The Renature Monchique project is entering its seventh year with an ambitious target: reaching a total of 600,000 trees planted in the Monchique mountains by the end of February.
Launched in 2019, the project aims to restore the areas destroyed by “Europe’s largest forest fire in 2018”. Nearly 28,000 hectares were burned, “significantly impacting the local community, natural habitats, and species in this area”. Since then, around 500,000 trees have been planted as part of the project, while 70 landowners affected by the fire have been supported.
The continuation of the project has been secured through €400,000 in new funding from Irish low-cost airline Ryanair, which has been a key partner from the start of the initiative.
The official relaunch event will be held on Thursday, January 29, with a public event taking place at Fóia, the highest point in the Monchique range. The session is scheduled to begin at 11am.
The initiative is the result of a long-standing partnership between Ryanair, environmental NGO GEOTA, the Algarve tourism board (RTA), the institute for nature and forest conservation (ICNF) and Monchique municipal council.
