Protest against the new Guggenheim in the Spanish nature reserve is growing

The image of a fish named Guggenheim ready to eat another fish proliferates on posters, bus stops and walls in the Basque town of Guernica. Although the Guggenheim, which opened 27 years ago, has proven to be a powerful engine in the passage of Bilbao from post-industrial decline to a center of cultural tourism, not everyone wants the experiment to be replicated, residents are afraid that the new location will impact the biosphere of the Urdaibai nature reserve.Critics argue that the new museum, which would be spread over two sites – one in Guernica and one in Urdaibai – would ruin the 22,068-hectare biosphere reserve, bringing at least 140,000 visitors a year to the protected natural space.

Local groups and environmental NGOs such as Greenpeace, WWF, Ecologists in Action, Friends of the Earth and SEO/BirdLife are calling for the project to be abandoned. “It makes no sense – they say – to introduce such a large number of people to Urdaibai, which was declared a biosphere reserve by UNESCO in 1984 and whose estuarine salt marshes and cliffs are home to both local fauna and migratory birds, which stop along the route from Northern Europe to Africa”.

But the project’s supporters, who include the Guggenheim Foundation, the Basque government, and local and regional authorities, say the museum is part of a wider attempt to revitalize and restore the area, attract investment and create jobs.

Opponents are almost as angry about the way the project has been carried out so far as they are about its possible consequences. Despite what activists say is a complete lack of consultation, the proposed entry point for the museum, Guernica’s long-disused Dalia factory, once one of Europe’s largest cutlery companies, has already been demolished , save for its attractive 1950s façade. According to the plans made public, the site will host “a residence and a meeting space”. From there, visitors will take a route that will lead them a few kilometers from Guernica and to the main site of the museum, which will be built in Urdaibai, on the site of a shipyard.

“The main thing is that the project is not the result of a program or planning,” says Joserra Díez, a member of the Guggenheim Urdaibai Stop platform, which is coordinating the protests. “It’s just something that arose out of the hunger of the Guggenheim Foundation in Bilbao to see how to extend its successful museum project.”

Others, however, are more excited about the prospect of a large influx of visitors and the economic implications for the entire area.

“We need this,” said the owner of a local bar. “If they’re going to do one great tourist attraction here, then it’s great. All the businesses here want more customers. Why wouldn’t they want that?”

Sources from the Basque regional government and the provincial authorities of Bizkaia (Biscay) were keen to underline that their plan for the Busturialdea area is not just about the Guggenheim.

“It is also about basic infrastructure for education, health, employment, sanitation, water supply, transport and the creation of new economic activities,” they told the Guardian. “And the museum is presented as a leading project that will help address some of these problems.”