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Date Published: 05/10/2022
ARCHIVED - Tabarca Island becomes public property to safeguard its future
Alicante City Council has bought up land to "preserve the island's environmental and landscape value"
Tabarca Island off the coast of Santa Pola, Alicante, is Spain's smallest populated island with just over 50 year-round inhabitants, but during the summer is a Mecca for tourists drawn by its alluring coastline and quaint village, attracting more than 300,000 visitors.
In a bid to maintain the island's tourist pull and preserve it's "environmental and landscape value", Alicante City Council this week approved the purchase of the last three large plots of rural land that remained in private hands for 220,000 euros, so that the protected area of the marine reserve is entirely public property.
"These 23 hectares within the Isla Plana de Nueva Tabarca field are considered to be of immense environmental value. The area is of great interest for public use, mainly related to bird watching, and the enjoyment of the natural environment and the island's open space," explained the city council.
The land is included in the Declaration of the Cultural Interest of the Island of Tabarca and is part of the region's Natural Marine Reserve. It's made up of natural native vegetation and serves as an ecosystem and support for numerous fauna of natural interest, typical of semi-arid island environments.
It's located between two of the main monuments on the island: the Lighthouse, a preserved construction dating from 1854, and the Tower of San José, the last of the military constructions built on the island, in 1791, first housing a military detachment, and after the loss of the island's status as a stronghold in the mid-19th century, was the barracks of the Royal Carabinieri Corps.
A number of municipal projects will benefit from the acquisition, such as the rehabilitation and partial restoration of the old farmhouse of the island, and the restoration, rehabilitation and subsequent museumisation of the Tower of San José, according to the council.
Image: Ayuntamiento de Alicante
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