The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and the Natural Environment, through the General Directorate of Natural Environment and Forestry Development, was present this Tuesday at the fair. World Travel Market (WTM) London. The Government presented, with a presentation made by the Director General of Natural Environment and Forest Management, Anna Torresthe projects carried out and in execution and the planned future actions financed by the ecotax, or sustainable tourism tax (ITS), aimed at the conservation and restoration of the natural environment and biodiversity of the Balearic Islands.
Torres, accompanied by the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sports, Jaume Bauzadetailed the main actions already carried out and those which will be implemented in the years to come for the improvement of protected natural areas, the prevention of forest fires and the fight against invasive species and forest pests in the archipelago. In this sense, the general director emphasized that “our presence at this show, with the presentation and explanation of the main projects financed with the ITS, reaffirms the government’s commitment to raising awareness of the importance of conserving natural spaces so that both the population and those who visit us can enjoy our islands in a sustainable and safe way. It is for this reason that we are sending the message that these ITS funds are intended for environmental policies and that they constitute a tool to improve our natural spaces.
During the presentation event, the increase in investments with ITS funds intended for the natural environment from 2023 was highlighted.There are more than 11.5 million euros allocated to this general directorate in 2023, and nearly 22 million euros requested for the period 2024-2025. This represents a very significant increase compared to previous years, since from 2016 to 2023 the total amount was 13.6 million euros”, underlined Torres. The most notable actions, in this sense, were those of conservation and recovery of habitats and degraded areas in natural areas, prevention of forest fires, fight against invasive species and actions focused on controlling and improving forest health.
Thus, from the extraordinary appeal of the ITS of 2023 the global renovation project stands out, or the construction of a new center for the Consortium for the Recovery of Fauna of the Balearic Islands (COFIB) in the Pitiusas and the fight against invasive species, with an investment of almost 2.6 million euros. In addition, for the years to come, the Government will continue in this same line, with new projects in environmental education, combating fires and forest pests, promoting the consumption of local biomass and improving public facilities in protected natural areas of the Balearic Islands, among others. other projects.
Finally, The presentation was used to project a video to raise awareness about the protection of one of the most emblematic habitats of the Balearic Islands.such as Posidonia oceanica, in which the importance of marine phanerogams and the different actions and services that the government carries out throughout the archipelago to conserve this marine plant were explained.
