The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) says the ‘People and Cork’ project was initiated to address the environmental problem in Kroumirie Mogods, northwestern Tunisia.

Launched by WWF, in partnership with the Institut Sylvo-Pastoral of Tabarka and the Tunisian Agriculture Ministry, the project seeks to promote cultural and natural practices on the traditional and sustainable use of oak forests in Kroumirie-Mogods.

Recurring environmental stresses and high anthropogenic pressure, including firewood harvesting and grazing, have reportedly contributed to causing progressive degradation of the Tunisian oak woods.

Affected trees show crown thinning, leaf yellowing, branch dieback, cankers, epicormic shoots and exudates on branches and trunk.

According to WWF, the project will contribute to the restoration of the forest landscape of the cork oak that is disappearing from the region.

The 24-month project, with a financial support of €150,000 from the Mava Foundation, will involve the governors of Jendouba, Beja and Bizerte, according to the Project Coordinator, Imen Khemiri.

The project, Khemiri added, aims to promote the potential of forests in the region through communication, supporting policies for research and the promotion of sustainable and innovative economic initiatives.

It is also understood that the project aims to optimise the involvement of local populations in preserving the national potential of the cork oak.

According to the project coordinator, a museum dedicated to the valorisation of the cork oak will be created in Tabarka in partnership with the municipality.

A communication strategy and a landscape catalog of the cork grove will also be developed and a Wild Tunisia labeling system in the cork oak landscape will be devised.

Source: TAP

Photo source: WWF