Pulse

24 August 2026

Good morning. Today's Pulse begins with a map being redrawn and ends with a forestry team leader who found his way back through the trees.

The big picture

Portugal shrinks renewable energy 'Green Map' from 7% to 4%

The government has cut nearly in half the share of national territory earmarked for fast-tracked wind and solar projects, from 7% to about 4%, EMER president Manuel Nina told Expresso. Municipalities will only need to designate 1% of new land as acceleration zones (ZAER), with flexibility to swap sites and two years to update local master plans. The reduction follows a public consultation in which 94% of nearly 8,500 submissions opposed the plan, and reflects exclusion of protected areas identified with the ICNF and APA. The number of designated locations fell from over 1,300 to about 800.

Energy, Water & Mobility Read more at Portugal Resident ↗

Close to home

Valorlis rolls out glass recycling scheme for restaurants in Leiria region

Waste management company Valorlis has launched a project called Vidro a Vidro Fazemos o Impossível, aimed at hotels, restaurants and cafés in six municipalities: Batalha, Leiria, Marinha Grande, Ourém, Pombal and Porto de Mós. It is installing 100 glass banks fitted with an assisted-tipping system, and giving participating businesses free 120 or 360-litre containers to separate glass packaging on site before emptying it directly into the banks. The scheme also has a social dimension, with contributions going to the Liga Portuguesa Contra o Cancro's Centro branch.

Centro Products, Consumption & Circular Read more at Jornal de Leiria ↗

Environmental campaign returns to Agroal river beach today

Tejo Ambiente, the intermunicipal environmental company for the Médio Tejo, holds a second stop of its awareness campaign on 21 August at Agroal river beach in Ourém, where the initiative began on 24 July. The campaign tours river beaches in the six municipalities served by the company, promoting waste reduction, correct rubbish disposal, water and nature preservation, and protection of the sanitation network. It will next move to Ferreira do Zêzere on 27 August, visiting Lago Azul and Bairrada/Bairradinha beaches. Tejo Ambiente, formed in 2019 and operating since January 2020, is owned by six municipalities and handles water, sanitation and waste services, though in Ourém only sanitation and waste.

Centro Ecosystems & Biodiversity Read more at Jornal de Leiria ↗

Mealhada council demands ERSUC fix waste collection failures

The Mealhada town council has formally demanded that waste management company ERSUC immediately restore normal selective waste collection, citing weeks of worsening service. Overflowing recycling bins, especially for glass, have led to rubbish piling up outside containers, and the council says it has had to intervene with its own resources to clear the mess. It has also reported the issue to regulator ERSAR, noting other municipalities in the Coimbra metropolitan region face the same problem and have jointly demanded urgent corrective measures from ERSUC.

Centro Products, Consumption & Circular Read more at Diário de Aveiro ↗

Support and funding

Algarve offers €1 million for energy efficiency projects

The Algarve Regional Coordination and Development Commission (CCDR) is keeping open a call for applications worth one million euros under the Algarve2030 Regional Programme, aimed at improving energy efficiency in social facilities. Eligible bodies include charities (IPSS) and public or equivalent entities. Funding can cover energy audits, certification, thermal insulation, solar panels, efficient windows and doors, ventilation and lighting systems, and bioclimatic architecture, provided these measures form part of a wider project focused mainly on energy efficiency. Applications close at 6pm on 30 September.

Algarve Energy, Water & Mobility Read more at Jornal do Algarve ↗

Portugal readies new €20m aid for fertiliser costs

Portugal's Agriculture Minister, José Manuel Fernandes, announced a new €20 million support package for farmers to offset rising fertiliser costs, unveiled at the Agrival fair in Penafiel. It follows a similar €20 million scheme granted earlier, which the minister had admitted in June might prove insufficient. Payments will be processed through the Pedido Único, using an algorithm based on farm area and animal numbers to speed up and largely automate disbursement. The government is also preparing to raise farm income support by around €160 million, subject to ongoing negotiations with the European Commission.

Food & Agriculture Read more at Voz do Campo ↗

Needs attention

Madeira animal sanctuary forced to leave its property

The Madeira Sanctuary, an association that shelters rescued animals, has announced it is in its final days on the property it currently occupies. In a social media post, its founder said the organisation lacks the conditions to continue and is being forced to essentially give up the cause, despite people who had offered help. She described feeling let down after promises of support turned out to be false, and appealed for collaboration to keep the animals together. No details were given about where the sheltered animals will go next.

Madeira Community & Social Innovation Read more at JM Madeira ↗

From the land and the table

Study links daily avocado intake to less abdominal fat

A 2021 study published in the Journal of Nutrition followed 105 overweight or obese adults over 12 weeks, comparing a group that ate avocado daily with a control group. Those eating avocado showed a significant reduction in visceral fat, the abdominal fat linked to metabolic risk. Nutritionists attribute the effect to avocado's monounsaturated fats, fibre and antioxidants, which help lower LDL cholesterol, raise HDL, prolong satiety and stabilise blood glucose. Avocado is widely grown in the Algarve, where demand for it has been rising, and the article also notes simple ways to add it to meals, such as guacamole or smoothies.

Algarve Food & Agriculture Read more at Postal ↗

Small wonders

Ex-prisoner becomes forestry team leader in Sintra mountains

António Santos, a former prisoner now 61, leads a forestry team at Parques de Sintra-Monte da Lua, which manages 1,000 hectares in the Sintra mountains. He learned chainsaw and brushcutter skills while serving a sentence under an open regime, through prison-work agreements between the company and Portugal's prison reinsertion service. Five ex-prisoners currently work there in forestry and gardening, three as team leaders, under the latest protocol signed in February allowing five open-regime prisoners to work in forest maintenance. The company's chairman says the scheme combines social reinsertion with the need for labour to manage the estate.

Lisbon Ecosystems & Biodiversity Read more at Agroportal ↗

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