ATNMA and the Environment advance in the Comprehensive Buoy Plan

As a result of the changes produced in the organization chart of the Ministry of the Environment at the end of last year, the new managers have met with ATNMA (Nautical Tourism Association of the Marina Alta) to resume pending issues related to the application of the new Posidonia Decree approved last summer.

Mooring buoys in the coves of Xàbia

At the meeting held last Thursday, the new Regional Secretary, Francisco José Candela, and the General Director of the Natural Environment, Julio Gómez, informed the President of ATNMA, Ricardo Burriel, of the progress made. One of the most important topics dealt with was the impulse that has been carried out in the preparation of the Comprehensive Buoy Plan of the Valencian Community.

The Ministry has already carried out an analysis of the current anchoring situation on the coast of the Valencian Community, with a detailed inventory of the current number of buoys and the areas most frequented by recreational boats. The Marina Alta is the area with the greatest activity and with an insufficient number of buoys for the number of boats.

“We are satisfied with the meeting held because we have verified that work is being done to achieve a regional strategy that provides a solution to the anchoring of boats in posidonia areas. We have been informed that the objective is that before the regional elections they have already carried out the previous analysis in order to order a
project that defines a Comprehensive Buoy Plan for the Valencian Community”, says Ricardo Burriel.

“It is a complex process because the three administrations participate, local, regional and national, but we believe that the most important thing is to get on the road. We advocate a model similar to the one in Jávea, where the town hall leads the management of the buoys, although we also demand that the Departments of the Environment and Tourism become involved”, comments the President of ATNMA.

Other issues that were discussed at the meeting was the resumption in the coming weeks of the Posidonia Working Group, to present the conclusions of the Posidonia Surveillance Service, launched for the first time this past summer. In addition, a subject also discussed at the meeting was the implementation of the mapping of the seabed so that navigators know how to detect where there is posidonia and not anchor with the anchor on it.