The Minister of the Environment, Cristina Narbona, today presented 11 Diplomas accrediting the declaration as a biosphere reserve, according to the criteria of UNESCO’s Man and Biosphere Programme (MaB), to eleven Spanish spaces that reconcile the conservation of natural resources and socio-economic growth, that is, sustainable development.

These are the six areas that were admitted by UNESCO in 2005 –Allariz Area (Orense), Gran Canaria, Sierra del Rincón (Madrid), Los Argüellos, Alto Bernesga and the Valleys of Omaña and Luna (León)– and another five Diplomas that correspond to UNESCO decisions of previous years and that, due to various circumstances, had not yet been collected by those responsible for the declared reserves. These are: Bardenas Reales (Navarre); Terras do Miño (Lugo); Picos de Europa (Asturias, Cantabria and Castilla y León) and Valle de Laciana and Babia, both in León.

The MaB Program was initiated in 1968, with the goal of improving the relationship between people and their environment. To this end, it promotes interdisciplinary research between the natural and social sciences and training in resource management, especially with regard to the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.