Friday, April 27, 2012
The area boasts a highly-developed forest industry, products such as the famed Grevena mushrooms, organic farming and animal breeding, as well as numerous tourist resorts. The Valia Calda National Park, also known as the Pindos National Park, constitutes a major area of forest wealth for Greece, and its inclusion in the IMFN initiative will be a boost to its sustainable management. 
'Model Forests' are based on an approach that combines the social, cultural and economic needs of local communities with the long-term sustainability of large landscapes in which forests are an important feature.
By design these are voluntary, broad-based initiatives linking forestry, research, agriculture, mining, recreation, and other values and interests within a given landscape.
With an elevation ranging from 1,076 to 2,177 meters, the National Park is made up of dense forests of European black pine (pinus nigra) and common beech (fagus sylvatica) trees -some of which are more than 700 years old- rocky ridges, several peaks over 2,000m altitude, rapid streams and mountain lakes.
A total of 415 plant types and mushroom species are recorded in the area which is also considered a "bear park," as it hosts a population of Eurasian brown bears (Ursus arctos arctos).
Other mammals that live in the park are lynx, deer and wild cats.
Wolves, beech martens, wild boars and red squirrels are also found in the area all year round.
Additionally, the Balkan chamois, an endemic species, is found on the steep and rocky parts of the park and in the beech forests.
The forest further provides shelter for more than 80 species of birds, including 10 types of rare bird species (the Eastern imperial eagle, the Golden eagle, the Levant sparrowhawk and the Lanner falcon). For woodpecker-lovers, the dense and mature forests host eight types, including the White-backed Woodpecker, the Middle Spotted Woodpecker, the Lesser-spotted Woodpecker and the Black Woodpecker.
Greek News Agenda: Ecumenical Patriarch in the Service of Environment
