After 17 months since the fire broke out in the area of the granadella, where 812 hectares were burned, the Central Government finishes the restoration work in which 150.000 euros has invested. Specifically, the action has been taken from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food and Environment in which they have carried out hydrological-forest works in the terms of Xàbia and Benitatxell.
The objectives of the works have been to attenuate the erosive processes, to facilitate the conditions to favor the vegetal regeneration and to avoid the proliferation of pests and forest diseases.
The delegate of the Government in the Valencian Community, Juan Carlos Moragues, has indicated that the Executive's commitment was to recover one of the scenic and tourist gems of the province of Alicante and the Valencian Community: "We are committed to putting out the fire with the deployment of 222 military personnel, 65 vehicles from the UME and 11 air assets from the Ministry, including five amphibians, and now we have done so to help the forestry return to life. Granadella".
In this act, Moragues has stressed that the work done has been very laborious and expensive because after the fire the area was severely affected by the extraordinary episodes of torrential rains that occurred during the months of November, December and January after the date of the fire, which caused tree fellings, strong run-off, ash carryover and acceleration of erosion processes in the burned areas.
Xàbia will reforest small areas
The visit was also attended by the Mayor of Xàbia José Chulvi, the mayor of Benitatxell, Josep Femenia, as well as the sub-delegate of the Government in Alicante, José Miguel Saval, and the general director of Prevention of Forest Fires of the Generalitat Valenciana, Delia Álvarez.
From now on, it will be the Javea Town Hall who begins a new phase within the forest recovery project in the public forest of La Granadella. As already done in La Plana, The municipal area of the Environment has chosen to facilitate the conditions that favor natural regeneration in most of the soil and stick to repopulating small specific areas with native species and more resistant to fire such as carob or olive trees, thus recovering the landscape agrarian.
This step will now take place with optimal conditions of the land after the recent rains of the last month and in parallel to the latest works of forest recovery and fire prevention coordinated by the municipality, which will last until summer.
Investment of administrations
These works were initiated by the City Council a few days after the fire and have also involved the Ministry of Agriculture, the Provincial Council of Alicante and the Ministry of Agriculture. The strategy, agreed in technical meetings of the four administrations, has involved an investment of nearly one million euros: 400.000 euros contributed by the City of Xàbia, 250.000 euros from the Provincial Council, 200.000 from the Generalitat Valenciana and 150.000 from the State.
To the investments of the administration we must also add the social current that awoke the great damage suffered by a space as emblematic as the Granadella and that resulted in donations from companies and associations, in addition to the contribution of hundreds of people who bought solidarity calendars .
From the Town Hall of El Poble Nou de Benitatxell, who also acted urgently in the repair of infrastructures that were damaged by the September fire of 2016, will continue carrying out soil recovery interventions, as it has achieved a grant from 49.716 euros from the Consell to regenerate areas affected by fire.
At present you can already see changes in the place of Granadella where symptoms of recovery are shown, with a scrubland that is beginning to green again.
Please, the slope of UMBRIA, which overlooks the Jávea valley, reforested already, is a shame