The study reveals citizens’ concern for coastal protection and biodiversity
This morning, the offices of the Cabildo de Gran Canaria hosted the meeting held to publicize the technical part of the LIFE COSTAdapta project, which has been carried out on the coast of San Felipe, in the municipality of Guía de Gran Canaria.
The meeting was attended by the Minister of the Environment of the Cabildo de Gran Canaria, Raúl García Brink; the mayor of Guía de Gran Canaria, Alfredo Gonçalves Ferreira; Raquel Ramos, from Raley Coastal Studies; Nareme Herrera, geographer at the University of Cantabria; and Patricia Caro, of Marine Sciences at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
This project, which aims to adapt the reality of our coasts to the inevitable climate impact to minimise its consequences on the population and the ecosystem, presented, today, the diagnosis phase, where the responses of the citizens and groups involved in the study were shown.
Raquel Ramos, during her speech, spoke of the ideal objective of covering the two different areas in the project, although due to ease of execution, it focuses on Area 2, belonging to what is known as El Circo.
For her part, Nareme Herrera, from the University of Cantabria, made public the results of the neighborhood study, in which 81% would prioritize the protection of homes, the enhancement of the biodiversity of the area, and the recovery of the callao. 97% have suffered some type of damage due to direct impact from the sea, of which 53% have had to face annual expenses starting at 5000 euros. He also adds that the Canary Islands Surfing Federation does not consider, at the moment, important or at risk the situation of these homes.
The Minister of the Environment, Raúl García Brink, proposes to send a report “with the firm commitment of the Cabildo, so that other projects can be carried out in other municipalities that have already presented their coasts so that this type of project can be carried out in them”.
Alfredo Gonçalves Ferreira, mayor of Guía de Gran Canaria, assured that “the only way for the Area 1 project to go ahead is the successful arrival of the Area 2 project”, and added that “from the City Council of Guía de Gran Canaria, we will collaborate in everything that is good for our coast, our biodiversity, and for the neighbors who inhabit our coasts”.
About LIFE COSTAdapta
LIFE COSTAdapta is a joint effort coordinated by the Insular Energy Council of Gran Canaria (CIEGC), with the participation of the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), the University of Cantabria (UC), INGECID, Raley Coastal Studies, ECOncrete AQUA, the Canary Islands Foundation for Recycling and Sustainable Development (FCR) and the Finnova Foundation.
This European project, funded by the European Union’s LIFE programme with a total budget of 3,409,864 euros, seeks to adapt the coast of Gran Canaria to the impacts of climate change through an innovative methodology based on Tidal Pool-Reef. Its objective is to protect homes, enhance biodiversity and mitigate coastal erosion, while guaranteeing the economic sustainability of the region.