“It’s Time to Put an End to This” – The Province

We must take action. In recent months, albeit a bit late, families, teachers, and politicians have decided to take measures to limit the use of mobile phones by minors in educational centres. Just as smoking was regulated, which was omnipresent in public and private places to the detriment of everyone’s health, especially non-smokers. A politician once told me that in the tourism sector, it is necessary to allow a dense business fabric to be established before starting to implement restrictive regulations. So, freedom first, alright, but there comes a time when we have to put a stop to it.

Some of us remember when natural spaces had few people and activities. They were territories forgotten by tourism, and no one thought about regulating canyoning, camping, or parking because it was unnecessary. But there came a time when it was necessary to intervene: we had to preserve for future generations the cultural and environmental heritage left to us by our ancestors.

In recent times, activities in natural environments have multiplied for sports, health, tourism, etc. And after the pandemic, even more so. However, in recent days, it seems that a significant part of those engaging in these activities aim to post images on social media, either to boost their ego or to raise funds and try to make a living from them. Nice people without professional prominence use the natural environment as a stage, incorporating their face, bicycle, or motorcycle into their recordings. Some do not care about the environmental damage that may occur because ten days later they have left the place forever and will not return.

Like in the case of mobile phones mentioned at the beginning, we see that these actions are getting out of hand when we see that it is considered normal to excavate in protected dunes, encourage running down reserve areas of a volcano, show a family passing through a path closed for safety, or display bike descents leaving an indelible mark on previously untouched landscapes. Not to mention the cases where the natural and cultural heritage is trivialised through nonsense that then spreads to thousands, to millions of views on social media. They are not environmental catastrophes, but it is time to start putting a stop to it.

Over the past few decades, regulations governing activities in natural environments originated from governments, from decrees, mainly those approving the planning of protected natural areas (commonly known by their acronym PRUG). No one thought about social media. Lists of infractions and penalties were approved through laws born from parliaments concerned about industrial pollution or the extinction of protected species and other significant environmental issues. No one thought about social media.

What do we do? In light of the new threats, it seems appropriate to address a broad pact in defence of the natural environment involving administrations with responsibilities in tourism, sports, culture, security, etc. to tackle the new challenges. Especially in tourism, due to its understanding of visitor flows and because many potential violators of environmental regulations are tourists. However, security forces and bodies are also crucial because of their awareness of what is happening at all times and their professionalism. Reflection should lead to an alliance of these administrations, led by the competent authority in the natural environment, to promote the values of the natural environment and put a stop to anything that goes against them.

This alliance could promote a general, global plan that integrates different sectors of the economy and administration of Tenerife and provide an opportunity to activate awareness and commitment mechanisms for the island’s inhabitants, its associative fabric. The population must be involved and not see environmental protection as something alien to their lives, from schools to tourists. We cannot forget the recent fire, with its profound implications for reflection. Nor can we forget the “Strategy for the Conservation of Biodiversity on the island of Tenerife 2020-2030”, which has already set the tone for possible actions to be taken. The public university undoubtedly could lead this global plan.

Control and inspection are needed. Investment in physical and human resources is essential. We must put a stop to the impunity born from the lack of controls. Even video surveillance can play a decisive role. We know that after a crime, the area’s cameras are analysed, and the same could happen in the natural environment. An effort could be made by the Council, allocating funds to these physical and especially human resources to make the “on-site” monitoring of the natural environment visible and effective.

The sanctioning regime is outlined in the lists of infractions and penalties included in the laws. Modernisation is necessary because these new activities find it challenging to be classified. Sanctions must be reviewed because sometimes the amount of the penalty is much lower than the economic benefit obtained from the violation. An inefficient sanctioning procedure does not serve to put a stop to it. It is the Parliament of the Canary Islands to whom the need to legislate should be conveyed.

The regulation of active tourism companies operating in the protected areas of Canarias is similar to that applied in other autonomous communities. However, the number of unregistered companies is very high in Tenerife. It would be interesting to gradually close off paths.