Green grazing is among the options considered for the future management of the Pignada forest. About fifteen Rove goats from an Anglo-owner are being tested in the Bois des Chasseurs, to assess the value of this solution.
The Bois des Chasseurs, on the edge of the avenue of the same name, near the Chiberta golf course and the Cavaliers beach, has been welcoming around fifteen Rove goats since the middle of January 2021.
A breed native to the Bouches-du-Rhône, used in its region of origin, to clear brush places inaccessible to machines, in the prevention of fires.
Photo credit: Nicolas Mollo
Method under study
Since the serious disaster that hit a large part of the Pignada forest, various short, medium and long term measures have been implemented where they are being studied. Initially, the city proceeded to a radical clearing of brush on the edges of the places of life, houses and others, even if it is legally for the owners of houses near the forest to ensure this maintenance in an area of fifty meters to immediate proximity to their property.
It was also necessary to cut down trees that were burnt or overheated, on some forty hectares in order to avoid attacks by the bark beetle, a pest insect.
Brush control
In the longer term, the main owners of the Pignada, the Departmental Council of the Pyrénées Atlantiques and the town of Anglet are considering the replanting of trees and how to manage the undergrowth in the future. .
We know that one of the aggravating factors of the fire of Thursday, July 30, 2020, was, after the start of the fire, the presence of very dry brush. Which raises the question of the maintenance of the undergrowth.
Defender of green grazing
Among the different methods envisaged to ensure this maintenance in the future, the mayor of Anglet and 1st vice-president of the Departmental Council, Claude Olive, has made himself an ardent defender of green grazing.
He relies for this on his childhood memories, in the heart of a Pignada forest which was his favorite playground and where he routinely crossed herds of sheep.
Goats under study
For several weeks, about fifteen goats from Rove have been at work in the Bois des Chasseurs, located in Chiberta, along the avenue of the same name.
They are the property of an Angloy craftsman, Peio Olçomendy, passionate about animals. The challenge is to observe for several months, in this plot which was not affected by the fire, the role that these goats can play against the spread of brush.
Fight against invasives
Peio Lambert, technician in charge of sensitive natural areas and biodiversity, within the departments of the Departmental Council, is following this experience very closely.
“It is a question of evaluating the role that these goats can play against the invasive plants and the brambles which make up the various bushy strata at the foot of the trees, such as the sage-leaved rockrose, the bay leaf, pampas or sarsaparilla, which prefer sandy soils. “
Species to be preserved
In contrast, the challenge is to preserve the natural growth of cork oaks and strawberry trees, which began in the plots affected by the fire. For now, it is a question of observing the behavior of the Rove goats and of measuring the impact they have on the undergrowth.
Other similar experiments should be tried on other plots, with other goat or sheep breeds. To find the one that will best meet expectations, by attacking the brush, without stripping and impoverishing the soil.
An urban forest
Green grazing should not, however, spare the use here and there of chippers in order to best secure the undergrowth of a forest with a special status, since it is located at the heart of an urban complex. abruptly recalled the fire of July 30, 2020.
The regeneration of the part affected by the fire will take time and go through different phases. In particular, in a few months, there should be a time for information and public consultation, before truly adopting a plan intended to revive the Pignada.
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