The secretary of the Canarian Coalition Organization in Tenerife, Rosa Dávila, has demanded this Wednesday the “immediate” withdrawal of the project from the Master Plan for Use and Management (PRUG) of the Teide National Parkand has indicated that this demand will be raised in the regional Parliament and in the Cabildo de Tenerife.
The PP considers that the Teide Master Plan is “outrageous” and advocates “regulating” and not “prohibiting” its access
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The draft has been written, says the party, “with its back” to the citizens and the affected groups, and in it free access is limited while access to Teide is prohibited, the also regional deputy said at a press conference , in which she has been accompanied by the spokesman for the Nationalist group and former president of the Tenerife Cabildo, Carlos Alonso.
Dávila recalled that the Teide National Park has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2007 and so is “all citizens'”, and has underlined that it is a feeling “that no one can take away from us”.
He has denounced that in the project of the plan it is proposed to build three “megacenters”, as bus interchanges, to not allow the access of private vehicles. These infrastructures, in Dávila’s opinion, are “an ecological and landscape attack.” In addition, he has emphasized that the draft has been prepared in the Government offices without having mountaineers, climbers, hikers and ecotourism companies, groups that, Dávila has stressed, do not destroy the National Park but have contributed to its protection.
On the other hand, he has criticized the closure of access to the audiovisual sector, “which hardly has any impact”. He has also referred to the fact that beekeeping is limited, since it is proposed to eliminate 60% of the installed hives, since it is even prohibited to take photographs in some points.
Regarding the announcement by counselor José Antonio Valbuena that the deadline for presenting allegations will be extended, the CC leader has responded that the party does not trust the regional government and believes that it is an attempt to “kick” forward so that the plan reaches August and an “information blackout” occurs.
Three “megaconstructions”
The spokesman for the Nationalist group and former president of the Cabildo de Tenerife, Carlos Alonso, has pointed out that the regional government and the insular corporation have done “things wrong”, and as an example has put that in the street the citizens say that “they are being wants to remove Teide”.
Carlos Alonso has insisted that they have made a “serious” mistake and has asserted that in the many meetings in which he has participated with affected groups, none is in favor of the proposal for the Plan for the Use and Management of the Teide National Park.
The solution is not to extend the period of public exposure, he says, but to go back to the starting point and dialogue so that there is consensus. Alonso has been in favor of regulating the access of private vehicles, but not building three “mega-constructions” or prohibiting entry.
Carlos Alonso has pointed out that, according to scientists, the main risk of the Teide National Park is not the human footprint but the increase in temperature caused by climate change, and has called for better environmental regulation that serves to protect, but without prohibiting.
The former president of the Cabildo de Tenerife has also drawn attention to the fact that the Bluetrail mountain race is prohibited in the regional government’s proposal, as well as the use of bicycles in unpaved spaces.
Carlos Alonso has indicated that in the next plenary session of the Cabildo de Tenerife his formation will defend a motion in which the withdrawal of the plan is requested.
Criticism and doubts
In addition to CC, the Popular Party also requested this Tuesday that the plan be withdrawn, which it called “barbarity”, and that a broader consensus be reached, especially with the affected sectors. For its part, Sí Podemos Canarias called for citizen participation in the draft, for allegations and proposals to be made within the deadline.
The Canarian Audiovisual Cluster, which brings together more than 60 companies in the sector, and the Tenerife Film Commission, a company dependent on the Cabildo de Tenerife, has also positioned itself against the draft, since it “practically prohibits” filming inside the Park.
Also the president of the Cabildo, Pedro Martín (PSOE), indicated that it was necessary to review the Plan and “give him a little head”.
Finally, the mayor of La Orotava, from CC, also asked this Tuesday that the plan be withdrawn. Francisco Linares was very concerned about the possible construction of one of the car park infrastructures within the municipality: “I will actively oppose it as mayor because it is simply inadmissible.”
In addition to this point, Linares also highlighted security as a concern, since, he explained, 24 hours a day no less than twelve are unattended. In this sense, he also demanded that a space for the Civil Guard be reinstalled in the park, as it was until about twelve years ago. He explained that the agents of the meritorious and the Local Police of La Orotava are the ones who have to go in case of any incident, being an hour away.
