Rural Regeneration

Project for Earth, People,

Arts and Culture

Foz da Cova

Hydrology and Earthwork Plan

Co created by Josh Gomez & Rosie Stonehill

Route of Track

More water for the area

Improved access up the valley

Restoration

Objectives, Goals & Achievements

Out come

The Valley of Foz da Cova and Carima

Current situation &

Landscape challenges

“Lets go for a walk up the Valley”

Current position of old tube and farm buildings

Proposed alternative route for new tube

Following the contour most of the way up the valley

The track also follows this route most of the way and has a swale along the upslope side

Catching the rain water runoff from 158187.68 m² of hillside

The majority of this water will infiltrate into the land below the on-contour swale

Any water excess to this infiltration will be channelled into a small dam

When the dam is full it will back fill the swale

Then be passively released over a broad compacted level sill

So what is a Swale and Level Sill?

Click these pictures to watch the two videos

Swale Level sill

Achieves multiple functions & benefits

Rehydrates the landscape & Controls / Minimizes erosion

Creates niche microclimate ideal for reforestation,with Self irrigating system

Achieves multiple functions & benefits

Easy to Implement, Manage and Maintain

Achieves multiple functions & benefits

Access Track

On contour swale

1.200 mm average annual rainfall

158187.68 m² of catchment

Less 90% at least (accounting 343 meters swale soak in & evaporation) = 3.1ML

31.6ML Reaching the swale

5 m height of dam wall at mid pointAround 300 m² water surface area

0.72ML of rain water storage

This would be the first of many small water bodies which we plan to implement

informedfarmers.com

Dam Calculations

After the track and 347m of swale is in place, we plan to implement smaller key line swales up slope from this main swale, taking water from the valleys to the ridges. This will create the ideal conditions for the planting of bio-diverse, highly productive, managed woodland, including such species as Quercus, Castanea , Betula, Pinus, Cupressaceae, Fraxinus, Alnus, Acer, with an understory of Medronheiro and Aveleira.

Down slope from the main swale it will soon become moist and humid, a great place for a Food Forest that, with its 7 layers / storeys, will produce a huge variety of yields, from fruit and nuts, to medicines and dyes, fibers and fabrics etc..

Future Plans

“Come for a walk up the valley again soon and maybe you’ll see a very different picture”