The Plenary Hall of the City Council of Castillejar, a municipality in the region of Huéscar, hosted yesterday afternoon the presentation of the LIFE Wood for the Future project as a tool to revitalize the poplar groves in the province of Granada, thus generating wealth, green jobs and environmental and landscape benefits. Before numerous attendees from the region, mostly owners of poplar trees or land suitable for planting, the professor of the University of Granada, Antolino Gallego, presented the scientific basis of the new poplar structural products that the project will leave close to the market, with the aim of installing an industrial ecosystem in the province for its development and marketing. Professor Gallego explained the main lines of action for the development of new poplar plantations that generate quality wood for this industry, with large diameters and free of knots, with proper management of pruning, grading and use of certified plants, as well as the objectives of the Marjal de Productores de Chopo de Granada group recently with this project, the sale of carbon credits and the strategy to obtain CAP aid for this crop. The Mayor of Castillejar, Mr. Emilio Sánchez, highlighted the enormous role of poplar groves in the region as riparian forests essential to maintain the impressive landscape value of the area, as green lungs among the arid lands that surround them. This landscape of contrasts is the differential value of this region, which must be maintained, for its roots in the feelings of its inhabitants and as an engine to generate tourism and outdoor activities. To this end, the Consistory is even committed to creating banks of abandoned or semi-abandoned land for new poplar plantations, following the silvicultural model proposed by the LIFE Wood for the Future project, for young farmers and entrepreneurs. Emilio Sánchez also highlighted the need for this poplar economy in the region, as well as a local associated industry, as key tools to combat rural depopulation and decentralization in the province. A paradigmatic example in the area is the company Tubocás S.L., which manufactures pellets from forest biomass, providing jobs for many people in the region.