The popular coastal town of Benidorm is creating a ‘Mediterranean forest’ including a refuge for birds of prey in the Sierra Helada Natural Park. The municipality does this by planting more than 6,000 native trees and shrubs.
This project is located just a few minutes from Rincón de Loix, the beating heart of the tourist attraction. Apart from providing a green area for the millions of tourists who visit Benidorm every year, the project also serves an important environmental purpose. Moreover, it restores a large part of the old quarry of Racó de l’Infern to its original state.
Progress of the project
The restoration of the landscape and the environment is going according to plan. Implementers TM Grupo Inmobiliario and Grupo Bertolín confirmed this to Mayor Toni Pérez during a recent visit. The repair work uses materials from another construction site in the city, where an athletics track is being constructed. In total, approximately 160,000 cubic metres of material will be moved for the redevelopment of the site.
Native flora
Invasive plant species have been removed and morphological restoration of the old quarry has begun. The next step is replanting with native trees and shrubs. This includes pines (1,005), olive trees (862), carob trees (718), palm trees, black thorns, mastic trees and rosemary, with a total of 2,585 new trees and approximately 3,650 shrubs.
Benefits for the environment and biodiversity
Mayor Pérez emphasises that this project restores the appearance of the mountain. Furthermore, it creates a Mediterranean forest that promotes an ecosystem with rich biodiversity. Some of the quarry rock is retained to support birds of prey in the area. An additional advantage is that this project is expected to reduce 1,796 tons of CO2 over 40 years. That corresponds to 40% of the greenhouse gas emissions from the industrial sector.
Schedule
According to Grupo Bertolín, the company hired by TM Grupo Inmobiliario for the regeneration, the restoration work will be completed this summer. Planting of trees and shrubs is planned for the autumn, with the project expected to be completed by Christmas.
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