At the Emys Foundation, we have been working to organize the public use of these Natural Spaces for some time, as many have problems with overcrowding. Wetlands are in decline worldwide and overcrowding is one of the increasing pressures on these spaces.
To give an example, one of the latest articles in this regard has appeared in RAC 1, which published a news item last week called "12 gorse de Catalunya that you can't miss". News like this, and unfortunately so many others, row in the opposite direction to the work we are doing in the environmental sector. We are not against information being offered, but we think that specific journalistic training is needed so as not to increase the pressure that these spaces are already under, and to provide the necessary information so that the people who visit these spaces help to preserve them.
To try to offer information on how we think we should treat this type of news, here we leave you with the 10 environmental information that the press cannot miss:
1. CLICKBAIT DOES NOT HELP CONSERVATION
We must be very responsible when we make news that can cause overcrowding in fragile spaces. Obviously, it is news that generates a lot of traffic, but that is not why we should take advantage of it, because the benefit obtained by the media is a detriment to nature.
2. EXAGGERATION ACTS OF CLAIM
Making news of these spaces with idyllic photographs where no one is there can be misleading. It is also necessary to teach the reality of these spaces, many of them degraded by overcrowding and crowded during spring and summer, especially at weekends.
3. SPRING IS DELICATE
It is when the birds nest and they need a quiet environment to be able to do so; also until May is the season of amphibian eggs, which take place in the water and are also very, very fragile. It is the moment of maximum interest but also of maximum fragility, and should be taken into account when choosing the moment to report.
4. "NATURAL POOLS"?
In some articles, weevils are called that, but in no case are they. There are no lifeguards, it would be better not to put on sunscreen because we contaminate the water and negatively affect the species that live there. Concepts should be used very carefully to be able to frame these spaces in their reality.
5. DO NOT ENCOURAGE EMPTY VISIT
Many of these news items have no environmental content whatsoever. If we make news encouraging people to visit natural spaces, it would be necessary to offer quality information about their fragility and natural values, as well as good practices in visiting them. Just encouraging people to visit them does not help their conservation.
6. DO NOT ADD PRESSURE
Adding to these items the spaces that are already very overloaded adds tension to them. With this type of news, and bringing more people than there are already, we make it difficult to accommodate and put in danger of maintaining a carrying capacity that does not oppose its conservation, even if they are regulated.
7. TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE CONTEXT
Some of these articles may not take existing regulations into account or even promote more hidden spaces that have no regulation and are not yet overcrowded. The specific context of each of these spaces should be taken into account to make the lists.
8. TALK WITH THOSE AFFECTED
Surely if we made a round of calls to the mayors or mayoresses of the areas that appear in these news we would see that they do not want to appear there. We must not only take care of nature but of the people who live in these places, as this can affect their quality of life.
9. PROTECTED NATURAL SPACES
Many of the weasels and weasels that appear in this type of news are sheltered under protective figures. Not specifying it is dangerous, it is necessary to add this information so that the visitor can take it into account when preparing their visit, and increase their precautions when having specific attitudes that can endanger the space .
10. "YOU CAN'T MISS IT"
We must visit nature with great care, and spaces of special value in a very dosed way: we must be aware of what our visit entails. You need to know the best times to visit and try not to be part of overcrowding, and to contribute to the fact that this happens, we will have to give the right information to be part of the solution and not the problem.