As Mannlíf covered last May, the landowners of one of the country’s most significant natural sights had accepted a purchase offer for the land, which includes Fjaðrárgljúfur canyon. The canyon became a world-famous tourist destination, after the singer Justin Bieber recorded a music video there. The canyon is part of a land called Heiði and the accepted purchase offer amounts to 300 to 350 million ISK. The buyer is an Icelander who operates in tourism.
Fréttablaðið stated today that the Icelandic government had not taken advantage of its pre-emptive right to purchase Fjaðrárgljúfur. The deadline for the right has now expired.
Shortly before the pandemic, the canyon had to be closed, as a steady stream of tourists passing through the area began to have a devastating effect on nature in the area. Until now, access to the area has been free and rangers on behalf of the Environment Agency manage the canyon. It is unclear whether, or even when there will be changes to that arrangement, and whether the new owner intends to introduce a fee or not.
This article was originally published in Icelandic by Katrín Heiða Guðjónsdóttir.