-Overall, those areas, systems and economic sectors most sensitive to climate change were identified.
- A diagnosis was made to determine what adaptation measures had been previously applied to the study basins and their effects. Based on the results obtained in the modeling of socio-economic and climatic scenarios in the three watersheds studied for the 2030-2050 horizon, we have proposed which adaptation measures should be implemented in the sphere of water management. New adaptation measures have been defined and some of them have been implemented as pilot tests (agricultural and forestry).
-The effects of the pilot tests have been monitored in the three basins.
-The results have been shared in different networks and platforms.
The project is conducting field tests of the different adaptation strategies aimed at reducing the vulnerability of Mediterranean forests and crops to climate change. And, it also seeks to assess the economic and environmental costs associated with the application (or not) of the various measures.
In the forestry sphere, the project has revealed the need to intervene in Mediterranean forests which, after being subjected to a strong secular exploitation, have been abandoned in recent decades due to rural depopulation and the widespread use of fossil fuels. This has conformed very dense and immature forest masses that are, consequently, very sensitive to water deficits and with a high risk of fires. The proposal brought forward by LIFE MEDACC is to reduce the density of trees to accelerate the natural process of succession towards more mature forests. To do this, different treatments have been applied - clearing and thinning fundamentally - in different environmental conditions, slopes, depths of soil, etc. Thus, it has been possible to check which treatments work best in each situation and also know their costs, so as to specify afterward the appropriate management recommendations in each case.
Together with these specific forest management practices, evidence also exists of the need to reinforce extensive livestock farming and maintain and recover the traditional mosaic agroforestry landscapes, which are home to greater biodiversity and are less vulnerable to different impacts.
Regarding agriculture, various methods have been tried in corn and apple crops that have - at very low costs - resulted in water savings of between 20% and 30%, while maintaining production. The methodology is based on applying simple technologies to determine, as accurately as possible, the environmental conditions and weather forecasts in the different farming plots and, with these data, calculate precisely the weekly water inputs that each plot requires. This information is transmitted to farmers who can then significantly increase the efficiency of irrigation, reduce costs and contribute to improving the availability of water in the basin at the same time.