On January 17th, at the building of the Parish Council of Ancede, a clarification session took place on the project for the rehabilitation and enhancement of the Ovil River.
The work started this Thursday, and this first phase extends between Ponte Nova (Ancede) and the mouth of Ovil (Ribadouro),and was awarded for the value of 157 thousand euros, financed by the Portuguese Environment Agency and the Chamber Municipality of Baiao.
The session was attended by councilors from the Municipality of Baião, José Lima and Henrique Ribeiro, the president of the Union of Parishes of Ancede and Ribadouro, Daniel Guedes and the author of the project and well-known specialist Pedro Teiga.
Matters related to the creation of a pedestrian path along the river Ovil were discussed, contemplating the improvement of existing paths between Ponte Nova and the mouth of the river, and providing for the creation of walkways where justified.
The aim is to create an “ecological corridor” that is a place for enjoying nature, raising awareness and environmental education, along a route that has a great wealth of native species in terms of fauna and flora.
The work will also follow a sustainable development approach, using natural engineering techniques.
Both municipal technicians and the construction company have already received specialized training to be able to follow the specific characteristics of this work, which aims to have a reduced environmental impact.
ROUTE OF GREAT BEAUTY AND ENVIRONMENTAL VALUE
For the councilor for economic affairs at the Municipality of Baião, José Lima, “This project will add even more value to our territory. This new structure will become a place for leisure and will contribute to the awareness and environmental education of users”, he said.
Regarding Daniel Guedes, he was satisfied with the start of the works: “It´s a desire of the parish for several years. The route that will benefit has a great wealth of native species in terms of fauna and flora. Now it is necessary to create dynamics to bring tourists and students to visit this place”.
Pedro Teiga, author of the project, focused more on the technical aspects and explained that “the work foresees the carrying out of works to consolidate the banks, cut and clean the vegetation, contain exotic and invasive vegetation and remove debris. Existing paths will be improved, through the application of resistant pavements, and the installation of wooden urban furniture and the construction of ditches for the routing of water in places where there is a need. Basically, the rehabilitation and enhancement of the river will be carried out, in a sustainable development strategy and using natural engineering techniques”.
PROJECT IN MULTIPLE PHASES
The first phase of the creation of the pedestrian path along the Ovil River is approximately 2.5 kilometers long between Ponte Nova (Ancede) and the mouth of Ovil (Ribadouro).
In the future, this route will have more phases, and an application for funding for the extension between Outoreça (Ovil) and Várzea (Campelo) is already being prepared.
BAIÃO – SUSTAINABLE TOURISM DESTINATION
This project is part of the certification process of Baião as a sustainable tourist destination, a certification recognized and validated by the international organization Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC).
Baião is the “greenest” municipality in the district of Porto with 68 percent of its territory covered by green areas and forest.
The certification process as a sustainable tourist destination started in 2018 and is the result of an intense work of collecting and analyzing information for three years, culminating in an audit carried out by the international entity EarthCheck, a non-governmental organization of reference in the area.
