At issue is the deadline for carrying out operations to clear forest land, which ended on March 15, but was extended until April 30, by decision of the Government, on April 2, following the decree-law that establishes exceptional and temporary measures relating to the pandemic of the covid-19 disease and extending the state of emergency in Portugal for a further 15 days, until April 17.

"In this sense, the inspection phase of Operation Safe Forest 2020 will start on May 1, always in accordance with the rules inherent to the state of emergency", indicated the GNR, in response to the Lusa agency.

According to the law of the National System for the Defense of Forest Against Fires, after the deadline to ensure the management of forest fuel, the owners are subject to fines, in case of non-compliance, which vary between 280 and 120,000 euros.

According to GNR, "the number of non-compliances monitored is currently 23,869", which represents an increase of 401 non-compliances in the last two weeks.

Previous data, up to March 29, referred to "23,468 defaults in 1,124 priority parishes" for the purposes of monitoring fuel management, for preventing rural fires.

In addition, Operation Safe Forest 2020 now counts "242 administrative offenses, of which 47 for burning and 195 for burning, for violation of the rules imposed" under the National System for the Defense of the Forest Against Fires, which represents a increase of 17 administrative offenses compared to previous data.

Until March 29, GNR accounted for "41 situations of unauthorized fires and 184 of burning of leftovers, in a total of 225 administrative offenses".

In the case of administrative offenses, punishable by a fine, from 280 to 10,000 euros, in the case of a natural person, and from 1,600 to 120,000 euros, in the case of legal persons, "the procedural process is independent of the extension of the period for carrying out cleaning operations ", explained the GNR.

In relation to the 23,869 non-compliances identified in the cleaning of the forest, they may be subject to fines, as of May 1, when the expected start of the inspection phase.

On April 2, more than two weeks after the date of March 15, the Government announced the extension until April 30 of the deadline for the owners to ensure the cleaning of the forest lands, in the scope of the renewal of the state of emergency.

"It is important not to forget that the country has an enormous risk of forest fire and that this risk requires a major cleaning effort", emphasized the Prime Minister, António Costa, explaining that the decision to extend the deadline aims "to create better conditions so that people can fulfill this obligation, taking into account the strong movement limitations that exist ".

In view of the non-compliance by the owners with the deadline for the cleaning of land, which was extended until April 30, the city councils must ensure, until May 31, that all fuel management works are carried out.