National Parks Autonomous Agency

The National Parks Autonomous Agency is responsible for:{{Cite web|url=https://boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-2018-9859|title=Royal Decree 864/2018, of July 13, which develops the basic organic structure of the Ministry for the Ecological Transition.|last=|first=|date=|website=boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-06}}

• The formulation of the national policy regarding national parks.
• The dissemination and promotion of the image, values, and conservation model of national parks abroad.
• The planning and management of the natural spaces of state competence.
• The management of the mountains, farms and other assets assigned or their ownership.
• The coordination and promotion of the Man and the Biosphere Programme of UNESCO, as well as the promotion, coordination and support of the Biosphere Reserve Network.
• The support to the Ecological Transition Department's policies regarding biodiversity, conservation and sustainable use of natural resources, conservation of fauna, flora, habitat and natural ecosystems in the terrestrial and marine environment. In this sense, it has the same responsibilities in the Department's policies on education, information, awareness, training and public participation on environmental issues through the National Center for Environmental Education (CENEAM).
• The provision to the public of information and documentation services specialized in protected areas, nature conservation, dissemination, communication and environmental education.
• The cooperation with public and private entities, both national (state, regional and local) and international, for the development of the previous functions.

File:Lago Enol (Asturias).JPG.]]

File:Teide Nevado.jpg in Winter.]]

File:Bosque Fanlo-Sarvisé (Huesca, Pirineo Aragonés).JPG.]]

File:Sant Maurici lake, Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici National Park, Spain - Diliff.jpg.]]

File:Lanzarote Timanfaya Geysir.jpg mountain, in Lanzarote, comes back as a small Geysir.]]

The first National Parks Act was passed on December 8, 1916. This law was one of the first in Europe dedicated to the protection of nature and it consisted in just three articles. The law, defined the national parks as "those exceptionally picturesque, forested or rugged sites or places of the national territory, which the State consecrates, declaring them such, with the sole purpose of favoring their access through adequate means of communication, and respecting and to ensure that the natural beauty of its landscapes, the richness of its fauna and its flora and the geological and hydrological participles that they enclose are respected, thus avoiding with the greatest efficiency any act of destruction, deterioration or disfigurement by the hand of the man".{{Cite web|url=https://www.boe.es/datos/pdfs/BOE//1916/343/A00575-00575.pdf|title=Spanish National Parks Act of December 7, 1916.|last=|first=|date=8 December 1916|website=www.boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=10 October 2019}} The first two national parks to be created were the Covadonga Mountain National Park (current Picos de Europa National Park) and the Ordesa Valley National Park (currently named Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park).{{Cite web|url=https://www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-1918-4414|title=Royal Decree of August 16, 1918 creating the National Park of the Ordesa Valley or the Ava River and the Covadonga National Park.|last=|first=|date=|website=www.boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-10}}

From 1918 to 1954, the National Parks Network was integrated by those two parks. In 1954, two places of the Canary Islands were granted with the rank of national parks, the Teide National Park{{Cite web|url=https://www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-1954-1459|title=Decree of January 22, 1954, creating the Teide National Park (Canary Islands).|last=|first=|date=|website=www.boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-10}} and the Caldera de Taburiente National Park.{{Cite web|url=https://www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-1954-18708|title=Decree of October 6, 1954, creating the National Park of the "Caldera de Taburiente", in the island of La Palma, in Santa Cruz de Tenerife.|last=|first=|date=|website=www.boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-10}} A year later, the Aiguas Tortas y Lago de San Mauricio National Park was created.{{Cite web|url=https://www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-1955-15936|title=Decree of October 21, 1955 creating the "Parque Nacional de Aiguas Tortas y Lago de San Mauricio", in the province of Lleida.|last=|first=|date=|website=www.boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-10}}

In 1957, a new Forestry Act was passed and it replaced the old Forestry Act of 1863 and also the National Parks Act of 1916. This new legislation also marks a substantial change in the legislative approach to environmental protection, according to which ecological factors begin to be more important when declaring new parks; in front of the merely historical and landscape.{{Cite web|url=https://www.boe.es/datos/pdfs/BOE//1957/151/A00362-00372.pdf|title=Forestry Act of 1957|last=|first=|date=|website=|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=}} Years later, in 1969, Doñana is declared a National Park{{Cite web|url=https://boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-1969-1252|title=Decree of October 16, 1969, creating the National Park of Doñana.|last=|first=|date=|website=boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-11}} and, in 1973, the Tablas of Daimiel.{{Cite web|url=https://boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-1973-1066|title=Decree 1874/1973, of June 28, which declares National Park to the Tablas de Daimiel and creates a zone of integral reserve of water birds within it.|last=|first=|date=|website=boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-11}} A year later, a new national park is created in the Canary Islands, the Timanfaya National Park.{{Cite web|url=https://boe.es/buscar/doc.php?id=BOE-A-1974-1520|title=Decree of August 9, 1974 creating the Timanfaya National Park, on the island of Lanzarote, in the province of Las Palmas.|last=|first=|date=|website=boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-11}}

Other important year for the protection of the Spanish parks is 1975. The Protected Natural Spaces Act is passed which creates three new classifications of protected spaces —Integral Reserves of Scientific Interest, Natural Parks and Natural Parks of National Interest—, in addition to national parks. This law also brings with it the reclassification of several parks, with the notorious expansion of Doñana and Ordesa y Monte Perdido.{{Cite web|url=https://www.boe.es/diario_boe/txt.php?id=BOE-A-1975-9246|title=Protected Natural Spaces Act of 1975|last=|first=|date=|website=www.boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-11}} In the beginning of the 80s, the Garajonay National Park is created, one of the best world representations of the laurel, relict vegetation of the Tertiary Era.{{Cite web|url=https://boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-1981-8599|title=Garajonay National Park Act of 1981|last=|first=|date=|website=boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-11}}

The Natural Spaces and Wild Flora and Fauna Conservation Act of 1989 gave a decisive push to the National Parks Network. This law officially creates the Network and it contained a clause where it is detailed which parks are part of it and their ecosystems. Finally, the law also assumes the right of every person to environment. Following the principles established by this law, in 1991 the Cabrera Archipelago Maritime-Terrestrial National Park{{Cite web|url=https://boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-1991-10513|title=Cabrera Archipelago Maritime-Terrestrial National Park Act of April 29, 1991.|last=|first=|date=|website=boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-12}} is created and in 1995 the Covadonga National Park is extended integrating all the limestone landscape, creating the Picos de Europa National Park.{{Cite web|url=https://boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-1995-12915|title=Picos de Europa National Park Act of May 30, 1995.|last=|first=|date=|website=boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-12}} Months later, the Cabañeros National Park is created and integrated into the Network.{{Cite web|url=https://boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-1995-25204|title=Cabañeros National Park Act of November 20, 1995.|last=|first=|date=|website=boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-12}}

During the following years after the approval of this law, there was discomfort among the regions because the law gave the exclusive power to the central government to manage the National Parks. Several regions —Andalusia, Aragón, Balearic Islands, Basque Country, Canary Islands, Cantabria, Castile and León and Catalonia— presented unconstitutionality appeals before the Constitutional Court against the law and other related regulations for this reason. In 1995, the Constitutional Court declared unconstitutional the fifth additional provision of the law{{Cite web|url=https://www.boe.es/buscar/doc.php?id=BOE-T-1995-18444|title=Constitutional Court Judgment 102/1995 declaring the fifth additional provision of Law 4/1989 void.|last=|first=|date=|website=www.boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-12}} and in 1997 the Spanish Parliament reformed the 1989 Act to establish a shared system of managing between the central government and the regions. On June 23, 1995, because of the devolution of powers to the regions, the Minister of Agriculture Luis María Atienza approved a royal decree merging two other agencies, the Institute for the Conservation of Nature (ICONA) and the National Institute for Agrarian Reform and Development (IRYDA) to create the current OAPN.

In 1999 a new national park was created, this time the Sierra Nevada National Park,{{Cite web|url=https://boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-1999-782|title=Sierra Nevada National Park Act of January 11, 1999.|last=|first=|date=|website=boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-12}} and in 2002 the Atlantic Islands of Galicia National Park.{{Cite web|url=https://boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-2002-12994|title=Atlantic Islands of Galicia National Park Act of July 1, 2002.|last=|first=|date=|website=boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-12}}

Another appeal of unconstitutionality is filed by the regions of Andalusia and Aragón against the 1998 Act. These two regions criticized the shared system. The Constitutional Court was forced to interpret the law and it established in 2004 that the shared system consisted on a day-to-day management by the regions (including the appointment of all the officials and the heads of the national parks) but this management must to be finance by the regional governments, and the superior supervision and coordination of the Network was granted to the central government by giving to it the authority to create or extend national parks and to establish the general guidelines of action.{{Cite web|url=https://www.boe.es/buscar/doc.php?id=BOE-T-2004-20437|title=Constitutional Court Judgment 194/2004.|last=|first=|date=|website=www.boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-12}}

In March 2007 the Monfragüe National Park was created{{Cite web|url=https://boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-2007-4461|title=Monfragüe National Park Act of March 2, 2007.|last=|first=|date=|website=boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-12}} and, a month later, the National Parks Network Act was passed. The National Parks Network Act of 2007 assumed the interpretation of the Constitutional Court and it granted the supervisory power to the Department of Environment, through its Autonomous Agency. The last national park to be created was the Sierra de Guadarrama National Park on June 25, 2013.{{Cite web|url=https://boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-2013-6900|title=Sierra de Guadarrama National Park Act of June 23, 2013.|last=|first=|date=|website=boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-12}}

On December 3, 2014 it was approved the current National Parks Act. This law reinforces, for its singularity, the protection of those parks and it establish an improved coordination and support system with the central government. In this sense, the law established an emergency system against environmental disasters and it forbids activities such as sport and recreational fishing, sport and commercial hunting, logging for commercial purposes, as well as urbanization and building.

In June 2021, Spanish Parliament approved the Sierra de las Nieves National Park Act, a law that transformed the Sierra de las Nieves Natural Park into a national park.{{Cite web|last=Orellana|first=Jesús Sánchez|date=2021-06-23|title=La Sierra de las Nieves se convierte en el decimosexto parque nacional de España|url=https://elpais.com/clima-y-medio-ambiente/2021-06-23/la-sierra-de-las-nieves-se-convierte-en-el-decimosexto-parque-nacional-de-espana.html|access-date=2021-06-24|website=EL PAÍS|language=es}}

{{See also|List of national parks of Spain|List of national parks of Spain and their relationship to sites of community importance}}

File:Iglesia de la Purísima Concepción (Chafarinas) en 1893.jpg (Chafarinas) in 1893.]]

File:Palacio de las Marismillas de Doñana.jpg.]]

The National Parks Network (RPN) is a system established to protect and manage some Spanish Natural Heritage with the category of national park. The RPN is integrated by 16 national parks and all the staff and administrations that are part of it. The network encompasses approximately 1 million acres (4,450 km²). The largest national park is the Sierra Nevada National Park with 212,222 acres (858,8 km²) and it is surrounded by the Sierra Nevada Natural Park, that is approx. 200,000 acres.{{Cite web|url=http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/medioambiente/servtc5/ventana/mostrarFicha.do;jsessionid=82CBDEC4E7F40FA5353BCD6E7AA22D9B?idEspacio=7418|title=ESPACIO NATURAL SIERRA NEVADA - VENTANA DEL VISITANTE|website=www.juntadeandalucia.es|access-date=2019-10-12}} The smallest park is the Tablas de Daimiel National Park at 7,487 acres (30,3 km²).{{Cite web|url=http://www.lastablasdedaimiel.com/el-parque_elparque_25.html|title=El parque :: Parque Nacional Tablas de Daimiel. Información, Actividades y Alojamientos.|website=www.lastablasdedaimiel.com|access-date=2019-10-12}}

In addition to the national parks, that are directly managed by the Spanish regional administrations, the National Parks Autonomous Agency (OAPN) administers other properties. The OAPN administers 18 properties that encompasses 247,105.40 acres (1,000 km² approx.). All these properties have in common the fact of being representative of some of the most emblematic landscapes and Iberian ecosystems. Most of these properties are owned by a public entity, although some of them are private (the Encomienda de Mudela is 99,97% private, La Graciosa is 7% private, New Place of Serradilla is 1,8% private).

The National Parks Network reached the number of 10 million visitors in 2000 and 15 million in 2016, with its peak in 2017. The last data, from 2023, shows that the Network received 15.02 million visitors throughout the 16 parks.{{Cite web |title=Red de Parques Nacionales: Visitantes |url=https://www.miteco.gob.es/content/dam/miteco/es/parques-nacionales-oapn/red-parques-nacionales/desarrollo-socioeconomico/informes/Visitantes%20a%20los%20Parques%20Nacionales%20Espa%C3%B1oles.%20A%C3%B1o%202023.pdf |access-date=11 January 2025 |website=www.miteco.gob.es |language=es |format=PDF}} The most visited national park is the Teide National Park with 4.46 million visitors each year,{{Cite web |last=Santana |first=María Rodríguez |date=2022-06-25 |title=Masificación, cambio climático y especies invasoras, las amenazas que urgen a la conservación del Parque Nacional del Teide |url=https://www.eldiario.es/canariasahora/tenerifeahora/masificacion-cambio-climatico-especies-invasoras-amenazas-urgen-conservacion-parque-nacional-teide_1_9110543.html |access-date=2022-10-06 |website=elDiario.es |language=es}} followed by the Sierra de Guadarrama National Park with 2.13 million, the Picos de Europa National Park with 1.7 million{{Cite web|url=https://www.eldiariomontanes.es/cantabria/visitantes-picos-europa-20171218171507-nt.html|title=De los dos millones de visitantes de Picos de Europa, 700.000 acceden por Fuente Dé|date=2017-12-18|website=El Diario Montañes|language=es|access-date=2019-10-12}} and the Timanfaya with around 1.63 million. The less visited national parks are the Cabañeros National Park, the Cabrera Archipelago Maritime-Terrestrial National Park and the Tablas de Daimiel National Park, all of them with an average of 80,000 to 160,000 visitors.

{{Vertical bar chart|1996|full_name=Visitors data to the National Parks 1996-2023 (millions)

|color_12=blue

|type=demographic

|note=Ref:{{Cite web|url=https://www.miteco.gob.es/es/red-parques-nacionales/la-red/gestion/visitasppnn_tcm30-67283.pdf|title=Visitor data to the National Parks 1996-2017|last=|first=|date=|website=www.miteco.gob.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=}}

|8.5|1998|9.08|2000|10.25|2002|9.7|2004|11.1|2006|10.7|2008|10.2|2010|9.6|2012|9.5|2014|13.7|2016|15.01|2017|15.51|2018|15.24|2019|14.48|2020|9.33|2021|11.99|2022|13.94|2023|15.02}}

The national parks have, in general, all the necessary and sufficient provision of means for their proper functioning and development. In addition to the equipment and infrastructures for public use, all the national parks of the National Parks Network have at least one administrative office and a basic resource for their maintenance, surveillance and own monitoring (vehicles, forestry machinery, technical material, etc.).

The data about the material resources are very scarce and outdated, since the last official report dates from 2013. As of 2013, the 15 national parks had 32 visitors centers, 58 information centers, 121 parkings, 157 lookouts and 67 entertainment areas.{{Cite web|url=https://www.miteco.gob.es/es/red-parques-nacionales/divulgacion/tomo1-informe-estado-red-2011-2013_tcm30-380418.pdf|title=Status Report of the National Parks Network (2011-2013)|last=|first=|date=2013|website=www.miteco.gob.es|page=54|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=12 October 2019}} Also, the vehicles fleet of the Network was 392 in 2013.

Between 1918 and 1997, the staff in charge of the national parks was part of the General State Administration. The Constitution of 1978 established a decentralized system and in 1997 most of the regions assumed the managements of the active national parks within its territories. As of 2015, the National Parks Network staff was integrated by 1,908 people.{{Cite web|url=https://www.miteco.gob.es/es/red-parques-nacionales/la-red/gestion/memoria-2015_tcm30-378646.pdf|title=Report of the National Parks Network - 2015|last=|first=|date=|website=|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=}} From those, 502 were firefighters and 426 surveillance and security.

{{main|World Heritage Site|List of World Heritage Sites in Spain}}World Heritage Sites have enough universally recognized natural and cultural features that they are considered to merit the protection of all the peoples in the world. Spain is currently the third country with more World Heritage Sites, and the OAPN administers four of them:

• Garajonay National Park, Canary Islands.
• Doñana National Park, Andalusia.
• Pyrénées – Mont Perdu World Heritage Site, Aragón (shared with France)
• Teide National Park, Canary Islands.

{{See also|World Network of Biosphere Reserves|World Network of Biosphere Reserves in Europe and North America}}

The OAPN also administers the Spanish Network of Biosphere Reserves (REBR). The REBR is integrated by the 52 Spanish biosphere reserves designated as such by the UNESCO.{{Cite web|url=https://www.lamoncloa.gob.es/lang/en/gobierno/news/Paginas/2019/20190619biosphere-reserves.aspx|title=La Moncloa. 19/06/2019. UNESCO approves three new biosphere reserves in Spain [Acting Government/News]|website=www.lamoncloa.gob.es|language=en|access-date=2019-10-12}} Spain has many more biosphere reserves, but this are specially protected and all of them coordinated and supported by an independent agency, the National Parks Autonomous Agency.

The agency has two committees for a better coordination of the National Parks Network and to advise the agency.

Integrated in the General State Administration there is a National Parks Collaboration and Coordination Committee. This committee aims to deepen collaboration and coordination mechanisms, study possible common effects, reconcile the implementation of programs and actions in national parks, exchange information and experiences, and facilitate the dissemination of knowledge between the national parks administrations.{{Cite web|url=https://www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-2014-12588|title=National Parks Act of December 3, 2014.|last=|first=|date=|website=www.boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-06}} The committee is chaired by the Director of the National Parks Agency and it is integrated by the administrators of the national parks, twelve representatives of the agency and the administrators of the centers and other properties of the agency. The Deputy Director of the agency is also a member of the committee and it is the deputy chair of it.{{Cite web|url=https://boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-2016-698|title=Orden AAA/38/2016, de 18 de enero, por la que se establece la composición, funciones y funcionamiento del Comité de Colaboración y Coordinación de Parques Nacionales, de las Comisiones de Coordinación y del Comité Científico de Parques Nacionales|trans-title=Order of the Environment Minister which establishes the composition, functions and operation of the National Parks Collaboration and Coordination Committee, the Coordination Commissions and the National Parks Scientific Committee|last=|first=|date=|website=boe.es|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-10-06}}

The Scientific Committee is the body of the OAPN in charge of scientifically advising on any question that may be raised from the Office of the Director of the Autonomous Agency, at the initiative of this or at the request of the national parks administrations. The Director and Deputy Director who are the chair and deputy chair, respectively, are part of the committee. In addition to these, the committee is also integrated by twenty members appointed by the director for a four-year term.

{{Reflist}}

{{National parks of Spain}}

{{Departments and agencies of the Government of Spain}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Government agencies of Spain

Category:National parks of Spain

Category:1995 establishments in Spain

Category:Nature conservation in Spain

Category:Environment and heritage law enforcement agencies