UNESCO APPROVES THE EXPANSION AND REZONING OF THE SIERRA DE LAS NIEVES BIOSPHERE RESERVE AND THE UPDATE TO ITS NAME

UNESCO APPROVES THE EXPANSION AND REZONING OF THE SIERRA DE LAS NIEVES BIOSPHERE RESERVE AND THE UPDATE TO ITS NAME

This milestone adapts the structure of the area to the territorial and legal reality resulting from the designation of the Sierra de las Nieves National Park in 2021

The International Coordinating Council of UNESCO’s MAB Program, meeting at its 38th session in Paraguay, gave final approval last Friday, June 5, World Environment Day, the proposal to expand and adjust the zoning of the Sierra de las Nieves Biosphere Reserve, as well as the official update to its name.

This milestone adapts the structure of the area to the territorial and legal reality resulting from the designation of the Sierra de las Nieves National Park in 2021, culminating a process of technical and participatory work jointly led by the Regional Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment of the Regional Government of Andalusia and the Association of Municipalities of the Sierra de las Nieves.

The project reinforces the identity of a region whose residents and local governments spearheaded both the designation of the Biosphere Reserve in 1995 and the subsequent creation of the National Park—the only one in Spain established at the request of its residents— as part of their commitment to socioeconomic development in harmony with the conservation of the region’s natural and cultural values.

With this approval, the boundaries of the Biosphere Reserve are expanded to fully coincide with those of the Sierra de las Nieves National Park and its Peripheral Protection Zone (ZPP). The addition of 4,878.27 hectares, located in the municipalities of Benahavís and Igualeja, brings the total area of the reserve to 98,105.78 hectares in the province of Málaga. As a result, the Reserve now spans 14 municipalities—Alozaina, Benahavís, Casarabonela, El Burgo, Guaro, Igualeja, Istán, Monda, Ojén, Parauta, Ronda, Serrato, Tolox, and Yunquera—which are home to a population of 66,128 inhabitants (INE, 2022).

ZONING

This legal and functional update allows for the efficient reconfiguration of the space, ensuring a perfect balance between strict protection, sustainability, and human activity, in line with the various protection measures in the territory, through the following zoning:

Core Zone (Highest Ecosystem Value): The area under maximum protection has been expanded to 22,979.76 hectares, bringing it entirely within the boundaries of the Sierra de las Nieves National Park. Human activity here is limited to research, conservation, and environmental education.

Buffer Zone: 44,046.07 hectares comprising low-impact environmental protection areas and areas designated for forestry, regulated by various conservation measures that ensure a smooth transition between strict protection zones and areas of traditional sustainable use.

Transition Zone (Human Development): Its original 31,079.95 hectares remain intact. This area encompasses population centers and local economic activities. Its objective is to promote sustainable socioeconomic development and equitable social growth in harmony with the Reserve’s values.

This UNESCO resolution endorses a track record of more than three decades of exemplary management and internationally recognizes the unique character of the Sierra de las Nieves, demonstrating that the commitment of its communities and local governments is the key to a just and prosperous coexistence between humans and the region’s other forms of life and values.