing has been essential in combatting fires and carrying out reconstruction efforts. These accounts were written by people from mountain villages in the province of Chubut, the province hardest hit by recent fires; they are members of neighborhood assemblies and a solidarity network that grows stronger every day.
Puerto Patriada: The start and spread of the fire
An account by Gabriel Verge.
On January 5, 2026, a forest fire broke out in the area of Puerto Patriada, a region full of young pine trees that had already burned years ago. The fire spread rapidly along both slopes bordering Lake Epuyén, destroying thousands of hectares of the Andean Patagonian Forest and dozens of residents’ homes. In a few days, the fire had spread to the neighboring towns of Epuyén, Lago Puelo, El Maitén and Cholila.
A few months before the fire – and despite the drought, the extremely precarious state of the power lines, and the uncontrolled accumulation of trash and pine trees throughout the territory – local authorities granted clearance for a large number of tourist resorts and campgrounds in the town of El Hoyo. These newly approved establishments invaded the lake’s shoreline with their construction. Among these sites, almost 300 bonfires burned simultaneously and continuously during the New Year’s celebrations, without any effective supervision. There was clear mismanagement, and so it was just a matter of time before a disaster occurred.
While the exact cause of the fire could not be established, the combination of preexisting conditions only needed one spark to unleash a disaster. The firefighters and local brigades were overwhelmed by the magnitude of the fire, and they could not contain it. The dense pine stands that had re-sprouted after the previous fires served as kindling for the rapid expansion of this conflagration. This marked a clear and precise path for the fire, which left a scar on the landscape and in our hearts.
Once the fire broke out, another serious problem came to light: the water crisis. The provincial and municipal governments had ordered shut-offs in the population’s water supply. Several spots affected by the fire did not have water with which to defend their homes – simply because no water came out of the tap. Since the banks of the Epuyén River had been privatized and blocked off with fences and gates, this prevented firefighters and voluntary brigades from accessing the area to refill their water supplies – which further delayed the response.
At this point in the emergency, hundreds of residents decided to evacuate / to leave the area. Others became voluntary firefighters and organized in networks of support and solidarity to try to put out the fire and make up for the absence of the government.
Within a few days, the fire that had started in Puerto Patriada had already spread. What burned were not just pine trees and native forests housing a wealth of biodiversity – including the huemul (an endangered species designated as a Natural Monument), the austral pygmy owl, and condors' nests. In addition to consuming their homes, means of production, and livelihoods, the fire also consumed people’s sense of identity – those places where daily life unfolds, as well other places with unique and irreplaceable historical and cultural value, such as prehistoric paintings.
The problem does not end with the fire. The reconstruction of burned houses is ongoing, sustained by the spirit and the hands of solidarity networks that are not going to wait for the government to fulfill its promises. These networks know the government's assistance and reparations are limited, selective and discriminatory.
Epuyén: community organization during and after the fire
Account compiled by Aguayala (13)
The aerial combat deployed by the state and several fire departments was far from sufficient to contain all of the fronts where the fire was spreading. In the face of this situation, neighborhood fire brigades formed, bolstered by voluntary firefighters who arrived from other parts of the country.
These are the words of Eliseo Juan Ignacio Avella, “El Mago” (The Magician), a firefighter who came from Buenos Aires to help fight the fires in the Argentinian Patagonia. “Love and tenderness are the greatest revolution that a volunteer can experience. All of that pain of nature burning, that helplessness turned into courage, that effort to climb a little higher up the mountain to reach the fire and combat the disaster that hurts us so much...we are evolving because of everything that challenges us. So our tools are a water backpack, a chainsaw, a Pulaski, or a Derki tool (special tools, or hoes, that firefighters use to cut roots or remove hot ash).” He goes on: “We face fears and physical pain for the common good: to see the forests green again and communities living from the sustenance they provide. Nothing will stop us, because love always wins; it is the best ally for hope, which many lose due to exhaustion. But there are beings of light who come and give their all and later return to their homelands. Those beings are volunteer firefighters from all over the country, and the world, too. Thank you all for opening your hearts with humility and humanity.”
In the affected community of Epuyén, neighbors acting in solidarity organized all of the activities necessary to manage the disaster. The building of an educational institution, which was made available during the summer vacation months, served as the operations center. ‘Relief Zones’ were created, where different holistic therapies – such as reiki, Chinese Medicine, massages, and healing – were offered to the rescue workers when they returned at the end of the day. A coordinated network of herbalists, naturopaths and gardeners received and prepared herbal medicines and different products to provide first aid to those who needed it.
The community kitchen, which had operated throughout 2025, continued to prepare meals for the various fronts where the fire was being fought. Additionally, they prepared meals for the reconstruction work parties that began once a fire was put out. It is worth noting that we received support and solidarity from nearby and distant cities, in the form of financial contributions, clothing, tools, and construction materials. It is also worth highlighting the enormous dedication of volunteers from across the country, who were housed in the municipal gymnasium or welcomed free of charge at campsites.
It was also important to have spaces from which to coordinate the logistics required for all of the aforementioned areas, as well as spaces to supply and repair chainsaws and electric pumps, and receive food and donations for the affected people.
Thanks to the smooth coordination among volunteer and professional firefighters, the Provincial Forestry Department, the National Fire Management Plan and other agencies, there were no deaths or injuries to mourn.
El Maitén: “We know we are not alone”
Account by Aymara Bares, from Petü Mogeleiñ, the Mapuche community radio station
Fires started early this year in El Maitén, in the province of Chubut, but the community response was faster than in previous years. We are learning! On January 8, the fire began to engulf Cerro Pirque, consuming forest and homes in its path. The siege lasted for weeks and left half of the area in shades of brown, black and grey. During those days, key checkpoints were set up at strategic locations. The people of El Maitén organized to help, either as volunteer firefighters, or by providing food and supplies to those who were putting their bodies on the line. We also spent several days monitoring the situation to make sure the fire did not cross the highway and put the town at risk. Unfortunately, pine tree corridors enable the spread of fire.
Cintia, a comrade who has participated in the volunteer firefighting campaigns, says: “A long time ago we realized that we have to defend Ñuke Mapu. (14) That is why we take every training course we can throughout the year, waiting for summer and the next fire. We know that we are not alone, and that it is never the last battle against the fire. We know that, with every forecast of rain, relief teams are already organizing; we know that there are people cooking all day to sustain us; we know that, in some part of the country, someone is hitchhiking to come help.
“If you feel like crying—because your head is spinning from all the smoke, fire, sleeplessness, and vigilance, or from missing your family back home – there are always hugs available, usually from people you have just met, but who look at you and are on the same frequency, in the same struggle, with the same determination to not let up until we know we have given our all to defend our homes and native trees.
“And what we cannot save? We rebuild! Around here we have been using the verb ‘minguear’ a lot. Mingas (collective work parties) are an opportunity to provide hope, to join forces, to get our hands dirty, to get excited about every step forward, and to celebrate every pine tree that we remove – and from which our resilience blossoms. Because we are Küme che (good people). We do not burn the forest, we defend it. Rume mañum.” (15)
Los Alerces National Park: the days of the fire
Account by Nicolás Palacios, from Luan, Photographic Action Collective
The smoke takes a long time to clear from the mountain. Even after the flames have been put out, it remains suspended between the hills like a recent memory. This is a familiar scene: blackened forests, trunks still smoldering, and residents walking amongst the hot ashes, looking for hot spots that could reignite the fire.
For days, firefighters, volunteers, residents and self-organized groups battled several active fire fronts amid rugged mountains, changing winds and high temperatures. From the air, helicopters and water-bombing planes dumped water on patches of fire that, from the ground, seemed interminable.
The fire was moving rapidly. In a matter of hours, it could travel down a canyon, cross a road and climb back up the opposite slope. For those on the ground, the day was measured in meters gained or lost against a fire front that never seemed to stop altogether. And in many areas, the fire found a silent ally: the pine trees. Stands of pine trees burn with a ferocious intensity. Many firefighters describe it simply: when fire enters a stand of pine trees, the fire transforms.
After several weeks, once the fire was finally controlled, the landscape fell silent. The mountain was dark, the smell of burnt wood persistent.
The fire in Los Alerces National Park was sparked by a lightning that struck in a hard-to-reach area. The mayor – who was too busy evicting a Mapuche community – had declined the assistance offered to him by firefighters from neighboring towns. This delay allowed the fire to spread beyond the boundaries of the Park. The fire spread for weeks in many directions, placing neighboring towns at risk and burning more than 26,000 hectares of forest; it eventually merged with a fire that had started in Patriada, to the north. Only the massive efforts of volunteers in combination with state resources prevented further damage. The show of solidarity stood in stark contrast to the state’s slow response.
Days after the last embers were put out, neighbors, friends and volunteers began to arrive. Trucks arrive loaded with donations, shared tools, and hands ready to rebuild walls. In many cases, the homes are rebuilt collectively, in community work parties in which everyone contributes what they can. Some cut wood, others erect structures, while still others prepare food for those working all day. Amidst yerba mate, dust, and hammers, homes begin to take shape. In the Andean Region, this approach has a long-standing tradition: when someone loses everything, the community comes together.
After a fire occurs in the Patagonian mountain range, there is always more than just devastation left behind. The memory of the disaster remains, but so does the determination of those who rebuild their lives in the same place where the flames tried to wipe them out.
From Cholila: the green escaping the fire in Sara Miranda’s painting
Let’s take out the pine trees!
There have long been warnings that subsidizing pine tree plantations in a context of global warming is tantamount to sowing the seeds of future catastrophes – like the ones we are experiencing with increasing frequency. Studies indicate that forest fires in Patagonia will significantly increase in the first half of the 21st century. They have also warned that the continuous planting of non-native, flammable trees will increase the reach and severity of extreme fires – a hypothesis that we have seen come true. (16) Every fire generates more combustible material: where there were 1,000 pine trees per hectare before a fire, there may now be 20,000 and even more than 100,000 new sprouts after a fire. (17)
Pine trees spread beyond the boundaries of the original plantations, into neighboring fields and road shoulders. They grow faster than native trees – both because of their capacity to draw water from deep within the ground, and because they release substances that inhibit the growth of native species. In this way, pine trees choke and crowd out native species, creating corridors of highly flammable material.
A growing number of people are becoming aware of the need to control this green invasion. Community work parties, sometimes with more than 30 neighbors participating, have sprung up here and there to remove the pine trees – whether by hand, with saws or chainsaws, or by girdling the trees so they dry out while still standing. Pine seeds will continue to germinate for up to four years after a fire, so this task will need to be repeated in the coming years.
Unfortunately, even as the territorial degradation caused by plantations becomes increasingly evident, the government and the private sector continue to promote these plantations – even seeking to transform the region into a timber-exporting region. (18) But the mingas and strong community organization continue to sow the seeds of and build other possible worlds.
This collaborative work was compiled by Aguayala, a collective dedicated to research, advocacy and action on water as a common good, in Abya Yala (19).
References:
(1) Greenpeace, Incendios forestales en la región Andino Patagónica, February 2026.
(2) Greenpeace, Se cuadruplicó la superficie de bosques patagónicos afectada por incendios forestales, May 2025.
(3) Testimony from Darío Anden, Mallín Ahogado, Río Negro. March 2026
(4) Raffaele, E.; Franzese, J.; Ripa R.; Moreyra A.; Pissolito, Clara.; y Blackhall, M.; Una nueva degradación de la tierra en Patagonia: retroalimentación positiva entre fuego e invasión de pinos, 2018.
(5) Pizzolon, Lino; Hermosilla Rivera, Cristian; Richeri, Marina. Impacto hidrológico de las plantaciones de pinos en las nacientes del Río Chubut y sus posibles consecuencias en el valle inferior, National University of Patagonia San Juan Bosco, 2022.
(6) National Secretary of Agriculture and Fisheries, Dashboard of Tree Plantations. Latest update: December 2025.
(7) Lara, Susana. La forestación como instrumento de despojo, 2011.
(8) WRM Bulletin, Mega Pine Plantations in the Argentinian Patagonia: Territorial Invasion, Fires And Water Scarcity, January 2022.
(9) Agencia Tierra Viva, Condenaron a los asesinos del joven mapuche Elías Garay Cañicol, December 2022.
(10) Agencia Tierra Viva, Sin acciones concretas para combatir el fuego, el Gobierno responsabiliza al Pueblo Mapuche por los incendios, January 13, 2026.
(11) Tiempo Argentino, Incendios en la Patagonia: denuncian que el Gobierno apela al racismo para evadir responsabilidades, January 16, 2026.
(12) Agencia Tierra Viva, Milei y una Argentina sin protección de los bosques nativos, October 2024.
(13) A collective dedicated to research, advocacy and action on water as a common good, in Abya Yala, with a special focus on the Andean-Patagonian region. Participating members include neighbors, Mapuche community members, scientists, forestry sector employees or ex-workers, activists of assemblies, communicators, and artists; based in Esquel and the region of the 42nd parallel south.
(14) “Mother Earth” in mapuzungun, the language of the Mapuche people.
(15) “Thank you very much” in mapuzungun, the language of the Mapuche people.
(16) Thomas T. Veblen; Andres Holz; Juan Paristsis; Estela Raffaele; Thomas Kitzberger and Melisa Blackhall. Adapting to global environmental change in Patagonia: What role for disturbance ecology?, 2011. Austral Ecology. 36:891-903.
(17) Idem 3
(18) Industrial Forestry Roundtable, 2026.
(19) Idem 13