Under the slogan “Canarias tiene un límite” (The Canary Islands have a limit), local residents protested on Saturday for more sustainable tourism and for a possible cap on the number of visits to the islands. On the Canary island of Tenerife, there is also a hunger strike against the construction of two new luxury hotels on the southern side of the island.
Hard pressure
A third of the Canarian population is at risk of poverty or social exclusion as a result of mass tourism, according to reports. Tourism also puts a lot of pressure on health care, garbage disposal, water supply and biological diversity, writes TT.
Another problem that is pointed out is the rental of holiday homes. On the one hand, the tourist companies seize all the homes, and on the other hand, the rents are so high that the local population has difficulty affording to stay.
14 million tourists last year
The prices of food, public transport and electricity, gas and fuel have also increased in the past year.
Last year, around 14 million tourists visited the Canary Islands, according to Spanish figures, while the resident population stands at 2.2 million.
See the protests in the clip.