Barcelona Recruits Sheep, Goats To Fight Wildfires

It's a rustic scene -- sheep and goats graze placidly while a shepherd keeps watch. But this is Barcelona's biggest public park, not the countryside

Barcelona, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 24th May, 2022 ) :It's a rustic scene -- sheep and goats graze placidly while a shepherd keeps watch. But this is Barcelona's biggest public park, not the countryside.

Since April, Barcelona city hall has employed 290 sheep and goats to munch undergrowth at the Collserola National Park on the outskirts of Spain's second-largest city.

The aim of the pilot scheme is to reduce the risk of wildfires by clearing vegetation in an environmentally friendly way. It also helps educate the Mediterranean port city's 1.6 million residents about the countryside.

"The biggest challenge is re-educating people about rural life," said Daniel Sanchez, one of the shepherds, as he took the animals out to graze.

The 36-year-old moved to Barcelona from Sant Llorenc Savall, a town some 50 kilometres (30 miles) further inland, to look after the herd. He sleeps in a shed in the park near the sheep and goats.

The 8,200-hectare (20,262-acre) park is 22 times bigger than New York's Central Park and eight times larger than the Bois de Boulogne in Paris.

Its viewing points offer sweeping vistas of Barcelona, and hiking trails make it popular with joggers, cyclists and people out for a walk.

"Every year it catches fire," said Sergi Dominguez, a 52-year-old maintenance worker who was in the park walking his dog.