CAGLIARI (ITALPRESS) – The Regional Council of Sardinia, on a proposal from the Environment Department Rosanna Laconi, adopted the Plan of the Regional Natural Park of Gutturu Mannu, including technical documentation, regulations and maps. This is a fundamental step in the path initiated by the Park Assembly to equip the protected area of the main instrument of government, protection and enhancement of its territory. More than 18 thousand hectares are entrusted to a unitary project of protection and sustainable development.
The Plan enhances biodiversity, forests, archaeological heritage, trails and local productions, strengthening the economic and employment opportunities of communities. The Park, established in 2014, extends for 18,029 hectares in the territories of Assemini, Capoterra, Domus de Maria, Pula, Santadi, Sarroch, Siliqua, Teulada, Uta and Villa San Pietro. It preserves a naturalistic, landscaped, archaeological and cultural heritage of exceptional value, characterized by the largest sclerofille forest of the Mediterranean basin and the presence of habitats and species of community interest.
The adoption by the Junta, crowns the path led by the Park Assembly and the mayors of the ten Municipalities, protagonists of an articulated process of institutional confrontation and territorial participation. The building of the Plan has involved local communities through ten territorial meetings, allowing to integrate the conservation needs with the social and economic expectations of the populations.
“It is a milestone of extraordinary importance, achieved thanks to the valuable work of the mayors and their ability to build a common vision, overcoming particularisms and composing the different needs of the territories – says the Councillor Laconi -. They must recognize the merit of transforming the institutional comparison into a shared project, in which the protection of the environment is not separated from the perspectives of the communities, but is the foundation. The Plan gives the Park certain rules and concrete tools to protect ecosystems, enhance the archaeological and cultural heritage and promote sustainable local development, capable of generating knowledge, employment and new opportunities.”.
The Plan organizes the territory according to different levels of protection. The integral reserve areas are intended for the conservation of areas of greater natural interest; the general reserve areas protect the ecological and landscape balances of the forest and open spaces; in the protection areas they can continue, according to criteria of sustainability, traditional agro-silvo-pastoral activities and quality craft productions. The areas of economic and social development are instead dedicated to the use of the Park, services, archaeological enhancement and activities compatible with its aims.
Particular attention is paid to biodiversity. The territory includes the Monte Arcosu Reserve and important areas of the Natura 2000 Network and constitutes a fundamental habitat for the Sardinian deer. It also houses over eighty species of birds, including the real eagle, the pilgrim hawk, the Sardinian actor and the Sardinian sparrow, as well as numerous plant species and endemic animals. Strategic actions include the provision of a specific management plan of the Sardinian deer’s habitat, accompanied by monitoring activities of ecosystems and the effects of climate change. The project also dedicates an important space to the archaeological heritage. The Plan identifies areas specifically for research, conservation and use of sites, including the nuraghe and village of Fanebas and the archaeological area of Bidd’e Mores.
Gutturu Mannu’s historical-archeological ecomuseum is also planned to be a network capable of linking cultural, landscape and community experiences through physical paths and digital tools. The enjoyment system will be organized by enhancing the hiking network and strengthening the main access gates to the Park. Pantaleo, Is Cannoneris, Pixinamanna and Monte Arcosu will be able to become a welcome, guidance and service offer, with visiting centers, information points, nature trails and accessible routes. The Plan also promotes slow and electric mobility, the maintenance of the paths and the recovery of existing structures.
“Gutturu Mannu can become an advanced model of territorial management – Laconi continues – in which biodiversity conservation, scientific research, environmental education, sustainable tourism and enhancement of cultural identity contribute to a single project. The protection of this extraordinary heritage must also be reflected in the quality of life and concrete prospects for those who live and work in the territories of the Park. In this direction, with the budgetary change recently approved by the Regional Council, we have allocated more than twenty million euros to give concreteness to the plans of the parks and the projects of the local communities who believed and continue to believe in the system of protected areas. We want these tools not to remain books of dreams, but to become programs that are actually feasible, capable of producing protection, development and concrete opportunities for communities.”.
The Plan supports the development of compatible agro-silvo-pastoral activities, traditional handicrafts, farms, rural tourism and cultural, educational and sports related to environmental use. It also envisages the possibility of promoting a quality brand and environmental certifications and chain, to increase the recognisability and added value of the products and services of the territory. The document has been submitted to the Strategic Environmental Assessment, giving its full details. It will become executive with the subsequent decree of the regional council of the Defense of the Environment, which will be published in the Official Bulletin of the Autonomous Region of Sardinia.
– Photos Region of Sardinia –
(ITALPRESS).
