Events and News

Cagliari, 24/09/2020 - Eleven municipalities in the Oristano area joined together for the protection and management of the wetlands and marine areas of the Gulf of Oristano and the Sinis Peninsula.

This morning, some of the mayors and representatives of the 11 municipalities involved in the Maristanis project including Oristano, Cabras, Arbus, San Vero Milis, Arbus, Santa Giusta, Terralba and Guspini met at the headquarters of the Regional Department of Environmental Defence, in the presence of Regional Councillor Gianni Lampis, to present the Coastal Wetlands Contract Action Plan. The Plan of 28 actions proposed by the municipalities, articulated according to 6 macro strategic objectives, will be finally approved with the signing of the ´Costal Wetlands Contract´ at the end of November by all the involved stakeholders.

The Regional Councillor confirmed his full support for the Maristanis Coastal Wetlands Contract process, launched in 2018, and defined it as "great and ambitious" where "environmental policies are at the centre of enhancement paths also with a view to economic development" and reiterated his willingness to accompany local administrations and local businesses along this path. "We aim to accompany all those who have already traced a path with their good practices, without replacing anyone.” - explains Lampis - “The Coastal Wetlands Contract, as part of the Maristanis project, represents an indispensable tool for the protection and enhancement of the environmental and landscape qualities of the Gulf of Oristano, and aims to better protect and manage the system of wetlands and Site of Community Importance (SCI) which play a fundamental role in Sardinia". According to the Regional Councillor, the involvement of private entrepreneurs is also essential for the success of the project, with a view to "creating a brand that distinguishes the typical products of the territory, from fish to agri-food products".

Six macro-objectives are proposed in the action programme of the Coastal Wetlands Contract prepared by the municipal administrations, from the management programme of the wetland system towards a participatory territorial governance model and a "green", sustainable development model. The main proposed actions are: the improvement of the ecological status of wetlands of international importance (Ramsar sites); the protection and conservation of the exceptional biodiversity of this territory; the birth of the first completely "Plastic free" marine-coastal area in Sardinia, with the reduction of the use of disposable plastic; the concrete actions for the adaptation to extreme rain events and climate change; the redevelopment of the natural and urban landscape and the enhancement of cultural heritage.

"The Coastal Wetlands Contract is a voluntary instrument of a negotiated and participatory process. This approach between municipalities is common all over Italy today, currently adopted by 11 Italian Regions with more than 93 contracts in progress, including this one in Oristano, and eleven already signed” explains the project Alessio Satta, president of MEDSEA Foundation. “Today this Coastal Wetlands Contract is framed both at regional and European level, especially in support of the lines of action on adaptation to climate change. The municipalities develop the Action Plan and they feel highly responsible for it.

The Maristanis Coastal Wetlands Contract is particularly interesting because it involves 6 of the 8 wetlands of international importance (Ramsar sites) in Sardinia and the Marine Protected Area “Penisola del Sinis, Isola di Mal di Ventre”. For Satta, the Contract is the beginning of a new vision for the management of natural resources, "which would not have been possible without the political will and commitment expressed by the municipalities involved, who decided to set up a system".

The Contract, officially signed this November, is the main result of the MARISTANIS Project, financed by the MAVA Foundation and coordinated by the MEDSEA Foundation, whose main objective is the protection and management of 6 wetlands of international importance protected by the Ramsar Convention: the ponds of Sale 'e Porcus, Cabras, Mistras, Pauli Maiori, S'Ena Arrubia, Corru S'Ittiri, San Giovanni e Marceddì.

The eleven municipalities involved are: Arborea, Arbus, Cabras, Guspini, Nurachi, Oristano, Palmas Arborea, Riola Sardo, San Vero Milis, Santa Giusta e Terralba.

At this morning's press conference with the Regional Councillor were present some of the administrators who contributed to the construction of the Coastal Wetlands Contract since the beginning and worked on the preparation of the Action Plan. Among them: the Mayor of Arbus, Antonello Ecca, the Councillor of Guspini, Francesca Tuveri, the Mayor of Santa Giusta, Antonello Figus, the Councillor of Terralba, Simone Puddu, the Head of the Development and Strategic Planning Department of the Municipality of Oristano, Gianluigi Matta, the Mayor of Cabras, Andrea Abis and the Mayor of San Vero Milis, Luigi Tedeschi, as well as the head of the Regional Agency of the Hydrographic District of Sardinia, Nicoletta Contis.