When 70 concrete blocks were sunk off Gibraltar two years ago, the reaction in Spain was paroxysms of anger followed by furious protests.
Now the artificial reef is “exploding with life”, according to the island’s department of the environment. Its team of divers report that the blocks have rapidly been colonised by a wide range of marine and microbiological species from octopus and triggerfish to moray eels.
In July 2013 when the reef was laid, Spain claimed that it was a deliberate way to keep its fishing fleet from the area.
Greenpeace pointed out that Spain had “deployed hundreds of them to protect its waters” from aggressive trawling techniques.
But this did not appease and Spain intensified border checks, officially part of a clampdown on smuggling but which caused long traffic delays in sweltering temperatures.
“Such reefs are a very common practice. This is a diplomatic conflict over maritime sovereignty and not an environmental one,” said a Greenpeace Spain spokesman, noting that Spain and Gibraltar have “plenty of problems to solve in Algeciras Bay, such as high levels of pollution”.
