11/07/2013 00:00
TW
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Joan Collins THE Valencia region, Galicia and Andalucia are the autonomous regions with the most environmental “blackspots”, and 50 percent of these are on the coast, while the Balearics have 24, according to Greenpeace's report “Destruction at any price 2006”. This report warns that in these regions there are 286 areas where the coast is being destroyed. The annual Greenpeace report says that building speculation on the Spanish coast is responsible and adds that there are actually 57 “blackspots” in the Valencia region, 45 in Galicia, 40 in Andalucia and 38 in the Canary Islands. The 518 kilometres of Valencian coast stand out because of the construction of golf courses and homes on the beachfront, and the absence of water purifying plants, which is the cause of 22 “blackspots” in the province of Alicante, 19 in the province of Valencia and 16 in the province of Castellon. In Galicia's case, the provinces of La Coruña, Pontevedra and Lugo stand out, with 26, 14 and 5 “blackspots” respectively. Among the complaints about these places are the contamination of the Corcubion River (La Coruña) by fuel, the increase by 1'230 percent in buildings in Ortigueira and the construction of ports for leisure craft. Greenpeace especially criticises the building in Andalucia, the main reason for the 13 “blackspots” in Malaga, 12 in Cadiz, 11 in Almeria and 4 in Huelva. With regard to the Canary Islands, Greenpeace warns that there are 17 “blackspots” in Gran Canaria, 7 in Fuerteventura, 5 in Tenerife, 3 in Lanzarote and Las Palmas, 2 in La Gomera and 1 in El Hierro. The construction of golf courses, illegal building and various rubbish dumps are cited as the reasons for these “blackspots”. The report also mentions points of this nature in Cantabria and the Balearic Islands (24 in each case), Catalonia and the Basque Region (16 in each), Murcia (14) and Asturias (12). Greenpeace's report underlines that Valencia and Andalucia are the regions that “care least for their coast”.