LIFE REVIVE Project Aims to contribute to improving the ecological status of the Lima and Vouga river basins

With a budget of €6.5 million, funded under the European Union's LIFE Programme, the LIFE REVIVE project - ‘Innovative and integrated solutions to mitigate hydromorphological pressures and enhance ecological status in the Lima and Vouga basins’ - has as its main objective to improve the ecological status of the Lima and Vouga river basins through the implementation, testing and validation of innovative and integrated solutions to mitigate the effects of hydromorphological pressures such as those resulting from the construction of dams, weirs and other alterations to natural flows, as well as biological pressures derived from the presence of invasive aquatic flora species. ​

The project aims to restore river connectivity over more than 50 km through the removal and ecological adaptation of obstacles, recover spawning areas for indicator species such as trout (4 km on the River Vez), reinforce populations of emblematic species through restocking with wild trout and translocation of sea lamprey larvae and adults, control invasive aquatic flora species, based on good adaptive management practices (Cértima River and Pateira de Fermentelos), and contribute to the optimisation of ecological flow regimes implemented in the Alto-Lindoso-Touvedo and Ribeiradio-Ermida systems. In addition, it aims to promote the cross-border replication of solutions tested in rivers in Galicia (Spain) and other Portuguese river basins, as well as to disseminate knowledge and good practices through technical workshops, permanent exhibitions and educational programmes.

This five-year project is led by the University of Évora, with technical and scientific support from MARE - Centre for Marine and Environmental Sciences and the ARNET Associated Laboratory - Aquatic Research Network. It also has several beneficiary partners, such as the municipalities of Águeda, Arcos de Valdevez, Figueiró dos Vinhos, Mora (including the Mora Fluviarium) and Ponte de Lima, AQUALOGUS and the University of Santiago de Compostela.

In addition to these beneficiary partners, the LIFE REVIVE project brings together a diverse group of 11 associated partners, including public sector entities (APA, ICNF, DGRM, IPMA, Xunta de Galicia), fishermen's organisations (APDVez, CDCP, VNP) and environmental NGOs (QUERCUS, Associação Cabeço Santo, WWF). This network of partners in Portugal and Spain ensures an integrated and participatory approach.

According to the team at the University of Évora responsible for implementing this project, "by addressing the challenges faced by the Lima and Vouga river ecosystems, LIFE REVIVE aims not only to ensure a healthier aquatic environment, based on compliance with the objectives of the Water Framework Directive, but also to promote economic, cultural and social benefits for local communities, namely through the enhancement of recreational and commercial fishing and the conservation of emblematic species such as the sea lamprey and trout".

Text by LIFE REVIVE Coordination