Post by pigeonpie on Dec 26, 2009 12:13:10 GMT
Reforestation of Binimel·lá to serve scientific purposes
The planned reforestation of a 25 hectare area of scrubland at Binimel·là, which was destroyed by a brush fire in October, will be used to evaluate different reforestation methods. Respective field studies are to be conducted as part of the ‘LIFE+BOSCOS’ project, a sustainable forest management initiative launched by the Consell Insular de Menorca and co-financed by the European Commission.
The reforestation of the burned area at Binimel·là is co-ordinated by the Balearic Islands Ministry of the Environment and will be carried out by IBANAT. According to Raúl Escandell, Island Director for the Environment, the Ministry and the ‘LIFE+BOSCOS’ workgroup have identified this process as an opportunity to obtain knowledge about the costs, effects and ecological impacts of different afforestation techniques and thus teamed up for a co-operation which will comprise the exchange of data as well as field testing of various afforestation techniques on different plots of land at Binimel·là. Apart from being responsible for the project planning and co-ordination, the Balearic Ministry of the Environment will also conduct an analysis of the economic costs of each afforestation technique applied.
On the other hand the ‘LIFE+BOSCOS’ team is to conduct a field study in order to determine which long-term impacts the different techniques have on the ecosystem. This process is expected to take at least five years.
Ultimately the co-operation between the Ministry and ‘LIFE+BOSCOS’ is supposed to lead to the compilation of a cost-efficiency analysis comparing different afforestation techniques. This study will become part of the ‘LIFE+BOSCOS’ project result and is intended to facilitate future reforestations in other regions of the European Union.
The ‘LIFE+BOSCOS’ project was launched in January 2009 and initially planned for a duration of five years with a total budget of 1,444,385 euros, 49.7% of this amount being contributed by the European Commission as part of its ‘LIFE+’ funding programme, the remaining 50.3% being financed by the Consell Insular. The project’s main objective is to support the adaptation of Mediterranean forest ecosystems in Menorca to the impacts of climate change by implementing a sustainable forest management plan. Among others the project team intends to draft planning guidelines for sustainable forest management on the entire island, to test different forest management methods in praxis, to train forest owners in sustainable management techniques and to raise public awareness with regard to forest values. The Consell Insular’s team directly involved with the ‘LIFE+BOSCOS’ project currently comprises four persons and will be further extended as from next year. 2009 was merely used for preparations including the launch of information material and a multilingual website (which is also available in English on www.cime.es/lifeboscos) while direct actions will be implemented from 2010.
The Binimel·là fire on 15th October was Menorca’s largest wildland fire for more than three years and remarkably affected this year’s wildland fire statistics for the island, which concluded with 17 fires affecting a total surface of some 35 hectares. In contrast, 2008 saw only four fires affecting a total area of 0.8 hectares. Full-year statistics for the Balearic Islands are not yet available, but preliminary data suggests that the total area lost this year will amount to some 100 hectares. By 30th September the archipelago had already seen 105 fires affecting 70.04 hectares, a figure to which the fire at Bini-mel·là as well as another at Port de Sóller (Mallorca) – where seven hectares were lost in mid-November – have to be added. In 2008 the Balearic Islands were affected by 117 fires destroying 44.62 hectares. Archipelago-wide figures for the first nine months of 2009 reveal that 34% of all wildfires were caused by negligence, 28.6% set intentionally and 8.6% caused by natural impacts such as lightning strikes. The Binimel·là fire – which was most likely started deliberately – continues to be the subject of an investigation by the Guardia Civil which has conducted several interrogations in this context.
The planned reforestation of a 25 hectare area of scrubland at Binimel·là, which was destroyed by a brush fire in October, will be used to evaluate different reforestation methods. Respective field studies are to be conducted as part of the ‘LIFE+BOSCOS’ project, a sustainable forest management initiative launched by the Consell Insular de Menorca and co-financed by the European Commission.
The reforestation of the burned area at Binimel·là is co-ordinated by the Balearic Islands Ministry of the Environment and will be carried out by IBANAT. According to Raúl Escandell, Island Director for the Environment, the Ministry and the ‘LIFE+BOSCOS’ workgroup have identified this process as an opportunity to obtain knowledge about the costs, effects and ecological impacts of different afforestation techniques and thus teamed up for a co-operation which will comprise the exchange of data as well as field testing of various afforestation techniques on different plots of land at Binimel·là. Apart from being responsible for the project planning and co-ordination, the Balearic Ministry of the Environment will also conduct an analysis of the economic costs of each afforestation technique applied.
On the other hand the ‘LIFE+BOSCOS’ team is to conduct a field study in order to determine which long-term impacts the different techniques have on the ecosystem. This process is expected to take at least five years.
Ultimately the co-operation between the Ministry and ‘LIFE+BOSCOS’ is supposed to lead to the compilation of a cost-efficiency analysis comparing different afforestation techniques. This study will become part of the ‘LIFE+BOSCOS’ project result and is intended to facilitate future reforestations in other regions of the European Union.
The ‘LIFE+BOSCOS’ project was launched in January 2009 and initially planned for a duration of five years with a total budget of 1,444,385 euros, 49.7% of this amount being contributed by the European Commission as part of its ‘LIFE+’ funding programme, the remaining 50.3% being financed by the Consell Insular. The project’s main objective is to support the adaptation of Mediterranean forest ecosystems in Menorca to the impacts of climate change by implementing a sustainable forest management plan. Among others the project team intends to draft planning guidelines for sustainable forest management on the entire island, to test different forest management methods in praxis, to train forest owners in sustainable management techniques and to raise public awareness with regard to forest values. The Consell Insular’s team directly involved with the ‘LIFE+BOSCOS’ project currently comprises four persons and will be further extended as from next year. 2009 was merely used for preparations including the launch of information material and a multilingual website (which is also available in English on www.cime.es/lifeboscos) while direct actions will be implemented from 2010.
The Binimel·là fire on 15th October was Menorca’s largest wildland fire for more than three years and remarkably affected this year’s wildland fire statistics for the island, which concluded with 17 fires affecting a total surface of some 35 hectares. In contrast, 2008 saw only four fires affecting a total area of 0.8 hectares. Full-year statistics for the Balearic Islands are not yet available, but preliminary data suggests that the total area lost this year will amount to some 100 hectares. By 30th September the archipelago had already seen 105 fires affecting 70.04 hectares, a figure to which the fire at Bini-mel·là as well as another at Port de Sóller (Mallorca) – where seven hectares were lost in mid-November – have to be added. In 2008 the Balearic Islands were affected by 117 fires destroying 44.62 hectares. Archipelago-wide figures for the first nine months of 2009 reveal that 34% of all wildfires were caused by negligence, 28.6% set intentionally and 8.6% caused by natural impacts such as lightning strikes. The Binimel·là fire – which was most likely started deliberately – continues to be the subject of an investigation by the Guardia Civil which has conducted several interrogations in this context.
