The Beasain City Council and the Aranzadi Science Society continue their collaboration to restore the local riverine forest and eradicate invasive species from the town's rivers. Plantings completed this week finalize a campaign that began in the summer along the Oria river, focusing on waste collection and the removal of exotic plants. Work was carried out in four areas of the town center: around the sports center, on Joan Iturralde street, in Bideluze square, and on Jose Migel Iturriotz street.
This year's tree planting efforts were distributed across four well-known sections of the Oria river's course, in the same locations where invasive plants were previously removed: between the sports center's pools and parking lot (alders were introduced to stabilize the bank); on Joan Iturralde street (38 specimens planted: alders, hazels, ashes, and maples); in Bideluze square, around the bridge (24 new trees and shrubs were placed: alders, hazels, ashes, maples, and willows); and on Jose Migel Iturriotz street (to reinforce last year's plantings). The objective is to strengthen the native riparian forest, provide shade, help improve water quality, and create natural habitats for local wildlife.
Before the autumn planting, the river was prepared during the summer. A campaign was conducted to clean the riverbed through the town center, removing a significant amount of waste from the water and banks. Additionally, invasive plants that suffocate native vegetation were removed. These tasks were always performed mechanically, without using herbicides or chemical products in the river, by uprooting manually or cutting with a chainsaw. The main effort focused on two exotic plants: Jerusalem artichoke and butterfly bush.
The City Council and Aranzadi emphasize that maintaining clean and healthy rivers is an ongoing task. This collaboration will continue in the coming years to make Beasain a more pleasant and vibrant municipality from an environmental perspective.
