As part of the Environmental Education Program, the Department of the Environment has been working with municipal schools to replant and replace the vegetation cover installed during the sealing operations at the old landfill.
During these planting operations, it was found that a large part of the sealed area lacked the quality or minimum thickness of topsoil to allow for this to be carried out. Therefore, in view of the problem, the decision was made to halt the work and prioritize the search for ways to fill the sealed area with topsoil. Otherwise, the reforestation and environmental restoration efforts would have been futile in the short term.
"Given the large expanse of land and the high cost involved, its execution could not be addressed within the council's budget, however, an alternative, ingenious solution was adopted that fits within what is now known as circular economy policies. This solution consisted of requiring all municipal projects where topsoil extraction was planned to include in the projects the obligation to provide it on said land. This reduced costs, avoided landfill disposal (prohibited for topsoil), and resulted in significant savings in fees, transportation, and natural resources, in addition to achieving the necessary topsoil supply at zero cost to continue the reforestation work."
Municipal sources explain that, once the necessary topsoil was obtained on a sufficiently large area of land, all that remained was to install an irrigation system and spread the topsoil.
According to Antonio Moya, the responsible councilor, "The funding to expand the land and install an irrigation system has been secured thanks to the contribution of European Funds (LEADER). The cost of implementing the project amounts to €26,740.88, of which €18,976.43 has been contributed by LEADER funds, with the remainder being provided by the Cieza City Council." Moya continues by clarifying that "the Department of the Environment has been able to begin implementing the project to move and spread 30,000 m2 of topsoil and install an irrigation system that will allow for the recovery of native species in the Mediterranean ecosystem."
Following the project's completion, the City Council will resume planting Mediterranean forest species, thus consolidating the environmental restoration of this once severely degraded area.