Background The target black pine Pinus nigra habitat type consists of 3 845ha representing 6.9% of the total area of the site. Until the forest fires of 2007, the habitat type was consistently assessed as having excellent conservation status. Its status owed much to the sustainable forestry management by the Forest Service of Sparti since 1955. The prevailing silvicultural form of the forest is stratified per tree, a form that maintains a diverse forest landscape. These forests have unusually large populations of warblers, flycatchers and tits owing to the mild winters and the small period in which the forests are covered with snow. The devastating wildfires that burst out in summer 2007 throughout Greece, but mainly in the Peloponnese, burnt huge areas of natural vegetation and affected thousands of people. They destroyed nearly all the areas where the target habitat type is found on the south of Mount Parnonas (426.5ha in total). Some black pine forests were growing on very poor soils on calcareous substrate. Black pine trees do not have serotinous cones (in which seed release is triggered by fire), and, because of the release of seeds in the winter, do not maintain a seed bank when summer wildfires occur. For this reason, this species has a very low potential for regeneration following wildfires. Objectives The project objectives were to: Demonstrate the application of a structured approach to restore burnt areas of the priority habitat type ‘Mediterranean pine forests with endemic black pine’; and Restore 290 ha of this priority habitat type in the SCI GR2520006 "Oros Parnonas (kai periochi Malevis)". Results The project carried out restoration measures on 290 ha of Pinus nigra forest in Parnon (68% of the burnt area of the priority black pine habitat on site GR2520006). The pioneering structured approach devised by the project followed specific steps: preparatory actions, mainly fire impact assessment on the target habitat type; the drafting of the forest restoration steps; the carrying out of technical studies; the design of the monitoring system and the establishment of monitoring plots. A total of 13 plots were selected to monitor natural regeneration and 20 plots were selected to implement and monitor the restoration activities. The preparatory actions were followed by the restoration actions; in particular plant production from collected seed under technical guidance, the planting of seedlings and the caring and protection of the plants. The restoration of the burnt forest on Parnon will restore its economic value as a source of logging. The local community will also benefit from the return of apiculture and the area’s improved recreational value. The After-LIFE plan takes into account the threat presented by climate change and the fact that the burnt area lies on the southern distribution limits of the target habitat type, redoubling the need for active conservation efforts. The structured approach is applicable to other similar post-fire restoration efforts throughout the country and the Mediterranean region. The strength of this approach is that it can be implemented by forest management authorities, utilising existing human and non-human resources. Further information on the project can be found in the project's layman report and After-LIFE Conservation Plan (see "Read more" section).