The village of Arbaz is home to a new biodiversity area to promote the living space of insects and amphibians.
Arbaz is taking care of its biodiversity by revitalising the Peatland pond through the Pusch "Oasis of Nature" project.
Advised and supervised by ProNatura Valais and the association Le Rougegorge, the project supports the desire to preserve and revitalise the ecological wealth of our territory. "It will have taken three years to redevelop the living space for amphibians and insects, while preserving a family-friendly place," stresses Alain Torrent, Arbaz town councillor in charge of public works.
Located at an altitude of 1315 m and covering an area of approximately 13,000 m2, the peat bog pond is very popular with the inhabitants in the summer months. The diversity of the environments found there and their ecological potential make this area an ideal place to create a high-quality biodiversity oasis accessible to the population.
A differentiated mowing plan taking into account the situation in relation to the water body and the existing vegetation was implemented, and a wetland was created by obstructing the stream bed. The movement of amphibians was also facilitated by the construction of a logging road on the Finnish track to the south and east of the pond.
The municipality has also installed nesting boxes supplied by the association Le Rougegorge. Educational panels and a Finnish trail have also been placed around the pond, "a godsend" for Stéphanie Dijkman, director of Anzère Tourism, who is delighted to be able to welcome families, walkers, sportsmen and women to the edge of the pond in a welcoming setting while protecting our ecosystem, which is sometimes hostile to tourism.
These initiatives allow us to dream and above all to make sustainable tourism a reality, which does not harm our precious environment. In this context it is important to recall the initiatives that join and complete these projects of preservation and revitalization of our territories, like the prevention around waste initiated by the Canton of Valais.
We hope as Marjorie Bonvin, biologist and member of the committee of the association "Le Rougegorge" "that this project will be taken as an example for other communes of the canton" (intervention on RhôneFM of 21.20.22).
