“The more pristine and beautiful a place is, the more people want to visit. Yet, as more and more people visit, the environmental and social impacts can destroy the very reasons for their coming in the first place… Seventy percent of the foreign tourists visiting the Spanish coasts say they do not intend to return – the main reason given is overcrowding.”
…overcrowding that is killing the biodiversity of the Mediterranean, and yet they keep on building, new golf courses keep opening, and new crowds keep coming. Read the full Greenpeace report and join us in the NFS forums to decide what could be done about it.
ValenciaSon
11 Jul 06 at 2:44 pm
Does Spain have some type of environmental regulatory agency? Maybe that’s what’s needed? Seems like there is a lack of zoning oversight in the urban planning.
Matthew Bennett
12 Jul 06 at 6:59 pm
I don’t think tourism will kill the Spanish Med. A lack of water might, and politicians here in Murcia are constantly talking about both things. They are gearing up for what they’ve labelled ‘residential tourism’ and have more than 30 golf courses in various states of development. They have been fighting the Murcian environmental lobby for years, and almost always win. They complain that they are not allowed to freely develop Murcia as others have done further up or down the coast in Barcelona or Almeria, for example.
Brian Abrahams
13 Jul 06 at 9:58 am
Calpe council just approved a 20 storey apartment block next to the sea front, the Penan de Ifach and some archaeological remains. Really considerate of the local environment – NOT!
http://servicios.lasprovincias.es/valencia/pg060712/prensa/noticias/Marina/200607/12/VAL-MAR-118.html