Creating Sierra de las Nieves National Park for the greater Good of Andalusia

Residents of the 12 municipalities that occupy the Sierra de las Nieves are generally pleased that the region has decided to make an application for National Park status. This would create Andalusia’s third national park after Sierra Nevada and Doñana. For nature lovers with a holiday home in Benahavis near Marbella, El Burgo, Monda Ojén, Ronda, Tolox, Aloxaina, Casarabonela, Guaro, Istán and Parauta the extension from International Biosphere Reserve to full National Park status for the Sierra de las Nieves region would mean an even greater adventure awaits them on their next holiday.
 
So far its looks as if all official channels are happy to go ahead with the proposal, for its means improved tourism, but also better protection of natural resources and wildlife, the local economy and a regeneration of the villages in Andalusia’s inland, where a depopulation is turning once thriving village communities into ghost towns.
 
A far Cry from Marbella’s Golden Mile and Puerto Banus Developments

For property buyers with a sense of adventure, there are many holiday home bargains to be had inland, but most people don’t like living as hermits surrounded by empty homes, so bringing a certain amount of tourism and therefore employment into the Sierra de las Nieves region is essential, if these threatened communities are to survive the next few years.
 
Protecting the Environment from Over-Development

In total, the new National Park would comprise of 18,000 hectares, an area that is the natural habitat of the rare “pinsapo” tree and a large number of endangered animals and wild plants. 16,500 hectares of this land are already owned publicly, by local councils, the State and the Junta de Andalusia.  Turning the Sierra de las Nievas into a protected habitat would also ensure funding from the Junta, the State and European Union funds.

Local mayors expressed their general approval for the scheme, although some warned that such a scheme must go hand in hand with improvement to infrastructure and sustainable sources of income for the existing local population.

Taking the long-term View

The price of holiday homes in Benehavis near Marbella hasn’t gone up because of the announcement of the environmentally friendly plans, but a successful bid for National Park status may well see prices for holiday accommodation rise over time, which in turn will drive up property prices in the Sierra de las Nieves.
 
And for those at the edge of the proposed designated National Park area it means uninterrupted views for life, since no further development will be permitted to take place on National Park land.

Village life in the Sierra de las Nieves appeals to expats who are looking for the real Spain, an outdoor lifestyle that is purely Mediterranean and doesn’t come with fish ‘n chips or curry houses at every corner. The whitewashed townhouses of Ronda for example are about as far removed as it gets from Puerto Banus’ designer chic and the Golden Mile’s razzmatazz on Saturday nights. It’s a more peaceful life, a lifestyle sought by artists and those hoping to leave behind their hectic life in commerce. That doesn’t mean it’s dull – just different.

Inland properties will suit those with a sense of adventure, people looking for an active lifestyle with hiking, paragliding, climbing, horse-riding or mountain biking. However, the villages in the Sierra de las Nieves, which are really only a few miles’ distance from Marbella, will also suit retirees looking for peace and tranquillity and a truly Spanish way of life.