C.4. Restoration, impact prevention, and creation of the Usabelartza peat land

The management plan for the Leizaran River SCI was passed initially by Order 23 in December of 2010, by the Ministry of Environment, Spatial Planning, Agriculture, and Fishing

The Guipuzcoa County Council (GCC), as the body responsible for the application this plan has solicited a revision of the approved boundaries, aiming to include the samples of habitat “7140 Sights of transition” which Usabelartza harbors, in the range of the Natura Network.

The Usabelartza bogs are subjected to pressures of a different nature, which are proposed to be corrected with the following actions:

To correct the pressures generated by the forest plantings (shadow, desiccation, etc.) the following is proposed:

•  Reducing the pressure that the bordering plantings exercise, eliminating it in a perimeter of 25m from the margin of the hydro-peat wetlands.
•  Eliminating the introduction species, a yield of Chamaecyparis lawsoniana that is  surrounded by two branches of peat lands.

To correct the pressures generated by recreational use, the preparation of a pedestrian trail has been proposed, a traditional path that will the routes of hikers to be channeled, avoiding the proliferation of alternative routes.

For the pressures generated by the forest trails the following is proposed:

• Hydrologic correction, to recover the water inflows to the wetland: Creation of cross drains under a trail to avoid the substantial changes that are exercised over the wetland’s hydrological system in its most valuable part (the only one that presents peat deposits).Modification of an existing trench between the trail and the megalithic monument, created by means of a dam, a sheet of water. In this way the negative impact that is occasioned over the hydrologic functioning of this enclave is corrected and diversity to provide a habitat for amphibians is introduced.Filling the trench that is on the other side of the trail, south of the previous one. This also meant to correct the effect of local drainage.
• Topographic correction. Elimination and restoring of  the design of the trail that goes through the northern valley, crossing the rivulet has been proposed. At the same time the circulation of any type of vehicle through this area is avoided.

Notably, both the wording of this project and its implementation are expected to be completed before the candidacy of the LIFE TREMEDAL project’s date of termination, therefore these are activities whose costs will not be charged to it.