Volunteer House in Ebro Delta restored

Since 2000, SEO BirdLife manages the Riet Vell Nature Reserve in the Ebro Delta in Spain, which is a natural space of high ecological value with a total of 57 ha. For more than 15 years, SEO BirdLife has developed in Riet Vell a volunteer project for young Europeans, where they enjoy nature and, at the same time, they learn how to minimize their negative impacts on the environment. After the storm Gloria January 2020, the volunteers have been temporarily evicted from the house as the old facilities were affected.

The project's aim, supported by the VGP Foundation was, therefore, the restoration of the volunteer house in Riet Vell Nature Reserve.

With the financial support from NABU and VGP Foundation, it was possible to solve most of the problems, aggravated by the Gloria storm effects, that were affecting the life of volunteers in the Riet Vell Nature Reserve. See the results achieved within the project:

Volunteer House Rehabilitation

- damaged parts of the old building removed

- new green roof planted, walls reinforced

- interior of the volunteer house renovated (kitchen and bathrooms)

- new sewage system installed

Rehabilitation of the workplace

- bedroom area restored, walls and floor isolated with natural elements

- part of the house transformed into a workplace for volunteers, small laboratory established

- adaptated bathroom and bedroom for people with reduced mobility

- webcam restored for streaming a Barn Owl nest

Construction of a barrier-free observatory

A new observatory was built in the area with an access for people with reduced mobility and it can also be used by professional or amateur photographers whenever it is not used by the original target people. See the announce: https://seo.org/2021/06/04/nuevo-equipamiento-en-la-reserva-riet-vell/

During the winter, the vegetation surrounding the lagoon and the observatory was reinforced by planting new trees well adapted to the kind of habitat of the Ebro Delta.

Photos © SEO/BirdLife