The mountain range protecting Madrid from pollution

The mountain range protecting Madrid from pollution
Copyright euronews
By Euronews
Share this articleComments
Share this articleClose Button
Copy/paste the article video embed link below:Copy to clipboardCopied

Madrid has a high level of pollution like many big cities and capitals across the globe. But Madrid is also in the unique position of being protected by a national park and mountain range called the Sierra of Guadarrama, which brings fresh air and clean water to its busy inhabitants.

ADVERTISEMENT

For the duration of euronews' Green Week, our magazine and news teams are exploring stories and solutions for a better planet from across Europe.

Every morning around six million people wake up in Madrid, the European city with the highest number of premature deaths associated with nitrogen dioxide. They get ready for work, jump in their cars or on buses and inevitably add to the city's carbon footprint. Pollution in this capital is becoming a problem.

A protective national park

However, on a clear day in Madrid, you may be able to see the rocky giant that for a long time has protected the city from one of its greatest enemies: human activity. This giant is called the Sierra of Guadarrama, a mountain range that spans from the province of Ávila in the southwest, through the Community of Madrid, to the province of Segovia in the northeast. The Sierra of Guadarrama was protected and given national park status in 2013. It is one of Madrid's main weapons against pollution.

euronews
The view of Madrid from the Sierra of Guadarramaeuronews

National parks, like Guadarrama, are part of the European action plan to achieve zero water, air and soil pollution. They also play a key role in the EU 2030 biodiversity strategy.

Pablo Sanjuanbenito is the Co-director of the Sierra of Guadarrama national park. He gives us some insight into the heritage of national parks. "Since their inception, the first parks in the United States, in the 19th century, were created not only for preservation purposes but also to raise awareness, to raise awareness about the conservation of nature, but also other environmental values, like pollution, waste disposal and more", he explains.

A green corridor

Some of the best-preserved forests are in the centre of the Iberian Peninsula. With 340 square kilometres of protected land, the Guadarrama National Park is an enormous air purifying filter for the Spanish capital.

euronews
Snow on the peaks of the mountains in the Sierra of Guadarramaeuronews

Pablo describes it as "a green corridor that unites or brings the air from the mountains to Madrid". According to him, it's a real carbon sink.

At over 2000 meters high, the snow also falls frequently in the Sierra of Guadarrama, even during Spring. However, this hasn't helped it escape climate change. The temperature there has risen between one and two degrees in the last decades.

The National Park protects the water that supplies Madrid
Pablo Sanjuanbenito
Co-director, Sierra of Guadarrama national park

Health benefits

Despite being hit by the environmental damage of climate change, Guadarrama National Park still has purifying qualities. Rain and melting snow filter through its forests to give Madrid one of Europe's best quality waters. It is also a place for the local population to get away from the city and find some zen. However, this has also contributed to one of the park's new challenges: how to combine conservation with leisure space.

euronews
Water running through the forests of the Sierra of Guadarramaeuronews

Madrid, like all cities around the world, is fighting against pollution. Unlike others though, this capital has nature on its side. The mountains of Guadarrama will continue to protect the city as long as we protect them.

Share this articleComments

You might also like

Farmers' protests have sprung up across Europe, even as some cease

Fishing villages in Naples ditch polystyrene in microplastic U-turn

The Vareš silver mine: A brighter future for Bosnia and Herzegovina?