Tenerife Park Installs Surveillance to Combat Vandalism, Dumping

Santa Cruz de Tenerife is stepping up efforts to protect its historic García Sanabria Park. They've installed a new video surveillance system, especially around the famous Flower Clock and Frog Pond. This move aims to tackle ongoing problems with safety and looking after the environment.

The city council, specifically its Department of Public Services, Strategic Planning, and Environmental Sustainability, decided on this plan to stop bad behavior and crime. The government's local office approved the cameras. They will run non-stop, 24 hours a day, all year long.

A unique feature of this system is an audio alert. If someone enters these protected spots without permission, a message will play, telling them they are being recorded and that authorities might be called if they don't leave. Four wide-angle cameras cover the edges of these monitored areas.

This decision was made because these important parts of the park were getting damaged. Vandals have broken the hands of the Flower Clock, costing an estimated 3,500 to 5,000 euros to fix each year. The Frog Pond has a different problem: people have been dumping exotic animals like piranhas, turtles, tropical fish, and crayfish there. These non-native species are a big danger to the local plants and animals. The Neotrópico Foundation, which works to conserve exotic species in the Canary Islands, wrote a report about this threat, which helped get the cameras approved.

When it comes to the recordings, police can access them if serious crimes are caught on camera, which would then lead to legal action. But if the footage isn't part of an official investigation or legal case, it will be deleted within 28 days, following data protection rules.

The cameras cost 13,000 euros to install. However, local councilor Carlos Tarife said that getting through all the paperwork was actually the hardest part. This new system shows how committed Tenerife's capital is to protecting its history and nature.