Almost four years after the devastating fire that in August 2021 hardly struck the pine forest of Siano, as expected, the additional environmental recovery works and safety of one of the most significant areas for the city of Catanzaro. A place dear to the community, which has always represented a green lung, a social space and an identity point of reference for entire generations.
“As a florit administration – he says Irene Colosimocouncilor with delegation to the environment -, we are satisfied to announce the beginning of this new and expected intervention, which is part of the broader path of enhancement of the city environmental heritage “.
It should be remembered that a first safety intervention, essential to contain the most urgent post-fire critical issues, had already been made in 2022 by Calabria Verde. The fire had caused the destruction of about 40 hectares of bush surface, compromising the environmental stability and the landscape value of the area. Today, thanks to the joint work of the municipal administration and of Calabria Verde, a new tranche of the structured intervention takes shape, which provides for the removal of the dead trees still present, the arrangement of the most exposed slopes and the preparation of the soil for new plants. The works will develop over a year. In recent months, a first part of the pine forest has already been returned to the city: the main routes have been reopened – the cycle path, the “life path” and access to the botanical garden – and over 10,000 cork seeds, holm oaks and other Mediterranean native species were sown. A concrete action that has already started to return ecological value and usability to the area.
It is important to underline that, as required by the ordinance of the mayor of last January, the pine forest will remain accessible to citizenship even during the execution of the interventions, in compliance with the safety requirements and with the limitation of the areas subject to the construction site.
“The pine forest of Son is not only a wooded area – says the commissioner Colosimo – but a treasure chest of biodiversity, which houses plant species and valuable habitats, Today more than ever to be preserved and enhanced. Returning it to citizens means protecting a vital ecosystem for the environmental quality of our city and offering an accessible space in which nature, environmental education and well -being can live together. It is a commitment we had made, and which today finds a first concrete answer. A heartfelt thanks goes to Calabria Verde, for the availability and institutional collaboration shown since the beginning of my mandate: a fundamental synergy for the relaunch of environmental and forest policies on our territory. The rebirth of the Pineta of Son represents much more than a technical intervention. It is a concrete gesture of attention to the environment and towards a community that deserves to return to fully live its natural spaces “.
