The restoration plan pretend to improve the vegetation and fauna present in the area
El Cortijico, in Chirivel, is a high mountain area, at more than 1,600 meters of altitude; in which we find represented the vegetation of the supramediterranean bioclimatic floor and where prevailing strong winds, high solar radiation and low temperatures, frequent frosts in winter and high temperatures in summer.
An also iconic place in the region and in the province of Almeria, for hosting the Sabina Milenaria, a copy of Sabina Albar with more than 600 years of life, recognized by the Junta de Andalucía as a Natural Monument.
An enclave that offers a splendid view of the Chirivel corridor, which connects Hoya de Baza with the Mediterranean and surrounded by the Sierra de María and the Sierra de Las Estancias.
The area in which we are operating is in the dells where there is a deeper soil and greater water and snow collection, which we hope will contribute to greater germination success.
The area of El Cortijico that had an excess of livestock pressure, currently has been reduced, observing signs of natural colonization with Sabinas, Enebros and Larícios pines and where it’s being sown with seed of the existing species, Juniperus thurífera, Juniperus phoenicea, Crataegus monogyna and Pinus nigra ssp. salzmanii and Quercus rotundifolia; acting as nature itself, instead of doing it exclusively through the planting of nursery trees.
A form of reforestation that, according to Fernando Bautista, responsible for natural areas of AlVelAl, allows plants to invest all the energy accumulated in the seed in producing pivotable roots with high deepening capacity.
Objective
The objectives of this action are:
Help plant colonization and increase the presence of Sabina Albar, in an area where there is no reproduction and we find a female like the Millennial Sabina, facilitating the genetic persistence of this iconic individual.
Increase the number of individuals producing acorns, galbulus and berries, a source of food for numerous birds and insects to enrich the present animal community that today has very significant species such as vulgar kestrels, peregrine falcons and golden eagles.
Innovation
The intervention in El Cortijico, which has already begun with the manual sowing of 47,000 seeds and acorns; and that in its second phase it will also have a pilot experience in Andalucia, consisting of sowing 40,000 seeds with drone and to be developed in the autumn of this year 2020.
Seed sowing that is geolocated, which will allow monitoring the germination of these and the success of this action. «Unlike the plantation, with this action the tree is not going to be seen, but at the end of the years we will be able to see plants with a greater guarantee of survival» says Bautista.
This planting system previously locates native shrubs that can function as protectors of sown seeds. After previous experiments, Dronecoria and Jesús Ledesma expect a minimum survival of between 5 and 10 percent. So it is expected to have 15,000 new trees in the next 20 years.
After this planting, two more actions will be carried out to identify the percentage of survival after a few months.
Together against climate change
The Natural Areas Restoration Plan of The AlVelAl Association is the first project in which Ecosia collaborates in Europe. An association project that becomes part of the challenge posed by the German firm, planting a billion trees in all over the world until 2020, which it already has natural restoration projects in Nicaragua, Peru, Burkina Faso, Tanzania, Madagascar and Indonesia.
Two sustainable companies that work together for the second consecutive year with a common goal, fighting climate change. Ecosia through the investment of 80 percent of the income of its ecological search engine in tree planting; and AlVelAl improving the resilience of the territory against droughts, climate change, soil erosion, reduced fertility and preservation and promotion of biodiversity.
