Month: November 2021

The Interreg Sudoe REMAS project held numerous events in the second half of 2021. Sometimes with the help of different institutions at the local, regional and provincial level and universities. The year that is now ending has been the year in which the project has been presented in different forums, congresses, conferences and media. Thus, after a year and a half of teleworking as a result of the pandemic, the Interreg Sudoe REMAS project has been presented in face-to-face events as well as visiting the progress of the project partners in their country. 

The highlighted events have been:

05/05/2021: FIRElinks Webinars (https://firelinks.eu/webinars/)  (AMUFOR)

11/05/2021:  Green Pact Day – Fire Prevention, Generalitat Valenciana (AMUFOR)

02/07/2021: Political action day in the Valencia region (Valencian partners)

06/07/2021: REMAS panel in the exhibition of the City of Arts and Sciences of Valencia: “Ante el cambio cambiemos” (In the face of change let’s change). Presented by UV-CIDE.

30/07/2021: Conference (Congress) to present the REMAS model at Geological and Environmental Sustainability on 30 July 2021 Geoscience Webinar 2021 – United Research Forum. Oral presentation title: “Modelling GHG emission risk from forest fires” (UPV-ITACA)

03/09/2021: Participation in the WFC video contest (video edited by UV-CIDE; participation of all project partners)

09/09/2021: Joint working group meeting in the Portugal regional (ISA and CML)

17/09/2021: Participation in the Interact event for the European Cooperation Day. Round table: the role of the Comunitat Valenciana in European Interreg cooperation projects (AMUFOR and UV-CIDE). 

On an internal level, it is noted the 5th follow-up meeting:

20/09/2021: transversal working packages.

22-23/09/2021: technical working packages

28/09/2021: decision making. 

The Interreg SUDOE REMAS project analyses and studies the fire behaviour with the aim of understanding its effects on the soil-vegetation binomial. To this end, experts of the co-financed project with European funds, they are studying different measures to fix carbon so that the forest recovers as favourably as possible.

Eugenia Gimeno, a researcher at the Centre for Desertification Research CIDE of the University of Valencia, explains that “within the framework of the REMAS project, the CIDE has implemented experimental fires at the La Concordia station in the municipality of Llíria”. The methodology makes it possible to characterise the initial state of the system, measure different fire parameters such as temperature, flame height or speed of propagation. To do this, sensors are installed in the field to provide the necessary data to draw conclusions in a more accurate way. The changes that take place in the system are analysed through the analysis of soil samples before and after the fire, the recovery of vegetation, and the application of measures that contribute to the protection of the soil.

Gimeno explains that “in this way, changes in soil properties can be studied and the evolution of both soil and vegetation can be monitored over several years, especially in the carbon cycle and erosion”. The study will contribute to the establishment of an action plan to minimise GHG emissions.

The REMAS project is co-financed by the Interreg Sudoe Programme through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). The Association of Forest Municipalities of the Comunitat Valenciana (AMUFOR, lead partner) works together with partners such as the Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV-ITACA), the University of Valencia (UV-CIDE), the Provincial Council of Valencia (DIVAL), the National Institute of Agricultural and Food Research and Technology, the National Centre of CSIC (INIA-CSIC), the Municipality of Loulé (CML), the Higher Institute of Agronomy (ISA), the Bordeaux National School of Agronomic Sciences (Bordeaux Science Agro), as well as with partner entities from different areas of the SUDOE territory.