In barely five minutes of popular voting, the citizens of Lanzarote and La Graciosa –with the support of the rest of the archipelago– have ensured that the Famara summit restoration project wins the national Europe Feels Green award, a distinction that recognizes the best environmental initiatives co-financed by European funds, within the annual Europe Feels call.
The president of the Cabildo of Lanzarote, Oswaldo Betancort, celebrated the result and expressed gratitude for citizen involvement. "Lanzarote and La Graciosa have once again set an example of ecological awareness and island pride. In just five minutes, the voice of our people was heard throughout Europe," he stated.
Betancort has also confirmed that the Cabildo of Lanzarote will directly manage the Famara summit restoration project, the only finalist from the Canary Islands in this national competition, Europa se siente (Europe feels). "We are committed to promoting this initiative with rigor, participation, and transparency, so that future generations inherit a living and resilient Famara," he added.
The Island Councillor for the Environment, Samuel Martín, also valued the recognition as an "incentive to continue working on the conservation of the island's ecosystems. This award not only distinguishes a project, but also the collective effort of technicians, volunteers, groups and educational centers that have been working for years to protect Famara," he said.
The project, co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), has involved an investment of more than 1.7 million euros allocated to the conservation of a space that is home to more than 350 endemic species, with the production and planting of 10,000 specimens of native flora and broad social, educational, and institutional participation.
The Cabildo especially appreciates the collaboration of the Government of the Canary Islands and the Ministry of Ecological Transition and Energy, as well as the support of all citizens who participated in the voting during the final, held this Friday, October 10 and broadcast live via Streaming of the Ministry of Finance.
The Cabildo formalized the commission to Gesplan
It was on July 15, 2024, when the Cabildo of Lanzarote officially notified the public company Gesplan of the commission for the habitat restoration project in the Cumbres de Famara, a key action for the ecological recovery of the northwestern area of the island.
The Department of Environment will allocate almost 900,000 euros for the execution of this project, framed within the Lanzarote Strategy 2016-2025 (FDCAN), whose objective is the recovery of degraded habitats and the conservation of native species.
