The Ministry of Environment of the Cabildo of Lanzarote has reported a dozen tourists for extracting volcanic material from one of the areas of the Los Volcanes Natural Park, as confirmed to La Voz by this department.
The events date back to June 12, when a person who was in the area alerted the Environment agents that several people were extracting volcanic stones from this protected area of the island.
This person who alerted the agents observed how the tourists were putting these stones in their backpacks. Upon the arrival of the environmental agents, they asked this group of people to identify themselves, and they claimed to be university geology students. However, they had no permit to do so.
Upon checking the backpacks, the agents found numerous olivines (olive-green minerals) and other types of volcanic stones, as well as a hammer for extracting volcanic material.
Given this situation, the Cabildo of Lanzarote has reported this group of tourists for allegedly committing an environmental crime by taking stones from a protected space without authorization. Now, the competent body will decide what sanction will be imposed on these individuals.
These fines vary depending on the severity of the facts. Minor infractions range from 150 euros to 600, while serious ones can reach 3,000 euros when rocks are extracted from protected natural spaces.
The Cabildo of Lanzarote has stated that they strongly condemn these types of actions and remind tourists of the importance of respecting the biodiversity of Lanzarote and the rest of the Canary Islands.