- It highlights that Spain was the first country to enact a national parks law for the conservation of these spaces
- He explains that in these hundred years work has been done to promote the development of the territory where the national parks are located and to improve the living conditions of the population that inhabits them
- Underlines the presence and recognition of National Parks in international forums
The Minister of Agriculture, Food and the Environment, Isabel García Tejerina, stressed that “National Parks are the greatest exponent of the richness of Spanish biodiversity”, and also spaces for the knowledge and enjoyment of citizens. They are “authentic environmental jewels that are the heritage of all Spaniards”.
Isabel García Tejerina presided over today, in Valsaín (Segovia), the commemorative event of World Environment Day and the centenary of National Parks, one of the great historical milestones of environmental conservation in Spain.
The event was attended, among other personalities, by the Secretary of State for the Environment, Pablo Saavedra; the director of the Autonomous Organization of National Parks, Basilio Rada; the Minister of Rural Development, Fisheries and Food of Cantabria, Jesús Oria; the Minister of Development and Environment of Castilla y León, Juan Carlos Suárez-Quiñones; the Minister of the Environment of the Community of Madrid, Jaime González Taboada; the Government delegate in Castilla y León, María José Salgueiro; and the mayor of the Royal Site of San Ildefonso, José Luís Vázquez.
In his speech, García Tejerina stressed that Spain was the first country in the world to enact, in 1916, a national parks law to offer an institutional framework for the collective effort required for the conservation of these natural spaces. As he clarified, at that time the conservation of these places was proposed as compatible with public use.
In addition to combining the protection and enjoyment of these natural spaces, the minister explained that in these hundred years work has been done to promote the development of the territory in which they are located and improve the living conditions of the population that inhabits them.
On the other hand, García Tejerina has specified that the National Parks are the only protected areas in which the State is directly involved, providing them with basic legislation that has evolved with Spanish society, from the law of 1916 to the current one of 2014.
In this context, the minister highlighted how this regulation reinforces the coordination of the National Parks Network and improves communication between the Parks among themselves and with the State. It is, he added, to promote a more effective and efficient management, and to favor a more participatory conservation model.
NATIONAL PARKS NETWORK
For García Tejerina, after a century of existence, the National Parks have established themselves as the most prestigious protection figure in our country. Specifically, of the almost 2,000 natural areas in Spain, 15 have been declared as national parks. The last of these was the Sierra de Guadarrama National Park, declared in 2013.
In this area, the minister highlighted the territories in which they are registered and the population that inhabits them. Its area of socio-economic influence includes 168 municipalities, with an area of more than 1.7 million hectares and a population of close to one and a half million inhabitants. For the minister, “ensuring a balanced development in the surroundings of these spaces is the best way to consolidate their conservation”.
García Tejerina has detailed that the Network of National Parks covers 19 provinces of 12 Autonomous Communities, with a total area of 384,000 hectares, a space “of enormous natural wealth”, both in terms of geodiversity and biodiversity. In particular, the Network is already home to 38 of the 40 Spanish natural terrestrial and maritime systems listed in the Law. These qualities have led to nearly 14 million people visiting Spanish National Parks every year.
In addition, García Tejerina highlighted the presence and recognition of the National Parks in international forums. In fact, they are all integrated into the Natura 2000 Network. As an example, the minister commented that 10 of them are UNESCO Biosphere Reserves; four are World Heritage Sites; three have received the Council of Europe’s European Diploma for Conservation and four are included in the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance.
On the other hand, García Tejerina commented that, currently, the Autonomous Organization of National Parks is working to promote the declaration of the first marine National Park: the Mar de las Calmas, on the island of El Hierro. And, together with the regional government, in a future third National Park in Andalusia, in the Sierra de las Nieves.
During the day, García Tejerina has planted a Centenary Pine, which joins 15 other specimens with which tribute is paid to all the people who have contributed to maintaining this legacy.
In this sense, the minister has valued the “essential” effort of all those involved in the task of improving this “magnificent Network of National Parks, which is a benchmark for the conservation of the natural environment and a source of pride for all”.
