The Junta de Andalucia has declared 5 new Natural Monuments in Málaga province and 9 in total in Andalucia.
In Málaga province the newcomers are Tajos del Alcázar in Alcaucín, Cueva del Gato in Benaoján, the miradors Cuenca del río Turón and Guarda Forestal in El Burgo, the source of the Río Genal in Igualeja and the Fuente de los Cien Caños/source of the río Guadalhorce in Villanueva del Trabuco.
The remaining four are the Peña de Arcos de la Frontera in Cádiz province, the Meandro del Guadalquivir in Montoro, Córdoba province, Los Tajos de Alhama in Granada province and the Ribera del Guadaíra in Alcalá de Guadaíra, Sevilla province.
There are now 49 natural and protected areas in Andalucia covering a total of 1,368 hectares.
The inclusion of these enclaves in the Network of Natural Areas of Andalucia was carried out taking into account the opinions of the Ministry of Environment and studies prepared by the Andalucian universities as well as consultations with local authorities, associations and social sectors.
The natural monument status gives a measure of protection under Andalucian law and the selected areas cover such things as ecological or landscape elements that have unique values, such as caves, cliffs, dunes, trees, rocks, woods or geological formations.