Costa Brava’s last ‘wild coast’ under threat as builders return to region
“BEGUR is authentic” declares a sign welcoming visitors to this medieval coastal town. And indeed, nestled amid thick maritime pine forests that roll down to hidden coves, Begur is a world away from the over-developed resorts and high-rise condominiums that blight better-known destinations in Spain’s Costa Brava.
Perched on one of last near-pristine areas along this 100-mile coastline, Begur and its inlets are embedded in the rugged nature that earned the region the name “wild coast”.
But as property developments swing back into action following the end of the decade-long economic crisis, that rugged nature is under threat. Along the Costa Brava, some 20 projects are now planned, according to SOS Costa Brava, an umbrella organisation which was set up this summer to bring together dozens of alarmed residents’ groups.
In Aiguafreda, a tiny cove in Begur, Anne Mcdonagh-sigliano, a Scottish expat, has owned a second home here for 25 years. “All this that is virgin now, it is all going to be built up,” she told The Daily Telegraph. “The people that have lived here, had houses here for 40 years, are just up in arms.”
Ms Mcdonagh-sigliano is one of hundreds of local residents and homeowners supporting Save Aiguafreda. Now home to just a handful of houses and a restaurant, Aiguafreda is braced for a development of 260 residences and three hotels. Originally agreed in the Seventies, the project had been paralysed for 15 years due to legal and financial disputes, followed by the economic crisis, but has now been revived.
A further 24 luxury apartments are to be built on another slope overlooking Aiguafreda, where diggers have already broken ground.
Residents and environmental groups fear the environmental impact not only from the construction, but also from more rubbish and residual waters being pumped into the sea, where the Ses Negres Marine Reserve lies. Parking and traffic is a major concern.
Lydia Chaporro, a spokesman for Save Aiguafreda, said the population of the municipality of Begur swelled to 10 times its usual size of 4,000 during the summer. Sa Riera, the next cove along from Aiguafreda, where 70 homes are to be built, is already “completely overcrowded”.
The construction of access roads forms part of the plan, which would require further deforestation, said Ms Chaporro. In the case of the main Aiguafreda development, as with many other Costa Brava projects, agreements had been made years ago under what were now “antiquated” environmental standards.
Joan Loureiro, the mayor of Begur, said there was nothing authorities could do to stop the Aiguafreda project as that would require paying up to €75million (£67million) in compensation,
Begur and other areas of the Costa Brava had small, characterful communities and beautiful but fragile landscapes which must be preserved, he said, but equally tourism was fundamental to the local economy.
In a July report, Greenpeace warned that 80 per cent of coastal resources in Spain were degraded due to mass construction, with more than 36 per cent of the country’s beach line now developed.