The Government of Asturias has allocated more than 1.1 million euros in the Biosphere Reserve of Somiedo in order to promote the environmental recovery of degraded areas and optimize waste management in the municipality.
According to the Principality in a press release, the actions have allowed for the recovery of the two dumps linked to the former mining operation of Caunedo through the remodeling of the relief, the stabilization of the deposits, the improvement of drainage, the addition of topsoil, and the revegetation of the surroundings. With these works, it has been possible to integrate environmentally and aesthetically a space that had remained deteriorated since the cessation of extractive activity.
The intervention has been completed with a second phase aimed at the restoration of areas affected by forest fires, with the purpose of halting erosive processes, restoring vegetation cover, and reinforcing soil stability. In this block of works, plantings of native species, forest restoration efforts, improvements in paths and access, adaptation of public use infrastructures, and preventive measures against future fires have been carried out.
With this set of actions, the Principality has managed to recover one of the main environmental liabilities of the Somiedo Natural Park, eliminate risks associated with the former mining activity, and promote the restoration of habitats, ecological connectivity, and the protection of biodiversity.
The Minister of Mobility, Environment, and Emergency Management, Alejandro Calvo, and the mayor of Somiedo, Belarmino Fernández, along with the general director of Land Custody and Fire Prevention, David Villar, have visited today the works carried out in the surroundings of the former mercury mine of Caunéu, considered one of the most relevant environmental restoration projects developed in the natural park. The intervention has involved an investment of one million euros financed through the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism of the European Union.
New selective collection area in Saliencia
During the visit, the operation of the new selective waste collection area of Saliencia has been verified, a facility that has involved an investment of 163,000 euros and that will allow for the improvement of recycling and waste management in the Biosphere Reserve of Somiedo. This action is part of the program for the implementation and improvement of separate collection infrastructures promoted by the Principality in the biosphere reserves of Somiedo and Ponga, endowed with a total investment of 322,299 euros financed with European funds from the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism.
The project has made possible the modernization of the spaces intended for selective collection through the placement of semi-underground containers for the main recyclable fractions, the creation of specific points for batteries and waste from electrical and electronic devices, the improvement of access, and a more appropriate landscape integration of the whole.
The new facilities facilitate the separation of waste at source, reinforce the service provided to the population and to the people who visit the council, and reduce the visual impact of this type of equipment in a protected environment of high environmental value.
This intervention adds to the investment of more than 227,000 euros made by the Principality in La Pola de Somiedo in 2025 to reinforce selective collection through the establishment of new recycling points with watertight containers intended for the segregated collection of waste.