Porto City Hall raises botany awareness by protecting two more trees

Upon proposal of Porto City Hall and with the support of the U. Porto, two trees – a copper beech and a Camphor tree – that stand at the Faculty of Architecture of the University of Porto (FBAUP) site, are now tree species considered to be of public interest by the Institute for the Conservation of Nature and Forests (ICNF).

The classification refers to a centennial tree, the Fagus sylvatica, located in the Gardens of the Casa Cor-de-Rosa, next to the Pavilion Carlos Ramos and it features as a rare tree due to its dimension and also its structure, which is very close to the native tree.

The second tree is the Cinnamomum camphora, located next to the Via Panorâmica “Edgar Cardoso”, and considered by the Municipality of Porto as “a rare specimen of this tree in the city”. This tree stands out for its individual display and form.

The classification of the trees took into account the landscaping value and the historic dimension of the trees in the framework of the city’s past, as well as their national significance; in fact, the trees are testimony to the economic expansion that drew many foreign families to Porto, where they built houses with green enveloping spaces, where the botanical garden mind stands out.

The order by the ICNF, published on 14th October by the Official Gazette, describes that the trees are a “vestige of that golden period”.

The ICNF classifies “of public interest” trees that stand out by their size, structure, lay-out, texture and form, age and rarity. This grants the trees the same protection the built patrimony, which means that the enveloping area within 20 metres of the tree base is also protected; any intervention within that area needs previous approval by the ICNF. Similarly, any interventions that can harm the classified trees are forbidden.