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Date Published: 16/03/2023

Illegal boat mooring site dismantled in La Azohia

The unlicensed buoys for mooring boats had been used for years, but represented a danger to the environment

For years, buoys have been used to allow boats to moor offshore in the bay of La Azohía, Cartagena, but the truth is that these were unsanctioned docking points where boats weren’t actually allowed to set anchor. That’s why the ‘Costas’ Coastal Demarcation, which handles all coastal issues in the Region of Murcia, have removed those buoys this week.

More than 25 tonnes of buoys, concrete, bulky plastic items, chains, steel cables, ropes, and other assorted items have been removed from the water, all of which were dredged up from the seabed of this area which is technically part of the marine reserve of Cabo Tiñoso and home to posidonia oceanica grass, which is important for the local ecosystem.

Sources from the Costas team said that the area was dismantled as a mooring point for boats since it did “not have a title of occupation of the maritime-terrestrial public domain”.

They say that such illegal mooring areas have been growing unchecked for years, and now they’re trying to crack down in order to protect the local marine environment.

They also announced that they will carry out similar cleaning projects in other coastal areas of the Region of Murcia “with the intention of reversing the damage caused and that the users of anchored boats themselves become aware of the damage that is generated by the occupation of a public space without any safety measures”.

However, the move has caused some consternation among local residents and boat owners, who say they were given no forewarning that the moorings, which they had used for years without any problems, were going to be removed.

In the low season right now, there are not many boats there at all, but during this summer this number often swells to around 60 vessels, all of which will have to find space to moor somewhere else.

However, the Neighbourhood Association of La Azohía claims there are not enough marinas or mooring sites available locally. They are in discussions with Cartagena City Council to reach a solution.

Image: Mark Pender

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