Line of action:

Terrestrial ecosystems

Status:

En ejecución

Location:

Lleida (Catalonia)

Geographic scope:

España

Execution date:

2026

End date:

2028

Duration:

18/02/2026 - 30/09/2028

Total budget:

€1,012,585.18

Amount of aid from the Biodiversity Foundation:

€405,034.08

It will promote the bioeconomy, promoting the development, improvement and consolidation of green infrastructure, connectivity, the restoration of degraded ecosystems and multifunctional landscapes, with the aim of increasing biodiversity and its conservation, adaptation to climate change, the prevention of forest fires and the fight against desertification, while generating opportunities and employment in rural areas and contributing to the fight against the demographic challenge.

To evaluate the management of a public herd of small ruminants in the medium term and its effect on the recovery of a pasture area colonized by uncontrolled trees, on biodiversity and fire risk, around a small Pyrenean village with abandonment of livestock activity and high risk of fire, in an area restored through a previous PRTR project (OVIHUEC. DAT) with the aim of promoting its replicability in other areas of Spain with similar problems.

• Optimisation of zootechnical parameters (fertility, prolificacy and body condition) and the use of new technologies, such as geolocation collars and virtual fencing, to improve the management of forest mass with herds in extensive systems.
• Study of the impact of grazing on biodiversity (butterflies, amphibians, birds and mammals) and its influence on fire risk reduction, including the development and expansion of decision-making support tools, such as Life Cycle Assessment (LCA).
• The results include the publication of reports and guides for the dissemination of results, and 50 ha of forest management and/or forest use, as well as ecological restoration, creation of 4 jobs associated with the management of the project, of which 1 shepherd will continue after the end of the project

• Definition of a zootechnical strategy for the optimisation of the herd for the purpose of maintaining the natural environment.
• Guide to the use of new technologies in different management scenarios in extensive herds.
• Valorization of the ecosystem services of a herd of small ruminants in an extensive regime, with emphasis on mitigating the impact of fires, for inclusion in LCAs.
• Selection of environmental sustainability indicators in the assessment of the impact of livestock farming.
• Communication of the results of the project during and at the end of it, indicating the achievement of the proposed objectives.