SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, 1 Apr. (EUROPE PRESS) –
The Ministry of Ecological Transition, Fight against Climate Change and Territorial Planning of the Government of the Canary Islands will finance with 700,000 euros the project for the Environmental Recovery of the San Roque hillside, in the Tenerife municipality of San Cristóbal de La Laguna. This is an initiative entrusted to the public company GESPLAN, which will plant around 800 specimens of laurisilva in a space where there are currently specimens of rabo de gato, prickly pear and eucalyptus.
As explained by the councilor responsible for the area, José Antonio Valbuena, the purpose of this project is to achieve an original thermophilous laurel forest with specimens of heather and fayas in a place where there are now no native flora. “In this way, we promote the fight against invasive species, one of the main threats to our native flora, and we contribute to the generation of new green spaces that contribute to improving the natural heritage of the area,” he added.
For his part, the mayor of San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Luis Yeray Gutiérrez, values ”this action by the Government of the Canary Islands, which is in line with our commitment to the recovery of natural spaces and environmental care, and which will also contribute to the beautification from one of the main entrances to the historic center of the city”.
The hillside of San Roque is located at the entrance to La Laguna through the access to the area of the Plaza de El Adelantado, between the Vía de Ronda and the plaza and church of San Roque. Since it is a sloping area, the project will be divided into three work areas.
The first zone, between the Plaza de San Roque and the access track, has 5,400 square meters and 408 meters of perimeters. In it, the existing prickly pear trees will be removed and exotic trees will be felled, the remains of which will be used to make fajinadas. After these cleaning tasks, 220 trees and shrubs of fayas and heather will be planted.
In the second area, between the access track and the Vía de Ronda, it has a work area of 8,400 square meters and a perimeter of 540 meters. In it, the eucalyptus specimens will be eliminated and between 200 and 250 trees and shrubs of fayas and heather will be planted.
Lastly, in the third zone, which is located between Plaza de San Roque and Vía de Ronda, the work area will be 37,000 square meters with a perimeter of 811 meters. Given the breadth of this area, the recovery treatment of the surface will be carried out in detail at specific points throughout the surface. Thus, the elimination of invasive exotic flora will be carried out in large areas where between 200 and 350 specimens of laurel trees and shrubs will be planted. The project also includes that, once the adaptation of this space has been carried out, actions will be established focused on the dissemination of the species, uses and dissemination of these through panels, sculptures or information panels.
With this performance, it is also intended to pay tribute to Antonio González, one of the most important scientists in the Canary Islands (Prince of Asturias Award), former rector of the ULL, founder of the Institute of Natural Products and professional nominated on several occasions for a Nobel Prize. Although he was born in Los Realejos, he lived and died in La Laguna in 2002. In this space in San Roque, it is intended to immortalize the memory of him bringing nature to the World Heritage city.
