Date Published: 23/01/2020
ARCHIVED - The Spanish government could demolish buildings as part of its Mar Menor protection plan
ARCHIVED ARTICLE 
The Ministry for Ecological Transition plans its own strategies to protect and regenerate the lagoon
It is only a couple of weeks since the new Spanish government was formed but already it is being made clear that environmental issues are to be taken very seriously, and after Cabinet approved an official declaration of a “climate emergency” (rather than “climate change”) this Tuesday attention has now turned, among other things, to the need to protect and regenerate the marine environment of the Mar Menor.
The draft legislation drawn up by the regional government in Murcia has been criticized in some quarters on the grounds that it is not far-reaching enough, and that appears to be a view shared by the national Ministry for Ecological Transition. The national government and Minister Teresa Ribera are preparing an “Integral green program of actions for the recovery of the Mar Menor” of which various aspects have already been revealed, including a widening of the proposed “green belt” around the lagoon, the strengthening of natural flood protection features, legislation restricting the activities of leisure marinas and even the demolition of buildings in certain as yet undefined areas.
The intention is to restore geographical features such as wetlands, sand dunes and banks and other natural environments such as floodable areas which have progressively been eliminated by urban development and the growth of agriculture in the Campo de Cartagena and along the shore of the Mar Menor, combining these actions with “conventional infrastructures”. Few details have been specified, but the area of El Vivero at the very southern end of La Manga is a good example: this is land which was reclaimed from the sea after a fish farming concern closed down, and on which there have for a long time been plans to build a residential development.

One of the measures will be to establish areas along the coast which must remain unbuilt-on and to correct instances of over-development which have already occurred – in other words, to knock down buildings which have altered the natural lie of the land.
At the same time the issue of the “golas” (the channels through which water flows between the Mar Menor and the Mediterranean) is to be studied, although no indication has been given of what actions might be taken there. One possibility is that it might be considered necessary to return the Gola del Estacio to its original state before it was widened to allow boats to sail between the Puerto Deportivo Tomás Maestre and the Mediterranean, although at present that is pure speculation.
Among all of these priorities, though, the most urgent is identified as being the restoration of coastal ecosystems and taking steps to make them more resilient, as this will not only help to filter the water running into the lagoon and remove nutrients and fertilizers from it, but will also contribute to strengthening the protection of coastal towns against flooding. The importance of this aspect has been stressed once again by the third floods in just over four months in Los Alcázares, San Javier, San Pedro del Pinatar, Los Urrutias and other areas.
In response, the regional government of Murcia continues to stress that some of its own plans have already been approved and to urge the national administration to follow the guidelines established, which include the restoration of the natural floodwater channels or “ramblas” and the lowering of the level of water in the aquifer which lies underneath the Campo de Cartagena.
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