Mara-Mediterra’s fourth progress meeting took place in Algiers, Algeria on 29 and 30 April 2024. Snippets from the meeting and of the field trip to the Djelfa test site of the project, known as the Gateway to the Sahara, which took place on May 1, 2024 can be accessed from this link. The Mara-Mediterra Partnership shares the heartfelt thanks sent by Dr. Nadjib Drouiche to Journalist Yazid Fattani of the Algerian Radio Channel 2 for his extended coverage of the fourth progress meeting and of the field trip to the AMENHYD experimental site at Djelfa. His coverage can be accessed through this link.
The event was hosted by AMENHYD, the Algerian partner in the consortium, in cooperation with the national agency for the valorisation of research and technological development results (ANVREDET).
In his welcome address, Dr. Boualem Tatah, advisor to the Minister for Research in Algeria, spoke about the importance of cross-border knowledge exchange to address the pressing land and water degradation challenges in the Mediterranean Region, which are being further aggravated by a changing climate.
Dr. Mustapha Adjadj, the Team Leader of AMENHYD, reiterated on how the impacts of a changing climate had significantly slowed down the country’s flagship project of greening the desert, known as the Green Dam project.
Several members of the press were in attendance who interviewed Dr. Nadjib Drouiche as the General Director of ANVREDET at the end of the morning session on April 29.
In the afternoon as well as on the next day, the partnership took stock of the progress achieved to date, particularly in relation to the activities of the respective Living Labs and the state-of-play with the eco-engineering solutions that are being developed. The partnership also agreed on the scope and expected outcomes of the forthcoming second series of roundtables which will invite participants to draw up action plans based on the use of Nature-based Solutions (NbSs).
Given the important role of flora in NbSs, the field trip to Djelfa started off with a visit to the stunning botanical garden of Hamma in Algiers.
Since its inception in 1832, the garden served as an experimental site for the growing of plant and tree species that were brought in from all around the world. Over time, the garden continued to expand from an initial 5 hectares to 38 hectares of gardens and 20 hectares of arboretum which are overseen by the Algerian National Institute of Agronomical Research. Look out for the footage in the video clip of the Mara-Mediterra Partnership under the tree that featured in the 1932 movie of Tarzan, the Ape Man.
Obviously, the partnership was foremost keen to witness first-hand the site where the Green Dam project had been launched back in the 1970s, and where AMENHYD is now validating a novel micro-ecosystem based afforestation protocol. Djelfa, known as the Gateway to the Sahara, is located some 315 kilometres to south of Algiers.
It is noteworthy that the selection of the experimental site, which extends over 4 hectares, was not only because of its symbolic importance but driven also by the availability of treated wastewater from a nearby domestic wastewater treatment plant.
At the experimental site, Mr. Zanndouche Ouahid, Senior researcher within the National Institute of Forestry Research, explains that the afforestation protocol divides each plot of 1 hectare into 4 sub-plots: a plot in which the planted species are watered with treated wastewater, a plot in which soil enhancer obtained from the sludge of a wastewater treatment plant is added to the soil, a plot in which the species are both watered and soil enhancer is applied, and a final plot in which the species are planted without any further human intervention. AMENHYD estimates that it will take around 2 to 3 years for these experimental trials to point to the ’optimum’ protocol for afforestation.
However, Zanndouche emphasizes that the protocol is focused intentionally on the rehabilitation of the site to start with. The soil is poor in nutrients, hence the selection of nitrogen-fixing plant and tree species. Furthermore, the sludge obtained from the nearby wastewater treatment plant enables the recovery of 80-90% of phosphorous as struvite and compensates for the lack of phosphorous in the local soil. Once the species planted will reach maturity, efforts will be focused on the afforestation of the site, i.e. to re-introduce the species that were growing in this area before the onset of land and water degradation due to a changing climate.
Following on these explanations, the project coordinator, Dr. Vasileios Takavakoglou, wasted no time and planted an oleander sapling, to a big round of applause from the partnership.
The ongoing efforts at the experimental site are being overseen by the Living Lab that was launched in May 2023, and which brings together the various entities that are involved in the micro-ecosystem based afforestation protocol adopted by AMENHYD: the General Directorate of Forests, the National Sanitation Agency (ONA), the National Institute of Forestry Research, the conservatory of forest of Djelfa and more.
(Pictured from left) Hanichi Allal, Dali Zahia, Khodja Redjem Abderrahmane, Kahoul Mustapha, Arbadi Ratiba and Ben Yahia Halima who occupy various positions within the General Directorate of Forests and in the conservatory of forest of Djelfa and form part of the Mara-Mediterra Living Lab in Algeria, and who joined us in our visit to the experimental site.
Our next stop was in the local community of Djelfa, where the interlinked cultural and natural heritage of the area was discussed with Mr. Youcefi Abdelkader, the current mayor of Djelfa, through a visit at the Museum of Anthropology and Traditional Crafts in Djelfa. During the visit, Mr Saïd Boukhelkhal, the former mayor of Djelfa, shared a wealth of knowledge about the adaptation of local community to the harsh desert environment and the relevant items that are on display in the museum, which range from tools and truly spectacular cave art during the palaeolithic era, to the characteristic bedouin tents, and traditional clothing.
The mayor of Djelfa, Mr. Youcefi Abdelkader, invited the Mara-Mediterra Project Coordinator and Project Manager to make an entry in the museum’s diary of distinguished visitors, while all community representatives expressed their support to the project efforts for improving the livelihood of local communities in the Djelfa area.
The Mara-Mediterra Partnership congratulates the research colleagues at AMENHYD and ANVREDET for their organization of a highly productive meeting and an inspiring field trip, and above all for their warm hospitality throughout our stay in Algeria. A special thanks goes to Abbes Hamani who saw to every detail and spared no effort for our stay to be a most enjoyable one.
