Plundering Nature In The Name Of Progress

OUR modern world functions more efficiently than ever before, with each new day bringing better technology and slicker systems. 

However, what about the state of Mother Nature? What price does our homeland, The Earth, pay for our progress? 

The beautiful coastal town of Mojacar is, like many others in Spain, currently under heavy construction. Following an extraordinary plenary session held at Mojacar Town Council, in which the General Town Planning Strategy was given provisional approval, works to ‘urbanise’ rural areas have increased. 

Mojacar’s General Urban Planning Strategy was initially approved in September 2014. Between this and the provisional approval in this plenary, there have been some modifications, including the increase of urbanised land, unconsolidated urban land and industrial land.

Non-sectionalised urbanised areas have been adjusted with the main objective of creating a long-term land reserve. Structural roadways have also been incorporated, especially the coastal relief road.

It is a certain coastal roadway under construction that is currently causing an uproar from local residents, as they share images online of the “devastation and destruction on the pointless bypass road currently being built”, as one user put it. 

Many others agreed, with one questioning, “why do they have to spoil everything. The one thing I’ve loved about Mojacar for the past 40+ years is that wasn’t commercialised!”. Another user commented, “yes the road to nowhere, a big shame!!!”. 

However other residents were quick to disagree, stating that this work was necessary and for the benefit of the town, its residents and its tourism. “The roads are hell in the summer, and the road will be great for the locals” stated one user, as another argued that, “in 12 months, when it’s finished and you have all used it a few times because it’s more convenient, you will forget all the negative reasons of today. Whether we like it or not, progress is inevitable. I liked Mojacar 26 years ago and still like it today but in a different way.”

As it seems the people of Mojacar are split with their reactions, the last comment does seem to hold the truth, progress is inevitable, and comments on social media are not likely to stop a major work. 

Despite this, the group ‘Let’s Save Mojacar have officially denounced the “wild” urban development of the new PGOU and are making movements to attempt to prevent it. 

With some hailing the developments whilst others are up in arms, one user who commented on the post summed it up by saying, “destruction of nature for a project that is needed for a limited time in the year – it’s the folly of humankind that we have to constantly build and expand with nature as the inevitable loser. Urban development will inevitably follow, and more traffic, and we’ll wonder how it is that there are no more birds or wildlife in the campo or why the air pollution is getting worse, let alone the constant background noise of cars. And finally Mojacar will become indistinguishable from so many other over-developed towns along the Spanish coast..”

It seems the age old saying, ‘unite to move forward’, is not quite relevant here in Mojacar right now.