Events and News
31. The Green Fund supports the LIFE SAFE CROSSING project
02/08/2022
Τhe Board of Directors of the Green Fund approved the covering a part of Callisto’s financial obligations for the LIFE SAFE CROSSING project (LIFE17NAT/IT/464), in the context of the call for the co-financing of approved LIFE projects 2022.
The LIFE SAFE-CROSSING project aims at implementing actions to reduce the impact of roads on some priority species in four European countries: Apennine brown bear (Ursus arctos marsicanus) and wolf (Canis lupus) in Italy, Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus) in Spain, and brown bear (Ursus arctos) in Greece and Romania. On the Greek side, partners in the LIFE SAFE-CROSSING project are CALLISTO, COSMOTE, Egnatia Odos SA and the Region of Western Macedonia.
The support of the Green Fund in the effort to secure the necessary co-financing of CALLISTO for the implementation needs of the project, proves once again that the Green Fund is a valuable financial tool in the efforts of the environmental protection in the country.
30. Life Safe-Crossing Project at the Giro d'Italia
14/06/2022
During the ninth stage of the Giro d'Italia, Isernia - Blockhaus, the writer Fabio Genovesi, who follows the pink race for RAI, spoke about the LIFESAFE-CROSSING project during the live broadcast of the stage.
The stage initially crossed the Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park to develop and end in the territory of the Maiella National Park.
The famous writer therefore took the opportunity to present the beauties of the Maiella Park and tell viewers about the LIFE SAFE CROSSING project and the importance of this initiative to mitigate the impact of vehicular traffic on wildlife.
In his speech, Fabio Genevosi underlined the international character of the project and illustrated the concrete actions that are being developed, focusing in particular on the installation of road signs to raise awareness among motorists and on the operation of the innovative road accident prevention system with wildlife. Finally Fabio Genovesi recalled one of the main messages of the project, that is to drive with caution for the protection of wild animals and the drivers themselves.
In this way, the LIFE SAFE-CROSSING project reached at least 1.3 million viewers considering the average of those who followed the 21 stages of the tour of Italy.
Fabio Genovesi's speech can be seen starting from minute 56 of the live broadcast of the Isernia-Blockaus stage, at the following link: https://www.raiplay.it/video/2022/05/Ciclismo-Giro-dItalia-2022
29. Egnatia Odos (EO SA) carries out interventions to improve the use of crossing structures
25/05/2022
The interventions carried out by the Greek Partner Egnatia Odos (EO SA) to improve the use of crossing structures by wildlife along the highway A29 in Greece are going on.
The main interventions already made are: fence improvements (on 11 structures), construction of escape ramps (on 8 structures), vegetation management (in 4 structures), planting (total number of plants ordered and construction of irrigation system completed in 9 structures), removal of debris (on 13 structures) and construction of dry ledges (1 structure).
The photos illustrate examples of the developed activities.
Once all the foreseen works will be concluded their effectiveness will be monitored through the installation of the prototype by the Greek partner COSMOTE, in order to compare the numbers of animal passages before and after the interventions.
This action is fundamental to improve the ecological connectivity and to reduce the risk of Animal-Vehicle Collisions.
28. Presentation of the actions of the Life-Safe Crossing project to the students of the University of Bristol
19/04/2022
The scientific coordinator of Callisto on Friday 15th and Saturday 16th April guided a group of undergraduate students from the University of Bristol (Conservation Biology and Environmental Sciences) in the project area and presented all relevant topics, methods and tools on bear habitat connectivity, road permeability, road mortality and all the actions implemented in the LIFE SAFE CROSSING project.
27. Romania: Another 2 km of virtual fencing have been installed
14/04/2022
Another 2 km of virtual fence have been installed in Romania, on National Road 1 (DN1), Persani area. The first 2 km from Timis area (Brasov county) have proven to be successful, consequently the action has been replicated in another project area as well. This was only possible due to the effective collaboration with the National Company for Road Infrastructure Administration (Regional Directorate of Roads and Bridges Brasov-DRDP Brasov). This action will mitigate the negative impact that roads have on wildlife.
26. La Junta de Andalucia (CAGPyDS) ha presentato il progetto LIFE SAFE-CROSSING al V Congresso della Strada Andalusa
13/04/2022
The Junta de Andalucia (CAGPyDS) presented the LIFE SAFE-CROSSING project at the Fifth Andalusian Road Congress, which was held in Ganada on April 6-8. This congress is one of the biggest ones in Spain involving road management authorithies.
The use of new technologies to prevent accidents and reinforce road safety raised a lot of interest among the people responsible for the administration in matters of planning and management of roads and road infrastructures, as well as road and asphalt road construction and maintenance companies.
Making roads safer, more sustainable and friendlier for everyone is among the main objectives of the LIFE SAFE-CROSSING Project. The participation in this congress was therefore an important step to try to replicate, in other regions of Spain, what is foreseen in the frame of the project.
25. The first device to prevent road accidents involving wildlife has been installed in the Province of Terni
01/04/2022
In February 2022, the Province of Terni started the installation of the first device to prevent animal-vehicle collisions (AVC PS). This device was installed on the road sp. 38 in the territory of the municipality of Amelia. The system is equipped with 2 thermal cameras that are used to detect animals approaching the road. The staff of the province, involved in the project, is monitoring the operation of the device which has already begun to transmit very interesting photos and videos.
In the next few days a second device will be installed on the road sp 205. In this way the province of Terni continues the work begun in 2012 in the frame of the LIFE STRADE project.
24. Workshop between administrations in Seville
START OF DEFRAGMENTATION WORK ON THE DEHESA DE ABAJO ROAD (SE-MA-01)
15/10/2021
At the end of 2019, a working group was set up to face the problem of the Iberian lynx road mortality in the Dehesa de Abajo asphalted road (SE-MA-01).
The organisations and institutions involved in this working group are the following: the Guadalquivir Hydrographic Confederation, the Town Council of La Puebla del Rio, the Andalusian Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, the Territorial Delegation of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries of Seville, WWF-Spain and the Environment and Water Agency. The first meeting occurred in February 2020, and the whole process ended on Thursday 23 September 2021.
The mitigation measures foreseen in the LIFE SAFE-CROSSING project, like the installation of AVC PS, virtual fence, and the road panels, developed through neuromarketing technique, have been considered an important tool to reduce the impact of vehicular traffic on the Iberian lynx conservation.
This workshop is part of action E7 of the LIFE SAFE CROSSING project.
For more details you can read the press release by clicking here.
23. In Romania: Tragic accident with a bear cub lured by food for stray dogs
20/09/2021
On the 19 of September a bear cub, whose sex could not be identified, of about 8 months old was hit by a car on the national road 1 (DN1) in Romania. As it can be seen in the pictures, the bear has been attracted by dog food left in the parking area. In this area we are implementing mitigation measures to avoid animal vehicle collisions but they are ineffective if animals come near the road to look for food.
Feeding dog and cat can be very dangerous for domestic and wild animals and it causes a lot of problems because it mantains the stray dog population. Stray dogs can be' dangerous for humans livestock and wildlife. The implemented actions of the LIFE SAFE-CROSSING project to mitigate animal-vehicle collisions are only efficient if people respect the recommendations and collaborate with us. An act intended to be good usually ends up with a tragedy. Therefore, PLEASE STOP FEEDING STRAY ANIMALS!
22. Informative panels have been installed in Romania
30/08/2021
8 informative panels have been installed in 4 different road segments near Brasov (Romania). These are important national roads, usually very crowded which pose a real danger in terms of collisions between animals and vehicles. We hope that the drivers will be more aware of this risk and they will respect the speed limits required by the authorities for the specific road conditions.
21. First virtual fence installed in the Abruzzo Lazio and Molise National Park
25/05/2021
A "virtual fence" has been installed on two road segments (SS 83 and SP 17) in Abruzzo Lazio Molise National Park in Italy.
The virtual fence is made of a series of electronic devices that are placed on poles on the roadsides. They are activated by the headlights of upcoming vehicles. When they are triggered, they emit flashing lights and sounds to prevent the animal’s road crossing.
The selection of the locations for the installation of the devices have been made after an accurate monitoring and analysis phase, and in a complementary manner with the other concrete interventions already implemented on the roads.
The devices have been installed with the cooperation of the Austrian company iPTE, which has developed them, and the installation has been accompanied also by the colleagues of the Majella National Park, which soon will install the same devices as well.
20. First interventions for the improvement of structures (passages) of the section “Siatista – Koromilia” of the Egnatia Motorway, Greece
07/04/2021
EGNATIA ODOS S.A. has started implementing the interventions on the motorway section “Siatista – Koromilia”, after the completion of evaluation of the structures, as for their use by wild fauna for crossing the motorway.
The interventions are mainly:
- Planting around the entrances of structures, to create an attractive environment for animals
- Pruning and debris removal, to facilitate animal crossings
- Construction of “dry corridors” or ramps inside the structures
- Light-screens for light protection of structure entrances
- Existing fencing corrections, to prevent animals from entering the motorway, or facilitate their escape from it
The first interventions concern existing fencing corrections.
19. First Animal Vehicle Collision Prevention Systems installed in Italy
17/02/2021
The first 3 Animal Vehicle Collision Prevention Systems (AVC PS) have been installed in the frame of the LIFE SAFE-CROSSING Project in the Majella National Park in Italy. These are the first three of the 27 devices that are foreseen to be installed during the project in the coming months, in all four project countries (Italy, Romania, Greece, Spain).
The installation is the result of an intense preliminary study phase and has been possible also due to the close collaboration with the road authority ANAS, which has provided the permits to install the devices and has supported the two involved National Parks (Majella National Park and Abruzzo Lazio e Molise National Parks) during the development of the action.
Presently the AVC PS are in test phase, but they will be fully operational soon.
In the meantime we invite you to DRIVE CAREFULLY EVERYWHERE!
18. Video game “Avoid it!!” ready for download on App stores!
19/01/2021
We have published the video game “Avoid it!!” on the App stores (for Android and iOS). It has been produced in order to reach young people, the future drivers. We want to draw their attention onto the problem of the impact of roads on wildlife, and how important it is to drive carefully. In the game it is foreseen to avoid the animals crossing the roads of the 4 countries of the project.
Enjoy!
17. Watch videos of bears using underpasses under Egnatia Highway in Greece
01/01/2021
Watch these two interesting videos registered in the frame of the monitoring program regarding the use of the crossing structures ongoing in Greece. These videos filmed in the same crossing structure along the Egnatia Highway showed the different behaviours of the bears under different visibility conditions.
Video 1: you can see a bear hesitating and not using the underpass probably because it does not see any light at its end.
Video 2: you can see a bear mother encouraging its cubs to use the underpass, most likely because it can see the light at its end. This is surely a behaviour to be encouraged.
All the results already obtained will be present in the LIFE SAFE-CROSSING workshop that will be held on 12 January in the frame of the IENE2020 conference! https://www.iene2020.info/se.html.
16. Majella National Park and the National Road Agency join forces to raise awareness on the importance of driving carefully!
27/11/2020
The LIFE SAFE-CROSSING project is entering its core phase in Majella National Park! After an initial study phase the park together with the Road Management Agency ANAS have started the installation of information panels to raise the awareness of drivers on the importance to decrease speed and drive carefully. The panels which have been developed by a team of experts of the project and with the neuromarketing technique, will be installed in the Provinces of L’Aquila, Chieti and Pescara on the National Roads SS5, SS17, SS84 and SS487. Totally 42 panels will be installed on the roads, as a result of the close collaboration of PNM with ANAS, which has formally supported the LIFE SAFE-CROSSING project and has authorized the installation of the devices on the roads under its authority.
15. The LIFE SAFE-CROSSING workshop during the IENE 2020 conference postponed to 12 January 2021 and will be held online!
15/10/2020
The IENE 2020 International Conference “LIFE LINES - Linear Infrastructure Networks with Ecological Solutions” will be held fully online. The Conference will take place between 12 and 14 January 2021.
You can now register here.
You will find more information here https://www.iene2020.info/se.html.
14. First 2 km of virtual fence installed in Romania!
22/07/2020
On 20 July the first 2 km of virtual fence were installed in the Romanian project area, on the national Road DN1, between Brașov and Timișul de Sus. Representatives of the company that developed the virtual fence devices, iPTE, have travelled to Romania to assist the local team with the installation and putting in function of the devices. This is a first experimental installation on a sample track of 2 km, after which the functioning of the devices will be monitored and, in case of need, technical adaptations of the functioning of the virtual fence will be made.
13. The field activities of the LIFE SAFE-CROSSING project started again after the lock-down!!
08/06/2020
In Italy (Abruzzo Lazio e Molise National Park and Majella National Park) field surveys were made in order to define the locations for the installation of the Animal-Vehicle Collision Prevention Systems, in order to require the final permits and to decide on the components to be purchased.
During the survey in Abruzzo National Park we were rewarded with the spotting of a bear cub right in one of the site where the concrete conservation actions will take place.
In Italy these surveys were also dedicated to the planning of the interventions foreseen in action C2 (readaptation of underpasses) and C3 (installation of specific road information panels).
In Romania the cleaning of underpasses has started, the interventions have taken place on 10 sites.
Enjoy the pictures of the field activities after the lockdown period!!!!!
12. Italy: Majella National Park and ANAS together to reduce animal-vehicle collision risks
25/01/2020
On January 22 2020, the staff of the Majella National Park (PNM) and the National Body for the Management of the Roads (ANAS) organized a joined field-survey on the National Road n. 5 to evaluate the possibility to review the ongoing project of road modification, implementing additional measures to reduce animal-vehicle collision (AVC) risks.
Reducing AVC risks is not easy and it can be particularly difficult when mitigation measures have to be implemented on existing roads. The collaboration between the PNM staff involved in the Life Safe-Crossing and ANAS in this phase when the work for the modification of National Road n. 5 is getting started, witnesses the actual willingness to deal with the AVC problem and to do the best possible to improve drivers safety and animals survival.
Road mortality is actually one of the most relevant threats to the survival of some animals that, crossing roads just to meet the basic requirement of freely moving in their territory, are often hit to death by vehicles. This threat is even more serious for the species at high risk of extinction like the Apennine brown bear, one of the target species of the Life Safe-Crossing. “The 2019” states the President of the PNM Lucio Zazzara “has been a black year for the Apennine brown bear as two reproductive females, one being a female with a cub, died hit by vehicles. This is a huge loss for this threatened population whose future mostly rely on reproductive females survival”.
11. Technical workshop of LIFE SAFE-CROSSING during IENE 2020 conference. SIGN UP!
30/11/2019
The LIFE SAFE-CROSSING technical workshop 'Innovative techniques to mitigate transportation infrastructure impact on large carnivores' will be held at the University of Évora, Portugal, on April 7th 2020, in the framework of the IENE 2020 International Conference.
Registration for the technical workshop is free!!
Early Bird registration to the IENE2020 conference is until 15 January 2020: https://www.iene2020.info/index.html.
10. 11-12 November: Field visit to the Spanish project site in Andalucia
15/11/2019
On 11-12 November 2019 a delegation of the project team visited the project sites in Aldalusia, Spain. The road segments selected for intervention are in the areas of Donana and Sierra Morena. The project sites were visited in order to discuss with the local team the details of the interventions to be carried out: installation of the AVC prevention systems and of the virtual fence.
The visit was followed by a plenary staff meeting, on the 13-14 November, in the headquarters of the Junta de Andalucia. The meeting allowed to assess the progress of the project until now and to discuss future activities.
9. 24 September 2019 - Presentation of the LIFE SAFE-CROSSING project at a specific symposium at the ICOET international conference in California, USA
25/09/2019
The LIFE SAFE-CROSSING Project will be presented on 24 September 2019 during a specific session “The Road to Wildlife-Vehicle Conflict Mitigation is Paved with Good Data, Part 1” that will be held I the frame of the ICOET international conference, which will take place in California, USA, on 22-26 September. This will be an excellent opportunity to make the project known at a very wide scale beyond Europe.
8. Presentation of the LIFE SAFE-CROSSING project at the Romanian Palace of Parliament
10/06/2019
The LIFE SAFE-CROSSING Project has been presented at the Ministerial Environmental Conference "Large Carnivore Management - Challenges and Solutions", which has taken place at the Romanian Palace of Parliament on 06-07 June 2019 and at which over 50 representatives of the EU member states of the European Commission have participated. The event's main objective was to bring together different stakeholders involved in large carnivore management to identify ways to improve coexistence of the local communities with these species and the project has gained great attention.
7. Networking visit between LIFE AmyBear and LIFE SAFE-CROSSING in Italy
20/04/2019
Five members of the LIFE AmyBear Project Team, visited the National Parks of Majella and of Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise between 15 and 18 April 2019, for exchanging information and experience. Mr. Spyros PSAROUDAS (CALLISTO), Mr. Nikos PAPAEFTHYMIOU, Ms. Sofia GLOUFTSI and Mr. Kostas Papageorgiou (Forestry Service) and Ms. Marina PROIKAKI (LEVER SA) participated in the Greek delegation. LEVER SA is the Coordinating Beneficiary, and Forestry Service (Region of Epirus and Western Macedonia, Greece) is one of the Associated Beneficiaries of the LIFE AmyBear project, while CALLISTO NGO is Associated Beneficiary in both projects: LIFE AmyBear and LIFE SafeCrossing.
6. Presentation of the LIFE SAFE-CROSSING project at the LIFE Info day in Warsaw
19/04/2019
On 17th April 2019 the LIFE SAFE-CROSSING project was presented at the Polish national LIFE info day in Warsaw. The event was attended by around 350 people and at least 300 joined the conference on-line. There has been the presence of the polish Ministry of the Environment, the polish Board of the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management and representatives of the European Commission, DG Environment. The LIFE SAFE-CROSSING project has been selected as an example of a transnational LIFE project, and also because the topic of wildlife-vehicle collisions is extremely important in Poland. There has been a great interest toward the project, and we set the basis for future collaborations.
5. First monitoring equipment installed at one of the Egnatia Highway underpasses in Greece
28/03/2019
The first monitoring equipment was installed at one of the 45 underpasses to be monitored along highway A29 (Egnatia Highway) in Greece. This is part of an innovative end-to-end solution/prototype, developed by the Greek partner COSMOTE, that allows the automated capturing of the movements of wildlife that uses the underpasses to cross the bear-proof fenced highway and the depiction in a graphical environment for further analysis. The information will be used to identify the crossing structures to be re-adapted in order to render it more attractive to bears.
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4. 13 March, presentation of LIFE SAFE-CROSSING on the 3rd Italian national TV
14/03/2019
Yesterday (13.03) the LIFE SAFE-CROSSING project was presented during the nature dissemination programme GEO on the third Italian national TV Rai 3.
Watch from minute 1.11.00 at the following link: https://www.raiplay.it/video/2019/03/Geo-8de08bef-77c5-4ead-95a5-389d2ae9a1fe.html
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3. First opening event of the LIFE SAFE-CROSSING Project
27/01/2019
The first national opening event has taken place in the Abruzzo Lazio e Molise National Park in Italy. A general presentation of the project has been made, followed by a detailed description of the Animal-Vehicle Collision Prevention System, which will be installed in the project sites, and of the actions planned in the Italian project areas. Over sixty persons have participated and the talks have been followed by a very active discussion round.
2. First visit on the Geek project area
10/12/2018
The first field visit has been made to the Greek project area. The most critical sites on the national roads and the Egnatia Highway have been visited where the project actions will take place. It has been a good opportunity to share ideas among experts about the details of the interventions.
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1. Kick-off meeting of the LIFE SAFE-CROSSING Project
22/11/2018
The LIFE SAFE-CROSSING project has started on 1 September 2018, and on 19-20 November the staff of the project has met for the kick-off meeting in Orvieto, Italy. Twenty-seven representatives of the project partners have been present. It has been the first opportunity the staff members to get to know each other and to plan the first activities of the project.
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The project is partially co-funded
