The citizen platform Save Punta Blanca has publicly denounced a double game of interests in the Underwater Gardens tourist project, proposed for construction on the west coast of Tenerife (municipality of Guía de Isora), within a whale sanctuary and in an area that has remained free of tourist infrastructures until now. This theme park aims to provide scuba divers with insights into that part of the island’s marine seabed, and plans to build structures on land (occupying up to 10 hectares, part of which is designated as agricultural land protected for environmental purposes) and make interventions along the coastline. Simultaneously, it is promoted as having scientific interest for the European organisation Ocean Citizen. In other words, there are two projects in the area: one scientific and the other tourist-oriented, where the scientific component appears to support interest in the tourist venture.
However, organisations ATAN and the platform Save Punta Blanca have reported that the individual advocating for the project’s scientific interest at the European level, through the organisation Ocean Citizen, is also the same person aiming to exploit it commercially through the theme park, Underwater Gardens.
ATAN and Save Punta Blanca explain that a few days ago they sent a formal letter to all members of the European consortium Ocean Citizen, expressing their “deep concern regarding the misappropriation of the name and resources” of this European initiative to legitimise the large-scale tourist project Underwater Gardens in Tenerife. Both organisations highlighted in the letter that this project “violates fundamental principles of the Horizon Europe programme”, such as the principle of Do No Significant Harm (DNSH), and alerted about the direct involvement of “consortium actors in promoting speculative infrastructures”.
In recent days, the organisations claim, the coordinator of Ocean Citizen, Sergio Rossi, has denied this connection, attempting to separate the scientific project from the proposal for the construction of the Underwater Gardens tourism complex. However, Save Punta Blanca seeks to clarify several points that “the public deserves to know”.
Firstly, they assert that the document confirms it: this is a research project funded by the European Union as part of Horizon Europe. Thus, “it is concerning that a project financed with public funds for research might be serving as scientific endorsement and greenwashing for a private initiative with profit motives, such as a theme park for scuba divers”.
Furthermore, the letter is signed by Sergio Rossi, who not only coordinates Ocean Citizen as an associate professor at the University of Salento (Italy) but is also the scientific director of the company behind the theme park, Underwater Gardens International S.L. In other words, “the same individual simultaneously represents a public-funded research consortium and the company seeking to build a mega tourist complex in Punta Blanca, all in the same location,” the organisations warn. “This dual role raises serious doubts regarding the legitimacy, independence, and credibility of his statements, in addition to demonstrating a lack of professional ethics and a clear conflict of interest,” they conclude.
Although Ocean Citizen insists that it does not promote land-based infrastructures, “the reality is that Underwater Gardens is presented as a tourist theme park for scuba divers. Attempting to link it to the need for marine restoration is misleading and therein lies the issue: Ocean Citizen and Underwater Gardens are working in collusion, justifying the destruction of Punta Blanca for purely speculative and private purposes”.
Moreover, they insist that although both projects are formally stated to be independent, “the strategy is clear: to use the academic prestige of Ocean Citizen as a pretext to sell a private tourism project that will lead to more land consumption, as well as 3,000 daily tourists.” According to the two denunciating organisations, “it presents an appearance of environmental regeneration backed by science to launder purely mercantile and extractive interests once again from Canary territory.”
A false narrative of ‘zero tourism’ post-COVID
The promoters of Underwater Gardens have attempted to justify its construction by claiming that the Canary Islands need to attract tourism in the wake of the pandemic, according to the Cabildo of Tenerife’s declaration of interest filing. However, “the reality is that tourism in the islands has already recovered and even exceeded pre-2020 figures: from 15 million visitors in 2019, forecasts for 2025 predict a new record figure of 18.4 million tourists. Hence, there is no economic necessity to support the construction of a new theme park in a pristine natural area.”
Lack of genuine dialogue with the local community
In the letter circulated by Rossi, “respect”, “open dialogue”, and “transparent processes” are defended. Yet the reality, according to the denunciating platforms, is that Ocean Citizen “has only conducted two public presentations of the project, one virtual and one in-person, reaching only a few dozen people. Moreover, the connection to the Underwater Gardens theme park in Punta Blanca was evidently not addressed. It is not enough to proclaim transparency; it must be practised.”
Furthermore, they add, “Underwater Gardens has sought to sponsor activities and offer ocean access privileges to some individuals in an attempt to gain local approval, which has not been achieved. A clear indication of this is the existence of this platform that responds and stands up to it.”
They also warn that this is not the first time an iconic wave or public natural space in Tenerife has been destroyed for the benefit of a tourist project, as evidenced by what occurred with some of the waves in Las Américas.
“Neither Tenerife nor the Canary Islands need more tourists, and there is certainly no need for tourism divers to come and ‘save’ Punta Blanca. What we need are Marine Reserves and the enforcement of existing protections in the area, providing them with resources,” they propose.
“Attempting to regenerate an area without addressing the causes of degradation is not only greenwashing, but a waste of public funds that, if consulted with the local community, would be invested much more effectively,” argue ATAN and Save Punta Blanca.
Finally, the organisation Save Punta Blanca expresses its “deep frustration with these extractive initiatives that damage our coasts, our island, and the few places we have left to enjoy free from tourism. Let it be clear: We will oppose this irrationality with all our might: via the media, through legal routes, and protesting at the site if one day they attempt to initiate construction.”
