Canary Islands Network of Protected Natural Areas

Delimitation of Protected Natural Areas of the Canary Islands prepared by the Department of Planning of Protected Natural Areas and Landscape of the Government of the Canary Islands. Additional information: Legislative Decree 1/2000 of 8 May 2000 approving the Consolidated Text of the Laws on the Planning of the Territory of the Canary Islands and Natural Areas of the Canary Islands. The Canary Islands Network of Protected Natural Areas consists of 146 Spaces, which together constitute approximately 40 % of the area of the Archipelago, encompassing a statistic that differs at an island level as a result of the particularities of each island. This network is a regional system in which all protected areas are declared and managed as a harmonious whole with a common purpose: contribute to human well-being and the maintenance of the biosphere through the conservation of nature and the protection of the aesthetic and cultural values present in natural spaces. In order to integrate as best as possible in the socio-economic reality of the archipelago the role of the Canary Network of Protected Natural Areas, in addition to the different categories of natural spaces, two key figures in the planning of the territory are contemplated: areas of Ecological Sensitivity and Areas of Socioeconomic Influence. Although, one of the most important aspects to highlight, is the nature of active conservation that the Network plays. This one goes beyond the mere declaration of spaces. In order to avoid that the protection of the territory is not only in a declaration, the natural areas are ordered through specific plans for each conservation category. Also, the planning and management of these spaces advances in a coherent way thanks to a complex mechanism of administrative organisation in which the Government of the Canary Islands, the Island Councils, the Insular Board of Trustees, the Advisory Council for the Environment and Planning of the Territory and the Council of Protected Natural Areas intervene. In addition to the Protected Natural Areas declared according to the regional legislation in force, the Canary Islands Parliament can integrate into this Network those areas that have a specific protection granted by international or supanational organisations.