La Palma’s Reconstruction: August 2024 Update

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  The first forum for citizen participation for “an ethical and fair reconstruction” after the La Palma volcano (El Diario, 2024)

  First citizen participation forum for those affected – The Citizen’s Initiative for those affected has organised the “First Citizen Participation Forum for the Reconstruction of La Palma”. The forum will take place on 4th September in Los Llanos de Aridane and is open to those affected and the general public. It aims to address the most critical issues impacting those affected and propose solutions that work for everyone.

• Contract to rebuild La Laguna school awarded – The contract to rebuild the CEIP infant school in La Laguna, which was destroyed by the lava flows, has been awarded to the company San Juan Arquitectura. The budget for the project is €73,838, and includes the demolition and rebuilding of the teaching units as well as a geotechnical survey of the site.
  

  Heat and settling of the ground produce cracks in the road between La Laguna and Las Norias (El Time, 2024)

• Cracks appear on the La Laguna – Las Norias road – Cracks have been found in the paving of the road across the lava flows between La Laguna and Las Norias, which are suspected to have been caused by the heat, cooling, contraction and settling of the lava flows. These are normal during a post-eruptive process, and IGME will install meters to monitor the size and growth of these cracks. Elsewhere, the Cabildo de La Palma and IGME are working together to monitor faults in the subsoil, especially close to the LP-211 and LP-213 roads.
• El Paso to build 35 homes for those affected – The municipality of El Paso has allocated €6.5 million to construct 35 homes primarily for those affected by the eruption who lost their homes. This will be done on a plot of land that the Los Llanos City Council transferred for this purpose. The Cabildo are particularly focused on providing housing solutions for those who continue to live in prefabricated temporary wooden or metal container homes.
• Proposal for protected zone in the lava flows – Alejandro Hernández Torres, a specialist in rural and urban ecology and development, has proposed creating a Protected Natural Area (Rural Park) in areas of Los Llanos partially affected by the lava flows, to generate income and improve quality of life. The proposed area would be between the LP-213 and LP-211 roads to the south of the lava flows.
• Delays in LP-2 recovery – The recovery of the LP-2 road across the lava flows has been delayed and will not begin before 2025. The project has been through many modifications for technical reasons, and a final plan is still yet to be announced.
• Works at Las Manchas Cemetery—Tierra Bonita has issued a press release demanding to know Los Llanos’s plans for the Las Manchas Cemetery, which has been partially destroyed since the eruption. Many plans have been floated for the area, and some works are underway, but according to Tierra Bonita, there is much confusion and little messaging about what the current long-term plans are for the area.

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  Banana trees affected by the volcano are exempt from the 70% minimum for commercialisation (Diario de Avisos, 2024)

  Estimations of infrastructure damage costs – Estimates of costs due to infrastructure damage in the Aridane Valley from the eruption have risen from an initial estimate of €24 million by the previous government, to €62 million. The President of the Cabildo de La Palma has said he is surprised by the rise and the earlier figure must have been estimated with some degree of ‘improvisation’ which caused its underestimation. The recovery of infrastructure should be financed 50% by the Spanish Government, 25% by the regional Canarian Government, and 25% by the Cabildo de La Palma.
• Exemptions for affected banana growers – Banana plantations affected by the eruption will once again be exempt from regional regulations that obligate them to market at least 70% of their production. This is due to a reduction in yields in many farms affected by the eruption.
• Permits for reconstruction on part of the lava flow – Residents of the old Cumplido Road, the route of which has been recovered across the lava flows, are now able to apply for a free construction permit along the road, with no obligation to build on the plot.

• Volcanic gas protocols activated in Puerto Naos – On August 13th, the CO2 emissions security protocol was activated for 42 homes in Puerto Naos due to increased concentrations. Emergency services visited the homes to ensure proper ventilation. Although levels were high, no evacuation was necessary. The elevated concentrations were spread across Puerto Naos and were not linked to volcanic activity. Some media outlets incorrectly associated the CO2 increase with volcanic system reactivation, causing unnecessary panic.

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  The Council guarantees the proper functioning of the protocol with the intervention of the Control Center in some homes to ensure ventilation (Cabildo de La Palma, 2024).

  President of the Cabildo de La Palma returns home to Puerto Naos – The President of the Cabildo de La Palma Sergio Rodríguez has returned to his home in Puerto Naos as the town continues to reopen as CO2 concentrations fall in the area. He stated that he would return with his family after many days of cleaning the home, which had not been occupied since September 2021.

• Beach sports return to Puerto Naos – Yoga and Beach Football tournaments have returned to Puerto Naos beach, as part of its ongoing recovery.
• Puerto Naos control centre moves – The control centre in Puerto Naos for the gas network has been approved to be moved by Peinpal. It was located in the educational centre and will be moved to Barranco de Los Hombres, allowing the school to return to being used for education.
• CSIC and Canary Islands Government collaborate – A collaboration agreement between CSIC and the Canary Islands Government has been signed that will cover a wide range of activities, including the creation of volcanic hazard maps for the active Canary Islands including La Palma. Before the 2021 eruption, there was not a definitive volcanic hazard map available, according to CSIC Volcanologist Joan Martí.

Lava Bombs: The Reconstruction Documentary selected for awards – Lava Bombs: The Reconstruction, a documentary by GeoTenerife and New Light Studio concerning the post-eruptive reconstruction of La Palma, has been selected for the Hollywood Best Indie Film Awards. A statement from GeoTenerife says “We are committed to ensuring the 2021 eruption and reconstruction lessons are seen worldwide and our two self-financed 4K documentaries are part of this effort.”

• Tourism recovery in La Palma – July 2024 saw 20% more overnight stays in La Palma compared with July 2023, which is larger than the average increase across the Canarian archipelago.
• Tierra Bonita to argue in court for PEVOLCA recordings – The Tierra Bonita association of La Palma has announced that it will go to court to demand that those affected by the eruption are given access to recordings from PEVOLCA meetings in the hours and days leading up to the 2021 eruption. These meetings have been under much scrutiny due to discussions over whether the authorities knew the eruption was imminent, and whether the volcanic alert level should have been raised to orange or red before the eruption, rather than yellow. They have filed an administrative appeal after rejections from Commissioner for Transparency, Noelia García Leal and her predecessor.
  

  The owner of the ‘house of the crack’ covers it up to protest against its use as a tourist attraction (Planeta Canario, 2024)

• Spanish President visits La Palma – Pedro Sánchez, President of Spain, has visited La Palma. However, the visit has attracted criticism as he refused to meet with the Citizen Initiative to Support those affected by the volcano, who wanted to discuss their concerns about elements of the reconstruction with the president.
• Owner of the famous ‘buried house’ covers it up – The owner of the partially buried house near Las Manchas, that became famous when a volcanic vent opened up directly in front of it during the eruption, has covered the remaining building in protest against its use as a tourist attraction. The owner has said that she is tired of not being given a definitive decision on her home and how to recover her property and the surrounding land, when at the same time scientists and tourists are encouraged to take pictures of the famous home. The owner has been living for three years in a prefabricated modular house given to her by the Canary Islands Government.