Birding Cadiz Province
  • Birding Cadiz Province
  • Birding Site Guide
  • Cadiz Birding Blog
  • Six of the best!
    • 1- Laguna de Medina
    • 2 - Tarifa
    • 3 - Sanlucar - Bonanza
    • 4 - Llanos de Libar
    • 5 - Bolonia Area
    • 6 - La Janda
  • Professional Bird Guides
  • Crossbill Guides & other information
  • Other Wildlife
  • Talks & Further Information
    • Information: Books, Information Centres & Leaflets
    • Talks
    • Alcala de los Gazules
    • About Me
  • Contact

Migration & Global Change Centre - Punta Camorro, Tarifa

1/6/2014

1 Comment

 
Picture
Africa from the new centre
PictureProposed centre for the study of Migration and Global Change
Back in 2011 I heard that a new centre for the study 'Migration and Global Change' was going to be built on what was previously a military base just east of Tarifa at Punta Camorro.  Given the current dire state of the Spanish economy, I rather assumed that this plan would never come to fruition.  So imagine my delight and surprise this spring when I found that building works were in hand and the centre was due to be completed in autumn 2014.  The bulk of the 1.6 million euro bill (900,000€) comes from Red Electrica de Espana, presumably in mitigation for being allowed top dot the landscape (including parts of the Natural Park!) with wind generators. 

PictureCazalla's 'white elephant - see (c) on map below
This time I hope funding is in place to set the place up properly with basic necessities (like a water and power supply),  that there's no question about the access being in some way unsafe and that the political will is there to see the project through.  According to the various stories I've been told over the years, all of these (and more) were the reasons why the purpose built raptor watching centre at Cazalla stands empty.  This scandalous 'white elephant' sits above the road into Tarifa as a depressing monument to EU funded waste and incompetence.  Recently it's been suggested to me that the EU is looking to get its money back since the place looks destined to remain mothballed permanently.  I don't know whether this is true, but it wouldn't surprise me since the EU are also looking to get a multi-million refund for the abandoned Seville-Malaga AVE trainline. Whilst in many ways this makes sense, it'd be a shame as that would mean the place would never come into use.  Its position makes it an ideal location for a centre to educate and inform locals/tourists - something that seems to have been willfully neglected in the past.

PictureLooking towards Tarifa & Tangiers
Only time will tell whether the new centre will fare any better – it's certainly ideally located for birdwatching, but perhaps less so to pick up 'passing trade' from tourists (if indeed this is part of the centre's brief).   With accommodation and other facilities, the new centre should hopefully generate some income of its own. There's a doleful history of facilities in Spain (and doubtless elsewhere) being built, in part with EU funding, and then standing unused or, at best under used, as the funding for running costs aren't in place.  

Perhaps foolishly, I'm optimistic that this time, they've got it right and that this new centre will make a significant contribution  to the study of migratory birds.  The detailed 'mission statement' (see -http://www.fundacionmigres.org/en/seccion/Migration/and/global/change/164/290/436/0/2/0/36) is full of worthy scientific aims and agendas. Apparently, it's main areas of activity will be 
                            the scientific study migration and global change, research, collection of data, bio-diverstiy 
                             technological development develoopment and application of environmental solutions
                            Training (seemingly aimed at post graduate students)
                            Conferences and publications
.... and who could argue with that? 

Picture
And yet ........

The organisation has to get a better grip on modern technology than it has been in the past and publicise its work and results to a wider, international audience.  A new promised blog 'Migration at the Strait of Gibraltar' will be a start.  Using Facebook and Twitter to post daily figures for migration totals surely wouldn't be too hard.  I hope too that the whiff of the scientific ivory tower I had as I read through the proposals is more about my mis-perceptions than the reality to come.Birders talking to birders may be very jolly, but if we're ever going to be serious about the environment and conservation we need to engage the wider public.   It always astonishes me that so many holiday makers blithely sit below one of Europe's most extraordinary spectacles, that is the mass migration of storks and raptors, without apparently noticing! Making them notice, and above all care about the fact, has got to have a high priority.  This priority may yet be buried somewhere in the 'mission statement', but the fact that it isn't obvious suggests to me that getting out in the community and engaging local organisations, schools, etc isn't the priority I think it ought to be.  Yet I remain optimistic - other organisations are taking up this baton and it's to be hoped that once established this new centre will do more in this vital area than seems to be promised.

1 Comment
Mike Mills
19/9/2024 11:49:24 am

How do I get the full version of your Guide and make a donation, please.

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    About me ...

    Hi I'm John Cantelo. I've been birding seriously  since the 1960s when I met up with some like minded folks (all of us are still birding!) at Taunton's School in Southampton.  I have lived in Kent , where I taught History and Sociology, since the late 1970s. I've served on the committees of both my local RSPB group and the county ornithological society (KOS).  I also worked as a part-time field teacher for the RSPB at Dungeness.  Having retired I now spend as much time as possible in Alcala de los Gazules in SW Spain.   When I'm not birding I edit books for the Crossbill Guides series.

    Picture

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All

    Archives

    May 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    December 2024
    October 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    March 2024
    December 2023
    October 2023
    August 2023
    May 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    October 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    November 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    March 2020
    October 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    March 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    September 2017
    May 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    July 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    June 2013
    May 2013
    March 2013
    December 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    February 2012
    December 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.