Conservation
"Who loves, cares".
There are 110 km of wild coastline and around 75 thousand hectares of protected natural land within the Southwest Alentejo and Vicentina Coast Natural Park, full of unique habitats and species.
Knowing the richness of this region and knowing how to protect it is one of the Rota Vicentina Association’s missions.
A mission that is only possible thanks to the help of fishermen, hunters, caretakers, volunteers, biologists, geologists, local nature guides and an entire community united by the love of this land.
Conservation activities
Between 2018 and 2020, Rota Vicentina was part of the pioneer project in Portugal: the Life Volunteer Escapes. Through this project we mobilised more than 5 volunteers who took part in various nature protection actions, especially in Natura 2000 Network sites.
We made our first steps in a pilot project to control invasive species near the Fishermen’s Trail, with volunteers recruited as part of this project and with the invaluable support of our network of sponsors and local volunteers!
Environmental Awareness
The strength of the Rota Vicentina also lies in its potential for environmental awareness, which has been part the whole project, at times more obviously.
Activism against oil exploitation and intensive agriculture, beach cleaning, school outings, presence in local fairs, environmental education, are several examples that have grown thanks to the support of our volunteers.
Impact
Since its inception, the Association has been concerned with assessing its impact on the region at an economic, social and environmental level.
In 2013, the first study of the environmental impact of Rota Vicentina was carried out. In 2017, this survey was complemented with data from automatic meters and surveys of walkers, carried out on the ground by hundreds of local volunteers.
In 2022 we will again measure the various impacts that tourism has on this region.
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