James Bryce
FORESTS and vegetation destroyed by wildfires on the Costa del Sol will not be replaced until next year, according to the Junta.
The initial clean-up operation will focus on the removal of debris, restoring water supplies and repairing road infrastructure, as part of a plan drawn up by environment bosses.
Urgent environmental work has already been authorised after representatives of the Junta and the local authorities met to make an initial assessment of the damage.
“It is devastating because we have spent the last year growing 25,000 trees in the Sierra Nevada, including corks and oaks, which were due to be re-planted this autumn,” Mijas mayor Angel Nozal told the Olive Press.
“It is really sad that we cannot plant these trees this autumn but we will re-plant 30,000 next year instead.
“I expect 90% of the cork trees and 100% of the palmitos damaged by the fires will grow back,” he added.
It will make a fascinating ecological study for someone, to catalogue the return of vegetation and then of the mammals, reptiles, insects, birds and so on. Fires like this are very often not destructive, they are part of a long term cycle which we humans have interrupted. Ideally they should leave one very large area alone without re-planting, to see what happens naturally.
Is this an opportunity for some volunteer tree planting?