The Cabildo of Lanzarote has definitively approved the Los Volcanes land-use plan after rectifying the unfavorable reports from Defense and Coastal Affairs, a document that orders more than 10,000 hectares of the park and integrates climate adaptation for the first time.
The Plenary of the Cabildo of Lanzarote and La Graciosa has definitively approved the Plan for the Management of Natural Resources (PORN) of the Los Volcanes Natural Park. With this measure, the island government provides the protected area with the necessary legal coverage required by state biodiversity legislation, thus recovering the full legal effectiveness of its declaration as a natural park after years of administrative processing.
The scope of the plan covers more than 10,000 hectares spread across the municipalities of Tinajo, Yaiza, and Tías. This land of high geological value surrounds the Timanfaya National Park and borders the Protected Landscape of La Geria and the Janubio Site of Scientific Interest, also being integrated into Natura 2000 Network as a Special Area of Conservation (SAC) and Special Protection Area for Birds (SPA).
The final document is moving forward after a prolonged technical process in which a dozen institutional reports and five objections from groups and individuals were addressed. To achieve final approval, it was necessary to resolve the initial objections from the Sub-Directorate General of Heritage of the Ministry of Defense and the Directorate General of Coastal and Maritime Affairs, bodies that eventually issued favorable reports between the end of 2025 and June 2026 after the technical proposal was modified.
The objections from the Directorate General of Coastal and Maritime Affairs required adapting the plan to the Coastal Law to safeguard the Public Maritime-Terrestrial Domain and regulate uses on the park's coastline, while the objections from the Ministry of Defense responded to the need to guarantee the compatibility of environmental management with security easements and military installations on the island.
To resolve both issues, the Cabildo of Lanzarote made specific corrections to the document's regulations and cartography, submitting a revised version in June 2026 that obtained the definitive technical conformity of both state bodies.
As main new features, the PORN incorporates a specific diagnosis of adaptation to climate change that assesses the vulnerability of local flora and fauna, prioritizes nature-based solutions, and includes an ecological connectivity plan.
Likewise, it introduces the gender perspective transversally through the promotion of inclusive language, the analysis of disaggregated socioeconomic data, and criteria to foster equal opportunities in public use, tourism, and the primary sector activities.
The plan will enter into force fifteen business days after its publication in the Official Gazette of the Province of Las Palmas. As it is a general provision definitively approved by the Plenary Session, there is no administrative appeal, although interested parties have a period of two months to file an administrative litigation appeal before the Superior Court of Justice of the Canary Islands.
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