The beginning of the planting of 11,000 deep-rooted trees and shrubs, which will be carried out gradually until 2026 in Cyprus as part of the LIFE-AgrOassis project, was announced on Thursday November 9 at a press conference by the Commissioner for the Environment, Dr. Maria Panagiotou.
Dr. Panagiotou invited the organized groups to participate in the effort stating that this particular press conference is not about another ordinary announcement about tree plantings but is “a collective effort that aims to bring about measurable, positive results as well as specific good practices that will mitigate the effects of climate change”.
The coordinator of the “LIFE-AgrOassis” project, Dr. Panagiotis Dalias, in his greeting, thanked the Commissioner of the Environment and her Office for the support in the implementation of the program’s actions and gave a brief overview of the project. Dr. Dimitris Sarris, director of the KES Research Centre, referred to the hedgerows that will be created with the tree plantings and explained that the aim of the project is to reconstitute hedgerows with native and endemic plants of Cyprus over a length of 30 km with the aim of regenerating degraded agricultural land in order to make the agro-ecosystems of Cyprus more resistant to climate change.
Starting on December 15, 2023 and until the end of February 2024, organised ensembles are invited to register through the application form.
It is noted that to the tree plantings for this first period only adults can participate, due to the weight of the saplings, in the areas of Denia, Peristerona, Malounda, and Kitiou-Tersefanos. They will continue in the following years and will be completed in 2026. The participants will be sent online special educational material in the form of videos on how to plant.
Watch the full press conference here.