Mountain shelter to be converted into research center

On April 17, the signing ceremony for the contract for the “Intervention in the Mountain Shelter” took place at the end of the morning at the Serra da Boa Viagem Mountain Shelter, with the participation of MARE researcher João Neto. 

The aim will be to house the Research Center for Climate Change, Sea Currents and Sand Movements, for which the municipality has already hired two researchers, working in conjunction with MARE (MAREFOZ-UC). Until the building is ready, they will be based at the University of Coimbra Campus in Figueira da Foz. The work was awarded to the company Nobresteel Lda, for three hundred and forty-four thousand, three hundred and forty-four euros and twenty cents (344,344.20), plus VAT, and should be completed by the end of 2024.

MARE (MAREFOZ - UC), in the spirit of cooperation that it has maintained with the Municipality over the last 8 years, is available to collaborate in framing and organizing the work of these researchers, at an early stage.

Thanks to its scientific knowledge and experience of the area, MAREFOZ could be an essential driving force behind the initial dynamics of the new research center, which is the initiative and responsibility of the City Council, helping it to identify the main lines of research needed in the region.

 
As part of the University of Coimbra's objectives for the region, as shown by the recent installation of its campus in Figueira da Foz, the MAREFOZ Laboratory is committed to continuing to be an essential “key to Figueira's future”.
This new center reflects the commitment that the municipality wants to put into understanding the territory and formulating solutions to the serious problems that plague the coastline of the central region of the country. The direct threat of climate change, such as severe erosion or flooding, must be mitigated and, if possible, adapted to, in order to minimize the impact on the territory. 

Given the analytical capacity installed at MAREFOZ, or available through active partnerships, it is hoped that this laboratory can continue to provide important specialized services, transmit its results to society and apply its research to the region's aquatic environment, in the interests of the Municipality and the University of Coimbra itself. The scientific skills of its human resources, complemented by the partnerships it maintains with foreign and national institutions, will be extremely important for the conclusion of new collaborations and for the international projection of Figueira da Foz, the University of Coimbra and MARE.