The Ministry of Environment and Energy and the Braga City Council signed this Wednesday, November 4, a collaboration protocol for the creation of the program “Braga Restores,” which will make the municipality a pilot area to implement, at the municipal scale, the National Plan for Nature Restoration (PNRN).
The initiative aims to transform national nature restoration objectives into concrete projects, with measurable results, that contribute to the recovery of ecosystems, the protection of biodiversity, the adaptation to climate change, and the improvement of the quality of life of the populations.
Braga was chosen for the diversity of its territory, which brings together urban spaces, rivers, agricultural and forest areas, from the historic center and the consolidated city to the Este and Cávado rivers, with an ecological continuity that extends to the major natural systems of Peneda-Gerês National Park. These characteristics allow testing different nature restoration solutions and developing a model that could be applied in other Portuguese municipalities.
The “Braga Restores 2027-2030” program will be developed jointly by the Ministry of Environment and Energy and the Braga City Council, within 120 days after the protocol enters into force. The document will identify priority interventions, the goals to be achieved, the evaluation indicators, the investment needs, the financing sources, and the execution timetable.
The interventions will be developed through demonstrator projects in different areas of the municipality, with emphasis on the Historic Center and the Consolidated City, the ecological corridors of the Este and Cávado rivers, and the Braga–Bom Jesus–Sameiro–Sete Fontes Green Ring.
The restoration of the Este River will be one of the central projects of this initiative, with interventions aimed at restoring banks and riparian vegetation, improving water quality, controlling invasive species, increasing the water retention capacity, and reducing flood risk.
“We want nature restoration to stop being merely a goal and become a visible reality on the territory. Braga will allow us to test solutions, measure results and learn from execution, so that this experience can serve as an example to other municipalities. Restoring nature is also about protecting populations, preventing risks and improving quality of life,” says the Minister of Environment and Energy, Maria da Graça Carvalho, cited in a press release.
For the President of Braga City Council, João Rodrigues, “the Braga Restores is an opportunity to value our territory and improve the quality of life of the population. We want to recover our rivers, strengthen biodiversity and bring nature closer to people. Investing in nature is investing in a healthier city, more resilient and better prepared for the future.”
The “Braga Restores” aims to become a national reference experience, with solutions that allow accelerating the implementation of the National Plan for Nature Restoration and strengthening the role of municipalities in the recovery of ecosystems and in the adaptation to climate change.
