The Director of Studies and Projects of the Biodiversity Foundation, a public foundation of the Government of Spain, under the Ministry of the Environment, Rural and Marine Affairs, Germán Alonso, today made a technical visit to the lagoon complex of Cantalejo, Segovia, to supervise the actions carried out so far.

This visit is part of the agreement that the Biodiversity Foundation and the Natural Heritage Foundation of Castilla y León signed in 2006 with the aim of undertaking the necessary actions to regulate the hydrological functioning of the Cantalejo lagoon complex and improve the management of its use through the orderly adaptation of public recreational use. Thus, among the actions that are being carried out are the improvements of the lagoon complex, the accesses and the habitat, the adaptations for public use, scientific monitoring and the development of a dissemination and awareness program.

To improve the lagoon complex, the restoration of the drainage network is being carried out; the installation of capacity meters; the regulation of the flow between lagoons by means of gates; spillways and gauges, and the partial regrowth of the basin.

As for the improvement of accesses, the project contemplates the improvement of the pavements, for which an adaptation of the network of existing roads and the opening of new access roads is carried out. Auxiliary works are also planned such as the realization of a water crossing and limitations on road traffic.

Likewise, this initiative contemplates the enabling of access to the lagoon system by road, the construction of ornithological paths and three parking areas that give access to them; the incorporation of signage for both pedestrians and vehicles, which is also intended to provide visitors with extensive information on the natural and tourist values of the area; and the installation of a wooden fence to prevent visitors from accessing the lagoons.

To improve the habitat, both the removal of the existing enclosures and the creation of artificial islands in order to provide a quiet refuge for aquatic birds or the partial stripping of the lagoon basin, removing the deposited sludge, are carried out. Plantations will also be carried out at certain points of the lagoon complex that will be maintained through replacements in the two years following the plantations. Likewise, within the framework of the dissemination and awareness programme, an information leaflet and school materials will be published and a mobile exhibition will be held.