Restoration of slopes disturbed by a motorway company: Egnatia Odos, Greece

Abstract

The Egnatia Motorway is the largest road currently under construction in southern Europe. It is understood that the construction of such a large-scale project causes both environmental and landscape disturbances. Being sensitive to issues concerning environmental protection, Egnatia Odos S.A. has implemented a series of methods aimed at the aesthetic restoration of disturbed surfaces and the prevention of surface erosion. The above-mentioned goal can be achieved through installation of woody vegetation species on the slopes of the Egnatia Motorway. Therefore, the company uses for restoration forestry species of native flora, which are adapted to the environment of the area to be restored. The company policy is to undertake itself the selection of seeds from various forestry species and produce plants in a nursery. For the collection of seeds, suitable biotopes in the wider project area as well as the species that can be massively produced were identified. The seeds collection were transferred to the company laboratory, cleaned, subjected to quality control and stored. Prior to the use of seeds in the nursery, the necessary pretreatment, depending on the species, was carried out in order to terminate the dormancy and enrich the germination. Meanwhile, the production of plants that were considered difficult to germinate was investigated. Seeding took place in QuickPot propagation trays and the filling materials used were: enriched peat, perlite and soil. During production, all the necessary measures were implemented in order to achieve an excellent planting material. After one year, the plants produced from the seeds in the nursery were transferred to the surfaces to be restored and were planted. The plants were planted near the areas from which their seeds were collected. The installation of vegetation on gunite, aiming at the aesthetic restoration of the landscape (apart from the protection of the slope against erosion), has produced very satisfactory results.