Riberas Oeste Ecological Park
Marcela Roig talks to us about the Parque Ecológico Riberas Oeste, a project that aims to restore, reforest, and preserve the riverbank landscapes of the Guanusacate River in Argentina, while raising awareness about living in a natural reserve.
Between 2013 and 2015, the residents of the Municipality of Jesús María in the Province of Córdoba, Argentina, experienced flood risks that led to significant material losses, including human lives. In response, they proposed a plan to restore the native riparian forests that were lost during those flood events.
In 2022, Jesús María City Council launched the “Participatory Budget” and invited the community to plan projects. The western sector of the city proposes interventions along the edges of the Guanusacate River.
Subsequently, the people of the municipality learned about an academic work conducted by landscape architect Marcela Roig on the river and invited her to develop the project. This resulted in the creation of the winning proposal, named Parque Ecológico Riberas Oeste.

Foto grupal inauguración actores / Group photo of the inauguration of actors
Fotografía / Photography: Lorena Saldivar Fotógrafa
The project focuses on identifying and evaluating the identity of each neighborhood in the area, with the goal of enhancing Los Nogales, Barrancas, and Alto Los Molinos. These neighborhoods, which are part of the Reserva Parque del Oeste established in 2020, must take on an active role as guardians of this natural space.
With this approach, the aim is to contribute both to the environment and to the community of the region, promoting awareness of the importance of living in a natural reserve.
The project focuses on improving the natural environment around the river, as well as contributing to the community by promoting awareness of the importance of living in a natural reserve.

Plantación de nativas en inauguración / Planting native plants at inauguration
Fotografía / Photography: Lorena Saldivar Fotógrafa
The design work is based on and is one of the operational projects of the postgraduate thesis “Heritage Recovery of the Guanusacate River Banks. Western Periurban Section of Jesús María” from the National University of Córdoba (UNC), utilizing current data from the National Water Institute, which projects the river’s behavior over the next 50 years.

Senderos / Trails
Fotografía / Photography: Lorena Saldivar Fotógrafa
This thesis addresses the watershed of the river, encompassing two approaches: one at a macro scale and another at a micro scale. The municipalities of Jesús María, Sinsacate, and Colonia Caroya, which are in urban conurbation, rely on the same natural resources, influenced by a mix of socio-cultural variables. The rapid urban growth in Jesús María leads to ecological disarticulation, considering the emerging landscape in relation to “culture and nature.”
This project, through territorial planning at a macro scale, aims to coordinate land uses in microbasin areas based on concepts of natural heritage, landscape ecology, and to classify degraded or at-risk riverbank landscapes. The actions to be taken within the programs of the general strategy include: recovering, restoring, and preserving riverbank landscapes.

Río Guanusacate o aguas muertas / Guanusacate River or dead waters
Fotografía / Photography: Lorena Saldivar Fotógrafa
At the micro scale, this operational project is located at a selected site, which, due to its significance, is considered a natural and cultural heritage of the region.
Upon evaluating the situation, we are alerted by the growing real estate speculation, the careless use of the land, and its status as the western periurban edge of Jesús María. Therefore, the proposal is to consolidate the river as a natural axis that connects different sectors related to it, address the quality of the interaction between degraded riverbank landscapes and those at risk of degradation, and integrate these areas into the city’s public open space system, considering that this park is being planned within the Reserva Parque del Oeste of Jesús María.
In general, it was important to affirm the vocation of the area as a major environmental education venue, through a thoughtful yet simple intervention that adheres to a specific budget and follows eco-territorial and sustainability design principles, aimed at preserving the local heritage.

Zona de educación. Aula abierta / Education zone. Open classroom
Fotografía / Photography: Lorena Saldivar Fotógrafa
Three interventions are proposed:
- Recover La Toma Beach.
- Reforestation of riverside forests in the Barrancas neighborhood.
- Viewpoint device in the upper neighborhood, Los Molinos and reforestation of the riverbank.
Project objectives
- Recover riverbanks – native forests in gallery on river banks – ecological links.
- Integrate the project and enhance the “nature reserve”. Ecological node.
- Revalue La Toma beach – beach cleaning, equipment, defenses according to the edges. Generate ecological links.
- Choose native species from those that already exist in the reserve – response to drought or flooding.
- Preserve wetlands. reforest after floods. Ecological node.
- Propose areas of constant education – Mirador Alto los Molinos – union with the project of volunteers of the Parque del Oeste reserve.
- In the future – complete gabion walls – construction in stages – complete equipment – complete reforestation of native riverside forest.

Senderos / Trails
Fotografía / Photography: Lorena Saldivar Fotógrafa