The Balearic ministry for the natural environment has drawn up a new set of rules for authorising or denying certain sports events in the Tramuntana Mountains.
The need for these rules has arisen from concerns about potential environmental damage and from a lack of clarity in the previous regulations. For example, a general maximum of 2,000 participants was established in 2018, but it wasn't clear exactly what this referred to - was it by route, by day, by type of event? There has been confusion and room for interpretation, which has generated legal uncertainty for organisers.
The mountains are governed by a variety of regulations. They are a World Heritage Site and a 'paraje natural', sometimes mistakenly taken to mean nature park, which isn't the case. The Tramuntana is a natural region subject to protection of a kind that differs to that of a nature park and which permits activities that couldn't take place in, for instance, the Albufera or Es Trenc nature parks. There are exclusion zones to protect birdlife, there are areas of special natural interest and so on.
Even with all this regulation, the rules have until now failed to specify maximum numbers of people for different events. The new criteria therefore set a daily limit of 1,800 participants for events on foot, e.g. trail-running and Nordic walking; no more than 700 people can be on a particular route at the same time. For mountain biking, the daily limit will be far lower - 450. Other criteria include restrictions on the use of PA systems and the location of refreshment areas.
These all apply to events using mountain tracks. What they do not apply to are events on roads, which can generate greater controversy. The roads do not come under protection regulations. Although they can be particularly sensitive in terms of noise and safety, their exclusion from the rules is legally justified by the fact that they use roads.
One such event is the Mallorca 312 cycling challenge, which is being held this Saturday and has 8,500 participants. Organisations such as Tramuntana XXI have questioned the suitability of allowing this type of event, citing both the environmental impact and the disruption it causes.
But whether on tracks or roads, there are questions as to capacity. The ministry is to carry out an environmental study to determine the carrying capacity for the different events. This study will also examine how many events and what types of event there should be without jeopardising conservation. The new rules are therefore likely to be temporary until the results of this study are known.