Alpujarra R.3
ALPUJARRA, A BRIEF INTRODUCTION
La Alpujarra is an enclave on the southern slopes of the Sierra Nevada that forms a large geographical area of the provinces of Granada and Almeria, Southern Spain. The Sierra Nevada is the highest mountain range in the Iberian Peninsula. La Alpujarra is sheltered by Mulhacen, it's summit reaching 3,482 metres, known in ancient times as ‘monte Sulayr' (mountain of the sun.) Mulhacen and its' neighbouring peaks are snow-capped virtually all year round. La Alpujarra, with its temperate climate and bountiful natural supply of water, has been, since Moorish times, one of Europe's most important farming regions. However in more recent years, intense farming in plastic greenhouses in Almeria has made it virtually impossible for farmers in La Alpujarra to compete and continue. The region has suffered vastly from depopulation during the last 30 years, which has meant that not only much of the land has been abandoned and neglected, but the younger generations can't earn a sufficient living in order to live and work in La Alpujarra. Villages have tiny populations, sometimes as low as 12 inhabitants, and the economy and local services are struggling.
The elderly farmers are trying to carry on the best they can, but each year their numbers diminish, and their knowledge of the traditional skills and crafts die with them. Historically La Alpujarra included sheep and dairy farming, almond and olive groves, vineyards, wheat, silkworm farms, as well as an abundance of fruit and vegetables. Today only a fraction of all this continues. The result is that the land is not cultivated and irrigated, the consequences of which include soil erosion and desertification.Alarmingly, the Eden Project has now classified La Alpujarra as one of Europe's first semi-arid zones.
BALATES & ACEQUIAS
The Balates and aceuqias in La Alpujarra make up an intricate irrigation system that is an important part of the legacy left by our ancestors. The Balates' function is to support and hold up the terraces to be cultivated above them. The acequias are a system of woverland water channels, to transport water. Many of these Balates are now falling into disrepair. Maintaining them is crucial in order to sustain the sophisticated manner of cultivation developed over centuries on these sloping terraces.
The Alpujarran irrigation system starts high up in the mountains, and gradually descends to the Mediterranean Sea, a distance of 20 kms from the top of Mulhacen to the coast, as the crow flies. Throughout the year, melting snows descend through the rivers that have their sources high up in the sierras. The rivers connect with the first level of acequias at an altitude of 2,500m. The acequias continue collecting and transporting the water, running as parallel as possible in accordance with the natural course of the descending slopes down the mountainside. In this way, water distribution can be maximised along the lengths of the slopes and terraces, partly by feeding natural underground seepage systems, the natural springs and fountains. The rest travels over-ground along the acequias.
The farmers then have their own smaller private acequias, which feed off the larger central spurs, and the allocation of water rights and times is governed by a central body. Keeping the acequias clear of weeds and debris is an essential part of the annual maintenance work in order to keep the water flowing to the terraces.
ALPUJARRA R.3 (reactivate, rebuild, reap the rewards)
The principal characters behind this volunteer regeneration iniciative are Antonio, a 75 year old Alpujarran farmer, his son, Luife, Cat Jary, a British cellist who founded the Alexander Music School (AMS) in La Alpujarra, and Deborah Lewis-Green, Cat's associate in AMS. Deborah continues to reside in North Yorks.
In addition, the local Town Hall of Pitres, the Cultural Association of La Alpujarra, and the volunteer team are all very enthusiastic and supportive of the project.
In autumn 2008 a group of foreigners and non-Alpujarran Spaniards living locally approached Cat and Antonio, in order to work together as a small volunteer group.
Each Thursday morning, since early November 2008, Antonio leads a mixed group of between seven and twelve volunteers into the mountains for the morning. Projects to date include clearing acequias, digging out an ancient water deposit to irrigate surrounding terraces and dismantling two Balates in readiness for reconstructing them. In January, Luife was able to join the group, and together he and his father teach the volunteers how to maintain and care for the mountains using traditional methods. Particularly popular is the wine and tapas break, when Antonio's wife, Maria, prepares a large selection of local cold meats and cheeses, washed down by local Alpujarran wine, drunk out of a goat-skin wine flask, or beer.
The project has proved remarkably successful, not only in the results the volunteers have achieved through their hard work, but also in helping non-Alpujarrans to integrate with the locals, and learn more of the history of La Alpujarra. This pilot study project will continue, but is now ready to develop and expand, collaborating with and complimenting the work of the Junta and the Park.
The Town Hall and Cultural Association are now presenting funding applications to the National Park, in order for this group to restore more Balates.
DEVELOPMENT 2009 & BEYOND
The team now feels ready to publicise the project, and invite others to participate. Luife has agreed to work on the project virtually full-time with his father, Antonio, which means that volunteers can always come, be it for a morning, a weekend, a weeks' holiday or longer, and participate in restoring Balates and acequias, or whatever cultivation project is happening at that moment in the Alpujarran farming calendar.
Eventually it is hoped a post of employment will be created for one Alpujarran farmer full-time, and others will be contracted temporarily as monitors. These farmers will work the land, as they have all their lives, but in addition, train groups of volunteers how to carry out these practical traditional skills, and at the same time teach them about the history of the mountains. The future course of the project will depend on the uptake of projects by volunteers, but the aim is to be able to restore as much of La Alpujarra as possible, for future generations to enjoy, and to provide more posts of employment for the people here struggling to live in and take care of La Alpujarra.
VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES
If you are interested in participating in this project and forming one of the work groups please contact Cat Jary at her website www.alexandermusicschool.com
