The acting Minister of Sustainability and Environment of the Junta de Andalucía, Catalina García, visited the area of the Laguna de Las Madres, located between the municipalities of Moguer and Palos de la Frontera, in Huelva. In this natural park, the Andalusian government and the Fundación Moeve are promoting environmental recovery interventions.
The event served to present the intervention project for the wetland, a result of the collaboration between the regional administration and the Fundación Moeve. The presentation was attended by various authorities and representatives of social stakeholders from the area, including Teresa Mañueco, Director General of Fundación Moeve, and the mayors of Moguer and Palos de la Frontera, Gustavo Cuéllar and Milagros Romero, respectively.
Catalina García highlighted the commitment established in December 2025, forging an alliance among different actors for the restoration of this site, considered one of the most valuable wetlands in southern Europe. This agreement aims to promote restoration actions in this unique space, a fundamental part of the natural park Lagunas de Palos y Las Madres, integrated into Red Natura 2000 and a Ramsar site, and recognized for its high biodiversity in the province of Huelva.
The regional official explained that the objective is to recover an emblematic environment, improving its ecological status, promoting social awareness, and aligning interventions with the goals of sustainability and protection of Andalusian natural heritage. Measures will focus on restoring natural water flow, restoring habitats, enhancing biodiversity, and managing invasive species, while promoting public use compatible with conservation.
These actions will enable the re-establishment of hydrological flows and ecological processes, fostering connectivity between wetlands, species migration, and genetic diversity, especially for aquatic birds, thereby improving the environmental quality of the lagoon system. García expressed her satisfaction in undertaking this transformative process alongside social agents and the Fundación Moeve, reinforcing the conservation of the Laguna de Las Madres and its role in the regional ecological balance.
The minister reaffirmed the Junta de Andalucía's commitment to protecting Huelva's wetlands, which are essential for biodiversity and climate change adaptation, as they regulate the water cycle, improve air quality, act as carbon sinks, and offer spaces for education and nature enjoyment.
“"It is a privilege to have acted as the unifying point among all involved stakeholders, as healthy ecosystems are essential for social well-being. We are particularly pleased to put an enclave as important as Laguna de las Madres on the agenda."
The Laguna de Las Madres, spanning approximately sixty hectares, is a habitat of extraordinary richness linked to water. It serves as a refuge for numerous breeding bird species, mammal populations such as the otter, and occasional sightings of the Iberian lynx. It is part of the natural park Lagunas de Palos y Las Madres, a complex of nearly seven hundred hectares declared a Site of Community Importance (SCI) and a Special Area of Conservation (SAC), in addition to being included in the Ramsar List and the Inventory of Wetlands of Andalusia.
This enclave combines environmental, landscape, and cultural values that justify reinforcing its active conservation. The pressure of human uses in its surroundings, historical hydrological modifications, and the inherent fragility of wetland ecosystems make joint planning of interventions crucial to ensure its good ecological status in the medium and long term.
