The project, which will involve a disbursement of close to one million euros, seeks to “recover the biodiversity” of the ecosystem and turn the wetland into a natural barrier to protect the lagoon against flooding.
The Community will expropriate 3.1 million square meters of El Carmolí, next to the Mar Menor, to recover the biodiversity of the ecosystem. As highlighted this Friday by the regional president, Fernando López Miras, the action will cost about one million euros and it is the “greatest renaturation” of the lagoon environment.
López Miras announced this decision after meeting with the mayor of Cartagena, Noelia Arroyo, to whom he explained the details of this initiative. “Thanks to the rescue of these lands, we will protect and enhance the largest natural and scenic window to the Mar Menor,” stressed the head of the regional government.
Miras also added that action will be taken on the large wetland to become a “natural barrier” to protect the lagoon against floods and prevent damage like those that have occurred in recent years, especially with the most intense DANAs. In this way, it will serve to “retain, laminate and treat rainwater in cases of heavy rains in order to avoid further damage to the Mar Menor.”
The action will be developed through the so-called Nature-Based Solutions (SBN) for the recovery of deteriorated and degraded spaces. “It is in line with the European Union guidelines for the ecological transition, the European Green Pact and the Sustainable Architecture Strategy (EACS),” said López Miras. “This action is a unique opportunity to revalue the environment and the landscape of the Mar Menor and turn it into a world example of renaturation”, reiterated the president, who valued the plan as “a green solution in all senses” to “avoid human pressures in this privileged environment.
In total, the plan is based on three pillars: environmental recovery of habitats, management of existing infrastructures and reconversion of the current road into a large backbone parallel to the sea line, between Punta Brava and Los Alcázares. Miras insisted that this project is proof of the “firm commitment” of the regional government “with a unique natural environment subjected to continuous environmental attacks that we want to face.” “And we hope that the central government will also do so soon, from whom we need their involvement,” he added.
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