The Council of Ministers has authorised the signing of a collaboration agreement between the Autonomous Agency for National Parks, of the Ministry of the Environment, and the Polytechnic University of Madrid for the implementation of the project “Extension, monitoring and updating of the sedimentary model of the marsh of the Doñana National Park”.

The agreement, valid for five years, has a total cost of 195,700 euros, of which National Parks contributes 113,100 euros (broken down into 107,700 euros of investment and 5,400 euros in material and human resources). For its part, the University, through the Hydraulics and Hydrology Unit of the Department of Forestry Engineering of the Higher Technical School of Forestry Engineers, will contribute its material and human resources, which are valued at 82,600 euros.

One of the main reasons why the great ecological value of the Doñana National Park is recognised is because it is one of the main wetland groups in Europe, with all its associated ecosystems. Knowledge of its marshes and the study and monitoring of its hydrological system, as well as its sedimentary dynamics and historical evolution is essential to adopt the most appropriate measures for its conservation.

For this reason, state-of-the-art digital cartographic tools will be generated, which will allow us to know in detail the geomorphological evolution of the physical environment of the marshes and the processes that have intervened in their genesis.

In short, it is a matter of analysing and identifying the factors that affect or condition the relief of the marsh, in order to establish mechanisms and actions to guarantee the preservation of its physiognomy and its main signs of identity.

This project has as a direct antecedent the work carried out by the same team of the University between 1959 and 1999, also for National Parks. On that occasion the study was called: “Sedimentary dynamics of the marshes of the Doñana National Park: Evolution, prospectiveness and alternatives for its future management”.