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UNESCO has responded to the letter sent by nine social and scientific organizations regarding the project that the Consell Insular plans to build at the Rafal Rubí junction.
The international body states that this double-level structure, affecting lands that are part of Menorca Talaiòtica, was already a matter of concern for the World Heritage Committee at the time of inscription in 2023, and that it is closely monitoring the state of conservation of the protected site in collaboration with the competent authorities in Spain.
The recent resignations of three key people involved in the candidacy process of Menorca Talaiòtica have revealed an underlying conflict, undermining the theory of a political conspiracy.
The Consell Insular’s strong reaction, at a press conference, to the Minister of Culture’s request to wait for UNESCO’s opinion before beginning the works has also drawn attention outside the island.
Furthermore, the removal of protections over these lands and of landscape criteria in the modification of the Territorial Plan promoted by the Consell Insular has raised alarms among those concerned about the island’s cultural heritage.
Since Menorca now has areas included in the World Heritage List, this matter cannot be handled solely by the Mobility Department of the Consell Insular. These territories fall under the protection of the World Heritage Convention, which Spain ratified in 1982. The Ministry of Culture is the authority responsible for ensuring the proper conservation of protected assets.
Additionally, the Menorca Biosphere Reserve Law requires projects to comply with legal provisions regarding landscape.
On these grounds, GOB has recently filed a special appeal on procurement against the tender opened by the Consell Insular, as well as an administrative appeal against the final approval of the Rafal Rubí project.
The organization argues that the current Territorial Plan of Menorca includes a set of protections over the area that are being ignored. It also notes that the Administrative Specifications governing the tender lack the social and environmental criteria the Consell Insular is obliged to include.
Road safety is fully compatible with preserving the island’s cultural and landscape values. Other interventions along the main road have been made at grade in places with far more cross traffic than Rafal Rubí: at the Ets Alocs road, the entrance to Son Cintes quarries with constant truck traffic, the Naveta des Tudons (the most visited prehistoric monument on the island, with a constant flow of buses), and at-grade connections for two main towns, Es Migjorn and Es Mercadal.
The insistence of the Consell Insular on building a double-level junction (costing €6.5 million), when there are far simpler alternatives that would not conflict with the conservation of internationally protected archaeological heritage, raises questions about other interests at stake.