Puertos de Tenerife wrapped up the restoration works of the Special Natural Reserve of Montaña Roja in Granadilla de Abona. The year-long intervention aims to restore the ecosystem that had been altered by past activities in the area.
The Port Authority invested almost 426,000 euros in tasks ranging from eradicating invasive species and improving the trail network, to restoring rest areas, and implementing sand retention screens and re-vegetation, as well as installing the necessary provisional signage for this unique space.
Pedro Suárez, president of the Port Authority, pointed out that “this is the second and final phase of the project, which also involved removing remnants of military constructions, drains, wells, and greenhouses as part of this endeavour to safeguard an ecologically and environmentally valuable area.” Suárez also highlighted the need to extend the works by two months “as they coincided with the nesting period of several species.”
These actions are part of the agreement signed on May 27, 2019, between the Port Authority of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and the Tenerife Island Council, which entrusted the island corporation with all the administrative processes involving entities with jurisdiction in the area, thereby making the works feasible while respecting the breeding periods of the bird species and the biological cycles of the flora to be planted.
Blanca Pérez, the councilor for Natural Environment, Sustainability, Emergencies at the Tenerife Island Council, also emphasized the significance of these actions, highlighting that “the most impactful issue was the indiscriminate transit of people throughout the reserve. It’s important to remember that the ecosystems in the south are very fragile, especially regarding the tree masses, which is why it’s crucial to effectively delimit the paths to encourage visitors to respect the environment.” To achieve this, “the trails were marked with wooden stakes and ropes. They don’t cover the entire reserve, but we’re working towards that.”
These works constitute one of the compensatory measures agreed upon for the construction of the Port of Granadilla, as outlined in the Environmental Impact Declaration of the port facility published in the Official State Gazette (BOE) on February 26, 2003.
The aim of these actions was to restore the Protected Nature Area of the Special Natural Reserve of Montaña Roja, noted the Port Authority. This body recalled that, with Territorial Law 12/1987, of June 19, on the Declaration of Protected Natural Areas of Canary Islands, the National Point of Interest Natural Area of Montaña Roja was created in this territory of Granadilla de Abona. Subsequently, its boundaries were modified, and it was reclassified through Law 12/1994, of December 19, on Natural Areas of the Canary Islands, becoming a Special Natural Reserve.
