Renaturalización del antiguo vertedero de Alcobendas: Parque Forestal Nodo de Hábitats

Alcobendas is moving forward with its project to transform the old construction waste landfill on El Goloso road into the new Habitat Node Forest Park, a large green lung spanning 215,743 square meters. The project will receive an investment of nearly ten million euros, with 3.6 million coming from European funds through the Biodiversity Foundation.

The municipality hopes that this renaturalization project will promote biodiversity and ecological connectivity by restoring native ecosystems and planting around 3,000 trees and over 86,000 shrubs.

The project includes the restoration of native ecosystems and the regeneration of previous ecosystems «that disappeared long ago,» as mentioned by the city council in a statement.

The main goal of renaturalization is to minimize the impact of the old landfill on the surroundings. This will involve restoring eroded areas with gabion walls, biofilters, and reshaping the walls of some gullies, actions that will cover 80% of the park’s surface.

Additionally, the soils will be improved, prepared for new plantations, and enriched with organic matter, mainly compost.

The aim is to prevent erosion of the slopes and repair the successive gullies that have formed over time in the terrain. This is expected to increase the soil’s filtering capacity, allowing better air and water penetration and greater moisture retention, according to the city council.

This approach will result in more available water for the new plantations, eliminating the need for a specific irrigation system. Especially with well-adapted species that will only require manual watering during their early years.