The project aims to rehabilitate and plant cork oak and holm oak forests in the parish of Cachopo, "in order to guarantee the protection and rehabilitation of the soil, conservation of water lines and the recovery of ecosystems and natural habitats", the environmental association said in a statement.

The intervention of the Plantar Montado project corresponds to one of the priority intervention areas - the Caldeirão Natura 2000 network site - also providing for the reinforcement of trees, shrubs and herbs, with the use of organic matter from pruning and vegetable waste for natural fertilisation.

The solutions to be applied are based on nature, deriving from a set of fundamental techniques for that area which has been “heavily affected by desertification, rural fires and torrential erosion”, says the association.

The ANP|WWF recalls that the restoration of the Serra do Caldeirão landscape began in 2007 with an ecological project in Ribeira do Vascão, in the Guadiana river basin, later escalating to the Plantar Água project (2019-2022), which enabled the restoration of 100 hectares of area affected by the fires, and for the Plantar Água - Semear Futuro project (2022-2024), which will maintain and expand by another 20 hectares.

“After the success of the Plantar Água project [...] it is essential that we continue to work in close partnership with associations, authorities and local communities to recover the traditional productive potential of Serra do Caldeirão, as a way to combat desertification and rehabilitate this fragile territory”, says Ruben Rocha, from ANP|WWF.

The Plantar Montado project, developed by ANP/WWF in partnership with the Câmara de Tavira and Associação de Produtores Florestaisda Serra do Caldeirão, is financed by community funds through the COMPETE 2020 Operational Program.