SC approved CAMP Spain specifications

In order to start the process of selection of national consultants according to internal procedures in Spain, the CAMP Levante de Almeria Steering Committee (SC) met on 25-27January 2011 in Almeria and approved the Technical Specifications of individual projects within the framework of this ambitious initiative. The SC also discussed the overall project implementation, the budget and co-operation agreement between IUCN Med and CAMP. Due to the selection procedure, which is time consuming, a delay of implementation of the project has occurred but it was concluded that this should not affect the overall objectives and finalisation of the project according to the approved timescale, i.e. by June 2012. The SC members participated also to the meeting with experts that will follow and contribute to the implementation of the Assessment of Landscape Vulnerability individual project for the whole CAMP area. The PAP/RAC consultant presented the concept, methodology, and steps to be followed showing some examples so as to better understand the objectives and the contribution of this activity to the overall project objectives.

A special training session was organised on 27 January for the possible candidates for the national team to work on the Assessment of the Landscape Vulnerability. More than 50 participants attended the course what has shown that there was a great interest in the proposed methodology and expectations that the final vulnerability maps with the guidelines for planning and management of the CAMP area will contribute to spatial planning documents for the area in the future allocations of activities and various land uses. In particular to the preparation of the Sustainable Development Reference Framework in close co-ordination with the Imagine scenario building and indicators. The methodology is tailored in a way as to show areas in a cartographic form that are more or less vulnerable due to planned interventions in the landscape.

It was interested to hear that the concept of landscape in Spain is understood more as a visual quality of the environment. However, through the presentations and discussions the much broader concept of the landscape will be taken into account, i.e. a space where we find natural resources and activities using them, including natural and cultural (man-made) elements of the environment, its socio-economic component, i.e. human environment where visual qualities are just an element of it, and above all nature and biodiversity elements of the environment.