NEW plans to ‘urbanise’ a picturesque river on the Costa del Sol have been slammed by ecologist teams as a ‘potential environmental crime.’
Marbella city corridor is planning to take a position greater than €2.5 million from the EU’s Subsequent Technology fund to ‘re-naturalise’ the Guadaiza river between San Pedro and Benahavis.
Beginning in January, the works will see the development of trails, relaxation zones and even sports activities tools which might be designed to ‘encourage leisure use’ of a pure space simply subsequent door to a few of Marbella’s most unique neighbourhoods.
Native authorities have boasted that the plan will ‘contribute to the creation of a more healthy and extra engaging house for each residents and guests.’
Image: Ecologistas Sierra Bermeja
But regardless of being carried out in collaboration with the Setting Ministry’s Biodiversity Basis and being hailed as an ‘instance of sustainability’, the plan has met with robust resistance from environmental teams.
The group Ecologistas Sierra Bermeja claimed that the undertaking would successfully urbanise the character reserve and threaten a lot of protected species.
Amongst these are the Eurasian otter, the Mediterranean chameleon and the horseshoe whip snake.
In addition they identified that the realm is the pure habitat of protected birds such because the kingfisher, the squacco heron and the purple heron.
“The alleged ‘renaturalisation’ of the Guadaiza river threatens to turn into a scandal that would taint the Biodiversity Basis and compromise the credibility of Subsequent Technology EU funds in Spain,” the group stated in a press release.
It added that many elements of the Marbella city corridor’s ‘false’ restoration undertaking have been ‘incompatible with conservation’, such because the 469 metres of synthetic footpaths that might be constructed.
Image: Ecologistas Sierra Bermeja
“The one legitimate renaturalisation measures are the demolition of the diversion dam, the demarcation of the general public river and the removing of unique vegetation, the strict prosecution of waste dumping and the removing of river mouth channelisation,” the assertion continued.
As a substitute, the group has referred to as for the fast suspension of the plan and an investigation into the usage of European funds.
The complaints are available in stark distinction to the Marbella city corridor’s preliminary publicity across the undertaking, which is a part of the area’s Restoration, Transformation, and Resilience Plan (PRTR).
It has claimed that it’s going to ‘bolster biodiversity conservation and advance sustainability efforts in San Pedro Alcántara by enhancing the river’s connectivity, enabling species motion and habitat restoration.’
It would additionally enhance flood defences within the area within the wake of this autumn’s lethal DANA storms.
