New call for the Collserola Agricultural Contract
This support mechanism for farmers provides financial help for social and economic services in the area, which are often invisible.
A number of actions are needed in the Collserola Nature Park to prevent fires, foster biodiversity and maintain infrastructures. These tasks are essential for conserving the park’s ecosystems and the agro-forest mosaic of the mountain range through everyday work carried out by people who work the land. Yet despite the various social, cultural and ecological benefits they represent, these land management tasks often go unseen or unnoticed without any sort of monetary compensation.
The Collserola Agricultural Contract (CAC) establishes an implicit agreement for mutual support between the administration, society and farmers to recognise this work.
The first edition of the CAC came in 2022, with 61,505 euros awarded. In all, 16 of 21 applicant projects gained subsidies and were awarded an average of 3,844 euros. Notably, a sum of 17,208 euros from the budget was used to install hunting fences for the ten properties which requested it.
The first call, which allowed the initiative to be tested, corrected and improved, was funded by the Collserola Nature Park Consortium and the municipal councils of Barcelona, Sant Feliu de Llobregat, Molins de Rei, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Sant Cugat del Vallès, El Papiol, Sant Just Desvern and the Decentralised Municipal Body of Valldoreix.
For this year’s call, the second edition of the CAC, the total amount of 75,000 euros in funding will come entirely from the consortium, with each application receiving up to 5,000 euros maximum.
The deadline for applications in this call is 19 June.
New for 2023
This year’s edition includes some new aspects, such as payments for three categories of work: firstly, ecosystem services; secondly, social and labour impact and finally, improvements to agricultural infrastructures. The call also includes new work which generates a positive social and environmental impact for the natural environment and for people, favouring the feasibility of properties in the mountain range.
Who can apply?
The call is open to legal or natural persons engaging in professional agricultural activity in the area of the Collserola Nature Park, as well as the functional space established in current urban planning (PEPNat). The definition of functional space applies to areas outside the protected area, given their functional importance for ensuring the basic goals of the Natural Park.
More about the CAC
The Collserola Agricultural Contract is a tool developed through participation between farmers, public administrations and academic stakeholders within the context of the Alimentem Collserola programme, part of the strategy for promoting the agroecological transition driven by the Collserola Nature Park Consortium.
