As the Sugherete del Golfo Forest Consortium, we carry out several activities. Among these, forest management and research are definitely key ones.
Regarding the first, our goal is to promote participatory and sustainable forest management. But what does that mean? It’s simply an intelligent way of taking care of the woods so that, in the future, people, animals, and plants can continue to live there and benefit from it. This is possible when, while using the resources, we respect:
- biodiversity
- the capacity of resources to regenerate
- the social and cultural aspects of the area
- climate change mitigation
In this sense, we started with a detailed census of all the cork oaks. Each tree was physically reached, observed, georeferenced, and its dendrometric characteristics, cork type, and health status were described. These operations allowed us to have a complete picture of our trees, helping us better understand their needs and the condition of the properties where they grow.
Based on this and in consultation with our members, we laid the groundwork for a management and intervention plan: pruning by skilled personnel, thinning and scar removal, improving accessibility, and regulating pastures. The aim is to recreate ideal conditions so that, over the years, it will be possible to rebuild a cork industry in the lower Cilento area.
Regarding research, in recent months we set up two study sites where we installed:
- 2 meteorological stations
- 15 TT Cyber Plus sensors
- 4 TT Cyber Soil sensors
- 2 TT Cyber Radiation sensors
The data collected will allow us to make correlations useful for assessing the health status of our cork oaks, in order to define sustainable management practices and respond to potential pathogens. It will also help us evaluate the effects of climate change on these trees.