LIFE Project: Carbon sequestration through sustainable forest and grassland management for climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation in mining areas
- Type Project
- Status In progress
- Execution 2022 -2028
- Assigned Budget 4.158.222,00 €
- Scope Europeo
- Autonomous community Asturias, Principado de
- Main source of financing LIFE
- Project website Web del proyecto
The LIFE CARBON2MINE project aims to contribute to the development of plans and methodologies for the ecological restoration of terrestrial ecosystems. Specifically, the project team will restore land in Asturian mining areas, Spain, to improve natural carbon sequestration by establishing and validating sustainable forest and grassland management strategies and models. Additionally, the project team will provide a digital decision-making tool for landowners to select management models for their land, and an assessment tool to evaluate and monitor carbon sequestration of restored ecosystems in former coal mining areas.
Both strategies, along with numerous outreach and social engagement activities, will positively contribute to climate change mitigation and increase the adaptability and resilience of terrestrial ecosystems. The project's new land and vegetation management models will be designed to optimize the carbon sink effect in mining areas, while contributing to cleaner energy production and a circular economy.
Atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations have increased by 49% from the pre-industrial global average to the current level; worse still, the growth rate has accelerated dramatically. Rising atmospheric CO2 concentrations contribute to climate change, which causes pronounced negative changes in the structure and functioning of ecosystems worldwide. Climate change is one of the greatest challenges of our time, seriously threatening the health of the planet, with significant social and economic consequences. Therefore, it is necessary to develop sustainable plans and methodologies to reduce anthropogenic carbon emissions while recovering atmospheric CO2 by improving the natural capacity of ecosystems to sequester carbon. In this sense, forests are a crucial ally and are essential for both mitigating and adapting the environment to the impacts of climate change. Therefore, ecological restoration is now a priority for governments, organizations, businesses, and researchers. Projects are urgently needed to ecologically restore degraded areas where intensive industrial activities (such as mining) have severely damaged the environment, while enhancing ecosystems' natural capacity to sequester carbon.
- Restore mining areas through silvicultural models that maximize carbon sequestration, to improve carbon storage and sequestration capacity, biodiversity, and the provision of ecosystem services.
- Implement the circular economy model in land management by introducing the circular economy into forest and grassland management, and by incorporating combustion ash (residue) from nearby bioenergy production processes as fertilizer for forest plantations.
- Decarbonize electricity generation by using forest biomass and studying new forestry models focused on the production of primary and secondary forest biomass.
- Promote a new economic recovery model based on business activities within the forestry sector with a significant capacity to generate employment, attract residents, and boost the local economy, particularly in rural areas.
- Replicate the project model in other mining areas (based on the case study results) to maximize the project's impact while ensuring long-term carbon storage.
- Replicable management models for LULUCF mining areas that optimize carbon capture and sequestration.
- Improving the carbon storage and sequestration capacity, biodiversity, and ecosystem service provision of degraded forest areas and mining sites.
- Tool to evaluate and monitor carbon sequestration traceability.
- Decision-making tool (geoportal web application) to provide sustainable management models to landowners offering best practices for managing their forests.
- Circular economy models for forest and grassland management.
- Associative formulas for managing forest properties in Asturian mining areas and a networking system between landowners and biomass stakeholders, including a local biomass market and carbon credits.
- Coordinator/entity name: Asunción Cámara Obregón
Postal address: CALLE SAN FRANCISCO 3, 33003, Oviedo,
- UNIVERSIDAD DE OVIEDO
- ASOCIACION PARA LA CERTIFICACION ESPANOLA FORESTAL - PEFC ESPANA
- VICECONSEJERíA DE MEDIO AMBIENTE Y CAMBIO CLIMáTICO
- UNIVERSIDAD DE SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA
- AGRESTA S COOP
- HULLERAS DEL NORTE SA
- BIESCA AGROFORESTAL Y MEDIOAMBIENTE S.L.
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