www.euronews.com The highest peaks in Venezuela are at the centre of an ambitious re-building programme. As part of an effort to reconstruct the country’s tourism industry it will build the Mérida cable car, which is the longest and highest in the world. Construction at almost five kilometres up in the northern Andes on Pico Espejo takes nerve and precise planning. Four hundred and fifty engineers work around the clock, battling severe weather conditions and the altitude. Being in a National Park the project has to be sensitive to the environment, recycling materials and limiting the extent of the works’ effects on the surrounding area. The cable car has to lift its own building materials – up to 2000 tonnes per trip. The Venezuelan government is putting 246-million euros into the project. The tourism development coordinator for the Mérida cable car, Jaime Bautista told euronews: “Beyond the economic investment, beyond the technological achievement, this cable car aims to create environmental awareness, stimulate visitors to know nature and to enjoy high mountain activities.” The Merida region is a favorite destination for Venezuelans. Tired of tropical temperatures, it is something of an exotic novelty to spend time in the Páramo heights having to wear gloves and woolly hats for a few days. The new cable car, due to open at the end of 2013 should attract international visitors to Mérida too. Venezuela’s socialist Government has recently approved a new tourism law, aiming …
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