The biggest challenge facing the Park’s ecosystem is soil erosion by rain and wind. The ban on grazing has slowed down the deg- radation but it is not enough. In recent years, increased drought periods followed by extreme winter weather events have result- ed in further soil erosion and, as a result, strain on the existing flora and fauna.
A pilot project to tackle erosion at a small scale was begun in 2017 in the catchment flowing into the Katholiko beach. It involves the construction of small and simple stoneworks without artifi- cial binders, in crevices created by soil erosion, or on makeshift, rough roads that operate in the same catastrophic manner.
These stoneworks slow down the flow of water and absorb it into the soil, thereby increasing vegetation and avoiding excess accu- mulation of debris in the parking lot and the beach.
The results of the project are more than encouraging. The beach is no longer filling with sediment after the winter rains, the annual vegetation has increased significantly around the stoneworks and the wounds in the landscape since the roads were opened are slowly but steadily healing.