Mission Statement: to assist the integration of foreign residents living in Spain
By Linda Hall •
Published: 01 Nov 2024 • 16:00
• 2 minutes read
Renature Monchique resumes its reforestation project on November 7, assisted by €400,000 from Ryanair.
This is the second contribution from the Irish airline, which provided €250,000 for the same initiative in 2019.
Monchique needs reforestation because a forest fire in 2018 destroyed 28,000 hectares of woodland and countryside. To date, the project has replanted 384,000 trees, including critically-endangered Monchique oaks, cork oaks, chestnuts, alders and ash.
Renature Monchique was created in 2019 to restore the fire-ravaged area and is a joint initiative by the European Environment Agency (GEOTA), Ryanair, the Algarve’s regional tourism board, the Institute for Nature Conservation and Forests (ICNF) and Monchique town hall.
Foia, 902 metres above sea level and the highest point in the Algarve, has been chosen for the launch of Renature Monchique’s second phase which will see another 125,000 trees planted over the coming months.
Ryanair helping Monchique reforestation
Those present will include Elena Cabrera from Ryanair, regional tourism boss André Gomes and ICNF regional director Castelão Rodrigues, together with local dignitaries.
“Ryanair is proud of the work carried out as part of the Renature Monchique project,” the company’s Sustainability director Thomas Fowler said last year, when plans for the second phase were announced.
“Restoring the forest in the Monchique mountain range and preventing land degradation are the goals of our company and our passengers. By planting 125,000 new trees, we hope to continue actively contributing to the forest’s resilience.”
The Monchique fire, classed as Europe’s worst in 2018, had a significant impact on the local community, natural habitats and species, Geota explained.
Two thousand people were evacuated from their homes and the fire raged for seven days before it was brought under control by 1,450 firefighters brought in from all over Portugal.
Restoring Monchique habitats
There were no fatalities but 47 people were injured, homes were reduced to cinders and countless animals died in the blaze.
Renature Monchique aims to restore habitats affected by the fire and mitigate the future effects of climate change, while supporting the local community as it recovers from the disaster.
Geota went on to point out that Ryanair’s carbon initiative not only supported the offsetting of tons of carbon by planting thousands of trees, but also helped to revitalize the Monchique region’s ecosystem.
Meanwhile, Ryanair maintained that it was Europe’s greenest airline, operated the youngest fleet with the highest load factors, and had the most efficient fuel burn per passenger.
“Ryanair delivers industry-leading carbon dioxide emissions per passenger-kilometre of just 66 grammes, which is up to 50 per cent lower than Europe’s other four big airlines.”
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Originally from the UK, Linda is based in Valenca province and is a reporter for The Euro Weekly News covering local news. Got a news story you want to share?
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