23 February 2012
The Galician Official Gazette (DOGA) publishes today, February 23, the Order of February 15, 2012 modifying the supervising body for several charities of interest to Galicia and giving instructions for their registration under the regional autonomous ministries relevant to the exercise of the supervisory functions.
This order is due to the changes in the administrative structure of the autonomous government Xunta de Galicia. The Directorate General for the Conservation of Nature, previously belonging to the Consellería do Medio Rural (regional ministry for rural affairs), is now under the control of the Consellería de Medio Ambiente, Territorio e Infraestruturas (regional ministry for environment, land and infrastructure). Therefore, the foundations registered under the Consellería do Medio Rural whose activities are of an environmental or conservation nature, such as Fragas do Mandeo, are now under the authority of the autonomous ministry Consellería de Medio Ambiente, Territorio e Infraestructuras.
12 February 2012
On their Sunday off, four Fragas do Mandeo volunteers went to the lake at Sobrado dos Monxes, spending a long morning working on the land where we have a bird observatory.
The views from the hide were limited by the willows that grew in front, right on the water’s edge. They required a more intense pruning and clearing than we had initially foreseen. Cutting up the thickest trunks, we took the opportunity to make a small refuge for micro-vertebrates by piling the trunks below the hide. Thus, small animals such as shrews, salamanders, toads or even the odd weasel, will find a quiet refuge.
As always when we visit Sobrado, we swept and cleaned the hide, the land around it and the parking lot. There was no time left to pick up trash along the stretch of the Way of St. James that connects our two pieces of land, or to do a bird count, as we usually do, but we did leave ornithological information.
The activity was done with the authorization of the Consellería do Medio Rural and with the collaboration of Sobrado Council, which kindly took responsibility for the transport and subsequent disposal of the prunings.
Some improvements of the hide are still pending. Damage caused by the action of time and by vandalism must be repaired, as well as modifying the windows to allow telescopes to be used. If you have some knowledge of carpentry and want to lend us a hand, you will find information in section Contact.
1 January 2012
In this second year of the Decade for Biodiversidad, Fragas do Mandeo faces the next twelve months hopefully.
We finished the year 2011 strongly. Both the number of donors and the total number of donations more than doubled. Our participation at several public events spread the word about us amongst the general public and strengthened our relations with institutions. We also moved forward from preliminary contacts to reach stewardship arrangements with several individual landowners and organisations.
In 2012 we will face up to the challenges posed by such stewardship agreements coming into force. Furthermore, we will work to significantly increase our means of support, because, although it has grown markedly, it continues to be insufficient to adequately protect our biodiversity.
In order to reach at local level the five objectives of the Strategic Plan for Biological Diversity 2011-2020 of the United Nations, with your support, we will continue making people aware of the value of biodiversity and advancing the stewardship of our woods and marshes, our coast and rivers. Only in this way can we safeguard the natural habitats which still survive in our region.
Thanks for your help. Happy New Year!
