The European Commission has approved the project for the recovery and conservation of Forest Resource in Macaronesia - VALCONMAC II under which the Azores will have a budget of 181 thousand Euros. The information was released today by the Regional Secretariat for Agriculture and Forestry, through the Regional Directorate for Forest Resources; the latter is the entity responsible for its implementation in the Region.
 
The project comprises a variety of actions, including the redevelopment of existing buildings with the aim of adapting them to Forest Dissemination Centres, which will contribute to the dissemination of the rich forest heritage in the Region.
 
For example, there are planned interventions for the island of Santa Maria in an existing infrastructure located within the Valverde Recreational Forest Reserve, providing the island with a place where the work carried out by local Forest Services will be disseminated as well as the values associated with forests.
 
Additionally, the project budget will be used to continue with the interventions in trails, improving information available to users and the visiting conditions in order to promote access to these areas with reduced impact on natural habitats.
 
In this regard, the Government will continue with the works in the access trail to Pico da Vara - Algarvia/Pico da Vara trail.
 
This project also intends to monitor soil, water, biodiversity and high conservation values in intervention areas through certified forest management.
 
Moreover, it should be also noted that technical workshops will be held under VALCONMAC II with the aim of disseminating and providing training on the use of new technologies and innovative methodologies in the forestry sector These initiatives are specifically directed to agents and project partners in these sector.