The Spanish government has launched a consultation process for 23 new marine protected areas (MPAs) in Canary Islands waters and the Mediterranean Sea. This initiative is part of Spain’s commitment to protect 30% of its waters by 2030.
The proposal, from the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, seeks to protect 22,405 square kilometers of marine waters. The protected areas will be located primarily in the eastern North Atlantic Ocean around the Canary Islands, and off the coasts of Valencia, AlmerÃa, Granada, and Mallorca in the Mediterranean Sea.
The plan includes 21 new sites of community importance (SCIs) under the Natura 2000 network, with 17 in the Canary Islands and four in the Mediterranean. Additionally, two new special protection areas (SPAs) will cover 14,855 square kilometers of offshore waters near the Canary Islands. This would increase the protected marine waters under Spanish jurisdiction by 2.08 percentage points, bringing the total to 24.53%.
Source: Mongabay