The Gran Canaria Cabildo and the Town Council in San Bartolomé de Tirajana (home to one of the most important natural spots on Gran Canaria, the Natural Dune Reserve of Maspalomas) began to work on a master plan in late 2018 in an attempt to recover the dune ecosystem naturally.
It is a benchmark environmental project with the main aim of protecting and conserving the natural Dune area, one of our most important environmental resources and a protected natural space with incalculable ecological value.
This pioneering conservation plan in Gran Canaria is initially planned to last two years and aims to maintain a unique ecosystem on the islands, so that we can all keep on enjoying this natural paradise for a long time to come.
This environmental project, known as “Masdunas” thereby aims to prevent the disappearance of one of the most precious natural treasures in the south of Gran Canaria, conserving its environmental values and ensuring its survival.
We do not want our island’s natural gem and important tourist spot to disappear and we are sure that you will also want to help conserve and care for it.
For several decades, the dune system has suffered increasingly obvious degradation with a constant loss of sand, mainly due to urban development processes and human impact, which has altered the dynamics of the wind and the dunes.
It is estimated that around 45,000 cubic metres of sand are lost each year that end up at the bottom of the sea.
This has caused an uncontrolled increased in vegetation in the inner zones, reducing the area occupied by the dunes and increasing the erosion, affecting biodiversity and generating a very negative impact on the animals and plants living in the zone.
If this situation continues, the dune reserve might disappear in less than a generation.
The Gran Canaria Cabildo and the San Bartolomé de Tirajana Town Council have agreed on this master plan to work on the natural recovery of the Maspalomas dune ecosystem that will take place in several phases.
Measures have already been brought in to protect the natural site by signposting recommended routes, repositioning degraded zones, care for the fauna in the zone and setting up new information panels at entry points, among other actions.
The Environmental Protection Plan for the Maspalomas Dunes also includes rehabilitation of 8 kilometres of paths and tracks that run through the reserve, marked out by signs and bollards.
Swimmers and beachgoers will be able to continue enjoying our dunes as before.
This conservation plan never intended to prohibit access to the dunes but to guide people along a series of marked paths and tracks that will be compatible with protection and respect for the environment.
But we can’t do this alone, we need your help.
Caring for and maintaining such a valuable place as the Natural Dune Reserve of Maspalomas is everyone’s job.
Because it’s only with your help that we can make sure that this natural paradise, icon of the island of Gran Canaria, remains intact for many years to come.
Always keep to the marked-out areas and authorised path.
Follow the signs and information panels.
Do not use stones or other elements to make structures that change the landscape.
Respect the animals and plants.
Finally, please remember that it is forbidden to camp here.
You can find more information and follow this project’s progress on the website www.masdunas.es
