The Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITECO) has reiterated this Thursday that, as long as an autonomous community does not have a Biomass Management Plan for the invasive alga Rugulopteryx okamurae validated by the department itself, it will not be able to process permits for projects for the use or valorization of said biomass, although research initiatives are permitted.
This limitation is included in the Species Control Strategy, which determines that the use or valorization of the biomass of this invasive alga will only be possible when the material has been removed from the beaches or the coastline within the framework of a specific Biomass Management Plan.
The document emphasizes that the drafting and approval of these plans correspond "exclusively" to the autonomous communities and cities. Currently, only three plans have been approved: Andalusia, Galicia, and Melilla.
"Two years after the publication of the guide prepared by MITECO to facilitate the drafting of these plans, it is not recorded that other communities affected by the expansion of the species, such as Cantabria, have completed the development and approval of this essential tool for advancing biomass management," the Ministry has indicated.
In this regard, the department has emphasized that the existence of a Management Plan allows the processing of authorizations for valorization projects for economic purposes, but does not imply automatic authorization in any case.
Each proposal must be analyzed individually following technical, environmental, and safety criteria, and ensuring at all times the traceability of the biomass, as well as its transport, storage, and complete inactivation.
"Therefore, valorization constitutes a complementary measure and always subordinate to the priority objective of conserving the marine environment and reducing the impacts caused by this invasive species," the Ministry has explained.