The Director of Coasts explained that through the information provided by the Cabildo of Lanzarote, they were able to see that a large part of the hotel's land is within the protection easement area, and therefore, he explained that "I have signed the resolution declaring the public utility of this expropriation." José Fernández did not want to comment on the budget being considered to carry out the expropriation, but he did state that they will begin negotiations with the owning company, in a process that will end with "the demolition of the hotel and the restoration of the area to conditions as similar as possible to its former natural configuration."
This expropriation is part of the line of work that the Ministry of the Environment is carrying out throughout the Spanish coast, with which they intend to "expand the public domain by buying land, assigning it to the public domain, and subjecting it to the strict legal regime that public goods have." The procedure involves the expropriation of private lands that are adjacent to the public domain in order to "safeguard its integrity for future generations."
Within this framework of action, "the first stage in Lanzarote," according to Fernández, the General Director of Coasts assured that "we are going to buy the lands of the islets of Alegranza, Montaña Clara, and even Lobos to integrate them where they should be, in the public domain." According to Fernández, the valuation of the expropriation is practically finished, and they have already initiated contacts with the owners, so that as soon as they reach an agreement, they can materialize its acquisition.
One of the areas of Lanzarote susceptible to being protected by the Ministry of the Environment is the islet of La Santa, whose lands will be acquired by the state agency. José Fernández pointed out how advanced the project is to initiate the formal acquisition of the islet, "we have already maintained contacts with La Caja." This Friday, he meets in La Santa with the neighborhood and environmental association that has defended the integrity of the land, a meeting to which the socialist senator for Lanzarote, Marcos Hernández, has invited the mayor of Tinajo, Jesús Machín.
Other projects for the coast of Lanzarote
The General Directorate of Coasts, under the Ministry of the Environment, is already working on other projects for the recovery of the coast of Lanzarote. Its General Director explained the existence of a project in an advanced state to recover "the primitive morphology and dynamism of the dune system in the Caleta de Famara," which is interrupted by a road and a parking lot. According to him, it is "a powerful intervention" to remodel the access channels to the Caleta.
Already in the capital of the island, Costas is working on providing a beach that can be used in the area in front of the Cabildo, in Punta del Camello. José Fernández assured that the intervention to achieve a beach "that can be used even at low tide" would be "very slight" and would allow an urban beach connected to the city center.
Connecting the coast of Lanzarote through a path where citizens can walk or take bike routes is another of the Ministry's objectives, which is working on a project whose works could begin this year to connect Puerto Calero and Puerto del Carmen through a path.
