National Id
Portugal_02
Site name
Tamera community, Monte do Cerro, Odemira Municipality (located 20 kms off the west coast in the south of the country)
Summary
Water retention spaces, reforestation and grazing management in southern Portugal.
The ecovillage of Tamera is a community of 190 permanent residents (and more than 100 non-permanent inhabitants) living in a property in the South of Portugal (Monte do Cerro, municipality of Odemira). The application designed and implemented in this location consists of the creation of “Water Retention Landscapes” by means of the following measures: reforestation and the planting of mixed-culture ground cover vegetation; holistic grazing management; keyline design; terracing; swales; and the most well-know measure, the construction of water retention spaces in the form of decentralized lakes and ponds.
Light or indepth?
Light
NUTS Code
Alentejo
RBD code
PTRH6
Transboundary
0
Longitude
-8.51583333333
Latitude
37.715
Climate zone
warm temperate dry
Mean rainfall
1065
Mean rainfall unit
mm/year
Average temperature
14.5
Mean runoff
250
Mean runoff unit
450 - 600 mm
Type
Case Study Info
Monitoring impacts effects
1
Performance impact estimation method
Catchment outlet
Performance impact estimation information
The inhabitants themselves (and specially, the Ecology Department of the community under the form of a specific association -AMH-) are in charge of the assesing the degree of compliance with the objectives with the support of external experts (such as the Permaculture specialist Sepp Holzer, or from several universities)
Application scale
Field Scale
Installation date
2007
Age
5
Performance timescale
1 - 4 years
Area (ha)
133
Area subject to Land use change or Management/Practice change (ha)
133
Favourable preconditions
Contruction water retention spaces: favorable site conditions (geology, soil permeability, topography, catchment annual runoff…)
Design contractual arrangement
Arrangement type Responsibility Role Comments Name
Design consultation activity
Activity stage Key issues Name Comments
Design land use change
Land use change type
Design authority
Authority type Role Responsibility Name Comments
Private property owners
Initiation of the measure
ILOs Peace Research Center Lda.
ILOS owns Tamera and its infrastructure. ILO is also owned by the associations “G.R.A.C.E.” and “Associação para um Mundo Humanitario” (AMH).
Private property owners
Determination of design details of the measure
The Associação para um Mundo Humanitario (AMH)
Responsible for the environmental and technological research projects carried out in Tamera (the Water Retention Landscape, the Solar Village Test Field, ecological landscape healing, the reforestation project, building alimentary biotopes) and for establishing the regional network. Permaculture specialist Sepp Holzer was responsible for the technical design details of the water retantion spaces.
Private property owners
Other
The G.R.A.C.E Association
Responsible for the field of peace education (including the Global Campus, the youth school for global education, Place of the Children, as well as internal education and global peace actions).
Private property owners
Other
The Support Circle
Group of people supporting Tamera’s work with a regular (monthly) contribution.
Key lessons
Finalist for the 2012 Buckminster Fuller Challenge (Buckminster Fuller Institute Socially-Responsible Design's Award) and also analysed within the framework of two European Research Projects (ERA-NET CIRCLE-2) it is been considered as an inspiring local scale effective strategy for adapting to climate change. The most well known measure applied within the framework of this practice (the construction of rainwater retention spaces in the form of decentralized lakes and ponds (interconnected permanent artificial lakes and ponds designed to retaining rainwater not sealed with concrete/plastic material and with a natural material dam) is becoming increasingly studied due to its replicability potential.
Success factor(s)
Success factor type Success factor role Comments
Specific incentives for stakeholder involvement
main factor
Public participation
secondary factor

About to sign a contract between Tamera and the Municipality

Financing
Financing type Comments
Other
Activities are financed through donations and grants, by guests and the revenue from seminars, and from the Book Shop. The purchase of Tamera’s land and the initial investment were partially finance with loans
Barrier
Barrier type Barrier role Comments
Lacking financing sources
main barrier
Activities are financed through donations and grants, by guests and the revenue from seminars and from the Book Shop.
Attitude of the public
secondary barrier
They seek to receive a more prominent exposure in the Portuguese public.
Driver
Driver type Driver role Comments
Organisation committed to it
main driver
Strong commitment with “changing” subsistence and regional autonomy, in regard to infrastructure, new forms of water management and cooperation with nature
Financing share
Financing share type Share Comments
Policy description
The ecovillage of Tamera (“Tamera Healing Biotope 1”), founded in 1995, is a community of 190 permanent residents (and 120 non-permanent inhabitants in 2012) living in a property of 133 ha located in the South of Portugal (Monte do Cerro, municipality of Odemira).
Main problems affecting the area where Tamera is located are: deteriorated soils (washed fertile topsoil layers, damaged structure, erosion and desertification) due to pressures put in the past (such overgrazing and unsuitable agricultural practices) and water quantity issues (heavy rainfalls causing flooding and, on the other side, water scarcity and droughts). The application designed and implemented consists of the creation of “Water Retention Landscapes” (i.e. “systems for the restoration of the full water cycle by retaining the water in the areas where it falls as rain” -Ulbig, 2014-) covering 5 areas (water, forest, gardens, seeds and pasture management).
Measures implemented were: reforestation and the planting of mixed-culture ground cover vegetation; holistic grazing management; keyline design; terracing; swales; and the mos well-know measure, the construction of water retention spaces in the form of decentralized lakes and ponds (interconnected permanent artificial lakes and ponds designed to retaining rainwater not sealed with concrete/plastic material and with a natural material dam with slope 1:2 as a barrier).
Policy target
Target purpose
Increase Water Storage
Runoff control
Groundwater Recharge
Improved Biodiversity
Oher Societal Benefits
Policy pressure
Pressure directive Relevant pressure
Policy area
Policy area type Policy area focus Name Comments
Policy impact
Impact directive Relevant impact
Policy wider plan
Wider plan type Wider plan focus Name Comments
Policy requirement directive
Requirement directive Specification
Direct benefits information
Slow rainwater runoff
Enhance biodiversity (habitat and biodiversity conservation)
Increasing water storage capacity (recover the groundwater table)
Agricultural productivity increase (local food production autonomy and effects in terms of economic growth in the community)
Ancillary benefits information
Social benefits as recreational services and amenity and clean water for different uses (for drinking and for irrigation).
Ecosystem functions that provide co-benefits as in the case of storing and fixing carbon and serving as wildlife habitats and ecological corridors.
Increasing water storage capacity reduce dowstream flooding events.
Contributes to prevent rural depopulation.
Contributes to control desertification process in the area
Contributes to the development of a alternate model
Costs total
500000
Costs total information
Only for the creation of the water retentation lakes: more than 500000€ (Source: Pijnappels and Dietl, 2013)
Ecosystem improved biodiversity
1
Information on Ecosystem improved biodiversity
More than 10.000 planted trees: areas afforested with a wide diversity of species and fruit tree plantations. Forest corridors are useful as protected paths for wild animals (e.g. boars, badgers, foxes, genets and forest owl) to reach the lakes and ponds.
Ecosystem provisioning services
1
Information on Ecosystem provisioning services
Contribution to the regional food autonomy (objective of the project: 80% regional food autonomy) as progressively more vegetables and fruits consumed by the community are grown in their own gardens, on the terraces and at the shores of the water retention spaces.
Ecosystem water supply
1
Information on Ecosystem water supply
Since 2011 drinking water needs of the community of are supplied from wells fed by the Water Retention Landscape (190 permanent residents and 120 non-permanent inhabitants in 2012.
Ecosystem impact climate regulation
Impact on GHGs (net emissions and storage) including soil carbon
Information on Ecosystem impact climate regulation
Increase CO2 stored due to the forest and soil restauration measures
Information on retained water
N/A volume of water retained but created water retention spaces were able to substantially contribute to supply water demands of the community (for different uses: domestic, irrigation and recreational)
Information on increased water storage
By means of the construction of water retention spaces (lakes and ponds) water storage capacity is enhanced.
Information on runoff reduction
Measures implemented within the framework of the Water Retention Landscape (reforestation and mixed-culture ground cover vegetation; holistic grazing management; keyline design; terracing; swales; and the mos well-know measure, the construction of water retention spaces in the form of decentralized lakes and pond) were designed for this purpose.
Ecosystem erosion control
1
Information on Ecosystem erosion control
Due to the implemented refforestation measures
Water quality overall improvements
Positive impact-WQ improvement
Information on Water quality overall improvements
Design principles applied to the water retention spaces contribute to improve water quality (winding banks, different bed depths…) by enhancing self-purification processes.
Soil quality overall soil improvements
Positive impact-SQ improvement
Information on Soil quality overall soil improvements
By means of topsoil creation, soil quality is enhanced in general terms.