10 Feb La Palma Reconstruction – January 2025
La Palma’s Reconstruction: January 2025 Update
News roundup from across La Palma regarding science occurring in La Palma, reconstruction efforts, aid provided to residents and industries, and other relevant news. Sources this month:
Sources: La Palma Ahora, Cabildo de La Palma, El Time, ABC España, El Valle de Aridane, El Dia, Mirame, Planeta Canario, Canarias 7, El Diario, National Geographic
Reconstruction
- Reduced home-building targets – The island council of La Palma has been criticised for not following its promises for house building. Despite its popular plan for 700 new houses on La Palma, many aimed at those affected by the volcano, they have set themselves a reduced target of building 400 new houses on the island. The cost of these 400 houses will be approximately €90 million.
- Decree for streamlined housebuilding – The Canary Islands Government has announced a decree to simplify the processing time for building permits from ~2 years to ~6 months, to streamline the permit allocation.
- 144 new homes in Los Llanos – 144 new homes are to be bult in Los Llanos de Aridane across two plots, with a cost of €29 million.
- First banana harvest on the lava flows – The first banana harvest from a reconstructed banana plantation on the 2021 lava flows has occurred, and has been seen as a symbol of hope. 195 bananas were harvested from the Las Hoyas farm in Los Llanos in Aridane, which was planted in April 2024.
- Those affected will not move into new Breña Baja homes – 42 new homes in Breña Baja, that were constructed aimed at permanently housing those in temporary container homes following the eruption, will now not house any of these residents. This is because the container home residents rejected the proposition, primarily because the new homes are on the other side of the La Palma, and that they were only one-room dwellings, which some families in the container homes would not be able to live in.
- Legality of new roads confirmed by the Supreme Court – After challenges in the Supreme Court by Ecologistas en Acción over the environmental damage of the coastal road and La Laguna-Las Norias roads across the lava flows, the court has ratified that the works were legal.
- Paving for new small roads – A new reconstruction challenge has arisen – the amount of new access roads needing paving. These access roads have appeared since the eruption, to connect new plots of land that have been permitted for rebuilding. In Los Llanos de Aridane, there are more than 60 of these tracks without paving and basic services.
How is the reconstruction La Laguna school progressing? (El Time, 2025)
Reconstruction of schools – The reconstruction of the CEIP La Laguna, and the return of students to the Puerto Naos school, is still yet to happen following the eruption. The Cabildo has said the reconstruction in La Laguna will begin as soon as possible despite delays, and that the Puerto Naos school has been declared safe in terms of gases, and that it can be opened once again as soon as possible. For the CEIP La Laguna, the Cabildo has received a draft agreement for the rebuilding.
- Cabildo de La Palma, 2025 recovery expectations – Sergio Rodríguez has set out his 2025 objectives for the Cabildo de La Palma in an interview. Among these, he affirmed that those in pre-fabricated container homes should be offered an alternative housing solution, and that the 60% discount on personal income tax for the island will be extended, and that the Proposed National Volcanological Centre will be located on La Palma.
- La Palma Eco-Resort changes plans – The controversial planned La Pavona Ecoresort on La Palma, which would be a very large touristic development aimed at revitalising tourism post-eruption, has changed its plans to no longer include a golf course. This is in order to better adapt to what the island needs, according to the island’s president Sergio Rodríguez.
- Updates on agricultural reconstruction licenses – Tazacorte Town Council have given an update on applications for licenses to reconstruction agricultural land affected by the eruption. There have been 294 applications, 125 of which lacked documentation, and 75 of which have already been granted. An article by El Valle de Aridane however has criticised the lack of help and approvals for these licenses and lack of aid in general for farmers.
Aid
- Supreme Court wins for higher house appraisal values – The Supreme Court of the Canary Island has ruled in favour of those affected in two rulings that the value of destroyed homes given by the Insurance Consortium was lower than the actual values of the homes. In one of these cases, with appraised value was almost €70,000 less than the actual value.
- Reconstruction financing demands – The Tazacorte City Council has approved a proposal by Nueva Canarias asking that the Spanish Government finances 100% of the costs for infrastructure and equipment affected by the eruption, as they claim the Spanish Government is responsible for after declaring the island an “area seriously affected by a civil protection emergency” in September 2021. The same group has also demanded that the Government of Spain supply 100% of the financing for aid for those affected, up from 50% currently. This is because of a drive for equality, as the Spanish Government intends to finance 100% of the costs following the floods in Valencia.
- Cabildo requests exemption from Spanish fiscal rules – The Cabildo de La Palma has requested to be exempt from Spanish fiscal rules, stating the ability of the island to recover is limited by the current regulations, with regards to stable budgets and public debt.
- Reduced tax and fuel prices – The Government of the Canary Islands has approved an extension of La Palma of both a zero rate for the Canary Islands General Indirect Tax (IGIC), as well as the 20 cent per litre fuel discount, to promote the economic recovery of the island. It is expected that the 60% discount on personal income tax will also continue into 2025.
Pedro Sanchez announces a Royal decree which will provide aid for those affected by the volcano despite the omnibus rejection (El Time, 2025)
More aid from Spanish Government announced – Pedro Sánchez, President of the Spanish Government, has announced that they have approved a decree with a raft of new measures including additional aid for those affected by the La Palma volcano.
- Businesses not re-opening as they are receiving aid – A spokesperson for the Jaraco foundation has said that some businesses in Puerto Naos are not reopening as they are still receiving aid. They argue that aid should be eased off as a business reopens, and should be cut off in the business does not reopen for no other reason.
- Psychological supported programme for those affected ends – The PEX La Palma Psychosocial 2023 project has concluded, after its funding period has finished. The project provided support for those affected by the eruption, and employed 21 unemployed workers, as well as educators, an occupational therapist, social workers and psychologists.
Science
- The volcano brought iron into water on La Palma – A study on the coastal waters of La Palma by ULPGC has shown that the main source of iron in these waters is now from the deposition of ash and lava from the eruption, whereas most other trace elements in the coastal waters come from Saharan dust.
- Tenerife requests sharing of volcanology HQ – The president of the Cabildo de Tenerife has requested that the new Spanish National Volcanology Centre should be based across both Tenerife and La Palma. The new centre will be based in the Canary Islands but a specific island has not been confirmed yet, with both La Palma and Tenerife keen to have it on their respective islands.
- New analyses of the plume from the 2021 eruption – A study lead by INVOLCAN and the University of Manchester has investigated the chemical composition of the volcanic plume throughout the 2021 eruption. It has found that the effusive and explosive eruptive styles were associated with different plume compositions, and it is the first dataset of its kind from the Canary Islands.
Increased access to homes in Puerto Naos (El Time, 2025)
- New volcanic tremor study – A new study lead by Queens College in New York alongside INVOLCAN looking at the relationships between magma composition and volcanic tremor throughout the 2021 eruption has allowed comparisons with eruptive phenomena seen at different times during the eruption.
- Access to more homes in Puerto Naos – The Cabildo de La Palma has authorised access to 19 new homes in Puerto Naos, which brings the total number of accessible homes up to 887 in Puerto Naos and 48 in La Bombilla.
- Funding for improving PEVOLCA emergency plan – The Canary Islands Government has announced a partnership with CSIC to improve volcanic risk management across the islands, funded by the European Commission. El Valle de Aridane have presented a perspective piece detailing some improvements they would consider after the 2021 eruption.
Other updates
- Student documentary about the eruption to be released – The documentary “On the Record: Chronicles of Ash and Lava” has premiered in El Paso. The documentary, which was produced by students from Tenerife, pays tribute to the journalists, reporters and other media personnel who reported on the 2021 eruption on La Palma.
On the Record: Chronicles of Ash and Lava, premiers in El Paso (El Time, 2025).
Coastal pipeline solutions considered – The Cabildo de La Palma has met with the Government of the Canary Islands and the State Coastal Department to find a solution for the coastal pipeline and to irrigate the areas currently serviced by the coastal pipeline. The current pipeline across the lava delta has been ruled to be illegally constructed and there have been threats that it may have to be dismantled, which the Cabildo want to avoid.
- Surveys with associations representing those affected – In an interview with El Time, representatives for the associations for those affected were asked about their level of approval of the steps towards reconstruction taken by the administrations. Overall, their opinions leant towards approval, although there are still unresolved issues such as speculation over land prices, expropriation rates, a lack of dialogue over the reconstruction decrees, and the lack of housing for those affected.
- ‘The Volcano Priest’ celebrated – Don Domingo Guerra, known as ‘The Volcano Priest’, who was known for helping those affected by the eruption and migrants by offering support through his church, has been celebrated and interviewed about his experiences.
- La Palma ash used in roads – Ash from the La Palma volcano has been used to pave a section of road on Fuerteventura, showing one of its many uses in construction.
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