Structure and methodology of a public information program (PIP) and the declaration of protected natural areas: The case of the Alto Tajo Natural Park, Spain Miguel Aguilar a, ⁎, Álvaro García b , José Vicente López Álvarez c , José F. García-Hidalgo d a Delegación Provincial de Agricultura y Medio Ambiente de Guadalajara, Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha, Spain b Departamento de Estratigrafía, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain c E.T.S. de Ingenieros de Montes, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain d Departamento de Geología, Universidad de Alcalá, 28871 Alcalá de Henares, Spain abstract article info Article history: Received 19 November 2008 Received in revised form 14 June 2010 Accepted 6 December 2010 Available online 20 January 2011 Keywords: Protected natural areas Specific natural resources plan Public information program Alto Tajo Natural Park Spain Protected natural areas (PNAs) are the most important strategy related to environmental conservation policies worldwide. For such a declaration to be made, Spanish law demands that a technically comprehensive specific natural resources plan (SNRP) be legally approved. The SNRP is a normative document with prevalence over the national, regional and local laws affecting the area. This prominent legal position guarantees the achievement of the nature conservation objectives. Since SNRP restricts human uses of the area, the SNRP is of great importance to local inhabitants and stakeholders. Their agreement is socially necessary if a rapid and trouble-free declaration of PNA status is to be made. The most useful tool for seeking such agreement is a public information program (PIP). It must be well designed and developed to be successful. The main objectives of a PIP can be summarized with the following words or concepts. Justice: the PIP make come true the right of citizens to participate; adequacy: the PIP will improve the obtained planning; and effectiveness: the PIP is an effective instrument to achieve acquiescence of the affected population. To achieve the above objectives is necessary to design and develop the activities of PIP based on the following criteria. Consider local resident motivations and give personalized information. Promote participation and discussion regarding the purpose of the PNA. Establish transparency and representation. Implement planning, continuity, monitoring and control. A model for a PIP is proposed. This model is based on the experience gathered in the declaration of the Alto Tajo Natural Park in central Spain. It is useful for other proposed PNA. The main practical considerations for a PIP design — the different activities undertaken, as well as the most important factors in PIP success — are also described and discussed. The attempts to establish the Alto Tajo area with PNA status failed on three occasions (1974, 1981 and 1989) due mainly to the opposition of local residents and stakeholders. Following a PIP carried out between 1996 and 2000, local residents and stakeholders saw the declaration of the PNA in a very favourable light; and, finally, the Alto Tajo Natural Park was declared in 2000. © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Protected natural areas (PNAs) were and are created mainly by government action. From its origins in the 19th century to the middle of the 20th century, PNAs were established in areas either with no or only very small human populations (i.e. high mountains, deserts and swamp areas) (García Canseco, 2007). Natural conditions of these areas impede the human settlement and help maintain their natural quality. Besides, local inhabitants were considered socially and politically irrelevant in relation to the PNA declaration. This type of strategy lies behind the declaration of 9 of Spain's 14 National Parks. From the middle of the 20th century, however, the conditions under which nature protection policies were developed changed. What was a largely contemplative or spiritual approach to conservation was replaced by the scientific awareness of disappearing taxa and ecosystems. This change led to the need to declare PNAs in areas where human populations were larger, which raises conflicts with local people. The opposition to PNAs comes from, local, social, economical and political interests that try to safeguard what is claimed as traditional land use. In this new scenario, the declaration of a PNA demands that two objectives be made compatible. First, the PNA project must achieve its conservation goals as fully as possible; and secondly it must meet with strong social acceptance if it is to be politically viable. Thus, planners have to involve a wide array of stakeholders and incorporate their views into the planning process (Burby, 2003; Bengston et al., 2004). In order to do that, public participation is an important contribution to Forest Policy and Economics 17 (2012) 25–34 ⁎ Corresponding author. Tel.: +34 91 3367101; fax: +34 91 3366386. E-mail addresses: miguel.aguilar@upm.es (M. Aguilar), alvaro.garcia@geo.ucm.es (Á. García), jv.lopez@upm.es (J.V.L. Álvarez), jose.garciahidalgo@uah.es (J.F. García-Hidalgo). 1389-9341/$ – see front matter © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.forpol.2010.12.002 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Forest Policy and Economics journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/forpol