Environmental activities at El Cabril

Forestry work

• Clearing of the undergrowth in the pine woods on the site, in order to provide the healthier trees with sufficient space to grow.
• Cleaning of forest floors in order to control the risk of fire and allow for the development of grass species, which are the diet of many animal species.
• Pruning of holly oaks in order to improve the health of the trees and reorient their growth more vertically. At El Cabril there are more than 50 hectares of holly oaks which are pruned in a rotary manner.
• Reforestation with native species in order to recover deteriorated or altered habitats and prevent erosion. To date, some 15,000 young plants have been introduced at El Cabril, with a survival rate of almost 50%.
• Fight against erosion by filling in and levelling certain sections of the beds of streams with stones and branches to reduce the speed of the flow, thus preventing the water from deepening the river bed and eroding the banks.
• Prevention of fires: At El Cabril, 21 Km. of firebreaks have been opened, these being continuously cleaned and sufficient width has been maintained to prevent fires from crossing them. Enresa has its own fire brigade at the LILW centralised disposal facility, equipped with motor-driven pumps and manned by trained personnel, which could also intervene to control outbreaks of fire in the countryside. In this respect, and in addition to keeping the firebreaks clean, the paths and tracks that criss-cross the site are kept cleared in order to allow the teams to get to the base of any flames.

Furthermore, El Cabril has collaborated for many years now with INFOCA. During the months of highest fire risk, a helicopter is kept ready for the rapid transport of the stand-by fire brigade of the Andalusian Environmental Agency to the fire front, as well as for use to drop water on the flames.

Improvement of the Habitat

The absence of any agricultural or stock-raising and of hunting activities has allowed the natural environment of El Cabril to remain well conserved. The industrial activity of the centralised low and intermediate level waste disposal facility has little impact on the environment, this being demonstrated by the results of the multiple analyses of soils, water, air and plant life carried out every year at the facility and in its surroundings.

El Cabril is home to a very rich fauna. The population of red deer may amount to some 300 individuals, these exercising considerable pressure on the environment.

The reservoir of the river Bembézar encourages many species of birds to nest or winter in the area. Particularly significant is a colony of common vultures, made up of a large number of individuals. The river and its surroundings also provide shelter for many species of reptiles, among them several species of tortoise. Other abundant species are partridges, hedgehogs, genets, stoats, mongoose, wild cats, foxes, etc.

Given this natural scenario and as part of its environmental policy, Enresa carries out various activities aimed at correcting and improving the habitats of these plant and animal species, the following being particularly significant:

• Sowing of cereals to provide food for the partridges, rabbits and other small animal species, thus favouring the recovery of the populations of these animals. In this respect some 10 hectares have been set aside, divided into a dozen plots, some of which are fenced to prevent the deer from quickly finishing with the forage. A mix of cereals is planted on these plots, such as oats and barley, the grain attracting birds, mainly partridges, and the stalks rabbits.
• Installation of water troughs for smaller animal species, these being periodically replenished.
• Installation of hutches for rabbits and other small animals. These play an important role in an area whose soil does not favour the digging of warrens by the animals.
• Installation of several hundred nesting boxes throughout the entire estate.
• Installation of several drinking troughs for deer and other large animals.
• The diet of the deer is supplemented with salt licks, since the nature and composition of the land is poor in minerals. Occasionally food is supplied for the deer when the weather conditions pose a serious threat to their survival.
• Tracking and surveillance of the nests of especially significant birds of prey, to prevent them from being disturbed during the nesting season (project in the planning phase).

Restoration of the land

Enresa started at El Cabril a series of programmes for the restoration of the rubble tips, through spontaneous colonisation by the more resistant species of the native plants, these concealing the rubble and favouring the formation of mould.

In order to promote this process, the areas around four mines were fenced off to prevent the deer from grazing there. In just ten years since these areas were cordoned off, the results have been spectacular.