Galicia nature reserves information, Spain
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GALICIA Information - GALICIA NATURE PARKS |
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Rias, river-bodied water that smells of sea, are the great Galician loanword to world languages. From the Eo to the Miño, one thousand rivers and 1,675 km of coasts where the Atlantic Ocean turns into the Cantabrian sea. The legend tells that the rias were shaped by the fingers of God leaning on the Garden of Eden when He rested on the seventh day. But do not forget the human presence. No less than half of the population centres existing in Spain are of Galician origin. It is a country of castros (fortified settlements protected by walls and pits, with circular or elliptic or circular stone houses inside), bridges, water mills, soutos, vineyards, cruceiros and sea crossroads, pazos (stately homes) and h6rreos (granaries), churches and convents, basically of Romanesque and Baroque art... All of this would have been impossible without a nature which is capable of taking pleasure in its contact with Atlantic and Mediterranean climates. Variety and contrast are not simple things. Besides the "rias", the coast offers large zones of rough sea, such as the Costa da Morte, together with beaches, salt marshes and lagoons such as the dune complex of Corrubedo. Sometimes from sea level, the heights are gradually spaced out, as is the case of the Serra do Barbanza or of A Capelada, with the highest cliffs in Europe. The mountain backbone of Galicia stretches throughout the central lands, with summits just under 1,000 metres high. Towards the interior, these mountain chains give way to plains such as A Terra Cha or A Limia and, especially, valleys that often run through deep gorges with different orientations and clear diversity. The main rivers, the Mino and the Sil, create actual galleries of life and culture passages. On top of that, the natural paradises of the Western mountains still remain: Ancares et Courel, or the alpine landscapes of the community summits, Pena Trevinca (2,127 m) being the highest one. The whole of Galicia is a natural area. This guide deals with about 12% of the territory subject to some kind of protection. While our last edition welcomed the National Park of the Atlantic Islands; which inaugurated the new millennium with the highest State recognition, this time round we welcome the extensive lands of Terras do Mino, in Lugo province, classified in 2002 as a Biosphere Reserve and included in UNESCO's international network. We have six Nature Parks where the greatest efforts are being concentrated as regards environmental infrastructure for their preservation and general awareness. Given their cross-border nature, we must highlight the collaboration of the Baixa Limia-Serra do Xures (Galicia) Natural Park and the Peneda-Geres National Park (Portugal). In this sense, we should also mention the humid areas which have been included in the RAMSAR international agreement and the Special Areas for Protection of Birds or ZEPA (Zona de Especial Proteccion para las Aves). The European Union is building the basic principles which will inspire policies aimed at adopting preservation measures together with socio-economic activities. When choosing its Sites of Community Importance (SCI), Galicia has decided to represent different priority habitats whose preservation is essential for community interests. The recent incorporation of the western Costa da Marina contributes to almost wholly completing Galicia's coastline, from the Mino to the Eo. Together with the ZEPA, they make up the list of areas included in the Natura 2000 network, chosen in Galicia and from Galicia for the whole world. GALICIA NATURE PARKS LIST |
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