€2.7M restoration begins for Vall d'Uixó burn zone

Today's essentials (5 key points)

• The Generalitat has begun a 2.7 million euro plan to restore the land burnt by the Vall d'Uixó fire and announced a Forestry Law rewarding private owners who protect ecosystems.
• Metrovalencia returns to its normal timetable on 31 August 2026 and reopens the Aragó, Amistat, Ayora and Marítim stations after two months of works.
• The Doctor Peset hospital in Valencia has been named Spain's reference unit for regenerating knee and ankle cartilage.
• The Júcar water authority argues that vegetation in ravines slows floodwater and helps flatten flood peaks, rejecting calls to strip the channels bare.
• Sagunto tops the regional innovation ranking with its 'Innova Sagunt' project, awarded 50,000 euros by the Valencian Innovation Agency.

Today's essentials

€2.7M restoration begins for Vall d'Uixó burn zone. The Valencian Generalitat has begun a 2.7 million euro, eight-month plan to restore the land burnt by the La Vall d'Uixó fire and unveiled a new Forestry Law that will financially reward private landowners who protect their woodland, according to eldiario.es.

Juanfran Pérez Llorca, president of the Generalitat, said the future Forestry Law will be sent to the Corts Valencianes in the coming weeks and will introduce a pioneering 'payment for environmental services' scheme, compensating forest owners who protect ecosystems, prevent fires and maintain their land, according to eldiario.es and El Confidencial Digital. He noted that more than 300 hectares of publicly owned Generalitat land burned in this fire to underline why private owners matter.

The measure follows the La Vall d'Uixó fire, which broke out on 25 July 2026 and burned between roughly 9,568 and 9,599 hectares depending on the count, about 8,509 of them woodland, before it was declared stabilised on 1 August after eight days. The blaze crossed a perimeter of more than 80 km through La Vall d'Uixó, Alcudia de Veo, Aín, Eslida, Artana and Onda, around the Serra d'Espadà Natural Park in Castellón, forcing the evacuation of 18 municipalities, valencianews.es reported. Artana was worst affected, with around 3,160 hectares hit.

The restoration plan is worth 2.7 million euros over eight months, split into two phases: immediate emergency work, then replanting native species such as cork oak, with works starting on the announcement day, 31 August 2026. A separate 67 million euro aid package for victims was also announced, including 12 million in direct Generalitat grants, 5 million for town halls and 50 million in subsidised loans through the Valencian Finance Institute; applications opened on 10 August 2026, according to valencianews.es.

What this means for you: if you hike or live in inland Castellón, the Serra d'Espadà you may know for its trails will spend months under restoration, and residents of affected villages can already apply for the aid that opened on 10 August. The draft Forestry Law is due to be presented to the Corts Valencianes in the coming weeks for parliamentary debate, according to El Confidencial Digital, though no exact date has been set.

What you need to know

• Towns affected : La Vall d'Uixó, Alcudia de Veo, Aín, Eslida, Artana and Onda, around the Serra d'Espadà Natural Park in Castellón province. Artana was the hardest hit, with around 3,160 hectares affected. In total, 18 municipalities were evacuated during the fire, according to valencianews.es.
• Roads closed or diverted : Not specified in available reports; the fire was declared stabilised on 1 August 2026, so no active closures are described. The blaze crossed a perimeter of more than 80 km.
• Official instructions : The emergency phase is over: the fire was declared stabilised on 1 August 2026 after eight days of work by emergency services. Efforts have shifted to land restoration, with recovery works starting on 31 August 2026.
• Air quality : not available at this time
• Official numbers & channels : In an emergency, call 112; follow Emergències GVA and the Generalitat Valenciana's official channels for updates and alerts.
• Last updated : The recovery plan and Forestry Law were announced on 31 August 2026, the day restoration works began.

Situation ongoing: this article will be updated.

Weather today

Today's weather in Valencia. Valencia is partly cloudy today, between 20 and 29 degrees, with winds up to 16 km/h, according to Open-Meteo.

Transport & traffic

• Metro back to full timetable and four stations reopen. Metrovalencia returns to its normal timetable from today, 31 August 2026, and reopens the Aragó, Amistat, Ayora and Marítim stations after about two months of refurbishment works, as regional official Vicente Martínez Mus confirmed, according to Valencia Extra. For commuters, the normal route and full timetable return after a summer of thinner services and closed stops. If your daily trip passed through Aragó, Amistat, Ayora or Marítim, the bus replacements and detours used over the summer are no longer needed, a relief as offices and schools fill up again in September. The operator has timed the change to the return to work, so you can plan your journeys around the standard schedule again rather than the leaner summer one.
• Metro back to its full timetable from today. Metrovalencia returns to its usual timetable from today, 31 August 2026, alongside the reopening of the stations that stayed shut for works, as confirmed by regional official Vicente Martínez Mus, according to Valencia Extra. The timing is deliberate: the operator restores normal service just as September commuting resumes. In practice, if you rely on the metro to get to work or take children to school, you can plan your journeys around the standard schedule again rather than the leaner summer one.

What's changing for you

• Why the Júcar authority won't clear the ravines. The Confederación Hidrográfica del Júcar says keeping vegetation in ravines slows water down and helps flatten flood peaks, rejecting calls to strip the channels bare, in a letter to the Valencian Federation of Municipalities and Provinces reported by eldiario.es. For residents still wary after recent flooding, the takeaway is that stripping a ravine of plants is not the safety fix it may seem. The authority argues vegetation reduces the speed of flash floods rather than causing them, and says it keeps maintenance teams working the channels all year, cutting back growth only in urban stretches. It is useful context next time a neighbour or town hall calls for 'cleaning' the barrancos.
• Peset hospital named Spain's cartilage-repair centre. The Doctor Peset University Hospital in Valencia has been designated by the regional health department as Spain's reference unit for regenerating knee and ankle cartilage, according to La Voz de Alzira. In practice, patients across Spain who need cartilage regeneration in the knee or ankle can now be referred to Valencia for treatment. If you or a family member face this kind of joint problem, it is worth telling your doctor that a designated national reference unit is available here in the city.

Local news to know

• ONCE Cuponazo drops €3.2M on a Valencian town. The ONCE Cuponazo draw handed out a 3,200,000 euro prize that reached a Valencian municipality, the birthplace of one of Spain's historic painters, alongside four other provinces, according to Las Provincias.
• The kiosk that once 'spoilt' Plaza de la Reina. Valencia Bonita looks back at the curious kiosk that once stood at the corner of Plaza de la Reina and the Belda building on Calle la Paz, an eyesore that sparked repeated clashes with the city council before it vanished.
• September's medieval and craft markets are out. Valencia Bonita has rounded up the medieval markets, food fairs, themed markets and craft fairs taking place across the city and nearby towns throughout September 2026.
• Sagunto tops the regional innovation ranking. Sagunto's 'Innova Sagunt' project was rated the best of the 11 initiatives funded by the Valencian Innovation Agency (AVI), earning 50,000 euros to build a strategic framework and an innovation sandbox, according to Valencia Extra.

Tonight and tomorrow, Valencia

• Cycle the Turia from La Serranía to l'Albufera. 'Valencians sobre rodes' heads into La Serranía this week with a route that follows the river Turia all the way down to l'Albufera, according to Valencia News.
• 15 plans to squeeze the most out of the summer. Valencia Secreta has gathered 15 essential plans for making the most of the late summer along the Valencian coast and province, from beaches to inland escapes.

See the full agenda, tonight and tomorrow