This is the New Marine Reserve of the Western Islands of Mallorca

The Consell de Govern has approved the Decree establishing the Marine Reserve of the Western Islands of Mallorca (El Toro, Les Malgrats, and El Sec), replacing the Marine Reserve of the Islands of El Toro and Les Malgrats created in 2022, which was always opposed by the fishing sector.

This new reserve has the support of the professional fishing sector, the affected fishermen's guilds, and the Balearic Federation of Fishermen's Guilds.

It will cover an area of 2,300 hectares (ha), of which 240 ha are highly protected, in addition to 93 ha of the special fishing zone in the Bay of Santa Ponça. Thus, the area of high protection increases (15 ha more than the previous one), as does the coastal line included in the new reserve (about 7 km more). The main goal is to ensure the sustainability of fishery resources and the conservation of marine biodiversity.

The approved reserve excludes areas of open sea, where purse seine fishing boats from the Palma Fishermen’s Guild will be allowed to operate, resulting in a smaller area than the one created in 2022. Nevertheless, it is still ten times larger than the original El Toro and Les Malgrats reserves. The 2022 reserve failed to resolve the intended issues, lacking support from the fishing sector and not meeting the expectations of its promoters—particularly the Calvià Town Hall—which aimed to extend the reserve to the island of El Sec.

For this reason, the Government has modified the geographical boundaries and dimensions of the former Marine Reserve of the Islands of El Toro and Les Malgrats to both allow the activity of Palma's fishing boats and protect the important area of El Sec island and its adjacent reef.

The Decree establishes three high-protection zones: two in the former diving special areas of El Toro and Les Malgrats, and a third around El Sec island and its reef. In these zones, both recreational and professional fishing are restricted (limited to passive gear and whitebait fishing). Additionally, for the first time, navigation speed is regulated to a minimum of 3 knots and a maximum of 6 knots, and jet ski circulation is prohibited.

Regarding underwater activities, six designated dive points are set in the El Toro area and four in the Les Malgrats area, all of which must be buoy-marked and will have a daily dive limit. Another notable new measure is the prohibition of diving and boat traffic near the five fixed gear fishing points across the entire reserve when the gear is in place. These points are specified in an annex.

Finally, this new decree amends, on one hand, Decree 41/2015 of May 22, which regulates the extraction of marine flora and fauna and underwater activities in marine reserves within the internal waters of the Balearic Islands, in order to regulate the use of dynamic positioning systems in marine reserves; and on the other hand, Decree 10/2019 of February 15, which governs the Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) for fishing boats in the Balearic Islands, to clarify the responsibilities of fishing vessel owners regarding the functionality and operability of the VMS (green boxes).

In the Balearic Islands, marine reserves are a key fisheries management tool used by the Government to help recover commercial fish populations, preserve natural marine habitats, and support traditional small-scale professional fishing. Within the reserves, fish are more abundant, larger, and include species that are scarce outside the reserves. Catches are more significant in both quantity and quality. Moreover, marine reserves have become a major draw for dive tourism, with more than 70,000 dives per year. Currently, the Balearic Islands have a network of twelve marine reserves, covering a total area of 67,420 ha.

Among other benefits, the declaration of the Marine Reserve of the Western Islands of Mallorca will extend the recovery of commercial fish populations and support the artisanal fishing sector and economic activities related to fish observation.