Over 50,000 individuals are calling for the halt of the tourist complex ‘Cuna del Alma’ in Puertito de Adeje. The initiative, which has gathered 50,725 signatures, is seeking to prevent the granting of permits for these opulent developments in the south-west region of Tenerife. “This would infringe upon community species and existing habitats within the area designated for the project,” the petition warns.
The signature collection has been organised via the platform Youmoveeurope, a tool established to advance social and environmental causes across the continent. “The Cuna del Alma Tourist Complex, featuring 420 luxury residences and covering an area of 437,000 square metres, poses a grave threat to two already protected natural areas that have been severely impacted by tourist activity: the Scientific Interest Site of Caleta and the ZEC Strip Marina Tano-Rag (a space protected at the community level),” the campaign states.
“The construction of this complex, situated in a ravine with significant plant life and geological formations, would effectively encroach on a natural environment that has, in recent decades, been increasingly surrounded by urban development,” it adds. According to the petition, the project “will obliterate the essence of the area,” which is frequented by both locals and tourists, stating that “more than a crib, it will become its tomb.”
“The island already boasts a first-rate hotel infrastructure to accommodate the necessary tourists. We must diversify the island’s economy, rather than condemn the few areas of natural beauty to provide more of the same, which detracts from our uniqueness and diversity in comparison to other global tourist destinations,” the campaign concludes.
The activities related to this megaproject are “an imminent peril” for protected flora, have destroyed an archaeological site, and commenced without an environmental impact assessment. These shortcomings prompted the Government of the Canary Islands to order a suspension of the works in the previous legislative session. However, the new administration, formed by the Canarian Coalition and the Popular Party, allowed all sanctioning files to lapse, permitting the resumption of the works.
In a similar vein, another campaign is circulating on Youmoveeurope. This time, calling for the resignation of the President of the Canary Islands Government, Fernando Clavijo, Vice President Manuel Domínguez, Minister of Ecological Transition Mariano Hernández Zapata, and the Mayor of Adeje, José Miguel Rodríguez Fraga. “They bear direct responsibility for green-lighting Cuna del Alma, the most significant urban scandal in recent Canary Islands history,” the petition highlights, which has garnered 9,834 signatures.
Over the weekend, the platform to save Tejita reported to the Canarian Agency for the Protection of the Natural Environment (ACPMN) and Seprona about the “Locking and Movement Works of Land” associated with the Cuna del Alma project taking place “outside the scheduled times outlined in the building regulations” of the municipality.
In a statement, the platform announced that on Saturday, from 7:00 AM, work with heavy machinery in the area had continued, in violation of municipal regulations that prohibit “works of this nature during weekends and holidays.”