The Las Vegas pine forest was an important source of raw materials.
The magnificent pine forests in the south of Tenerife were tremendously exploited for the wealth contained within the old pine trees.
The Canary Island pine became an extraordinary natural resource when the high quality of its inner wood was discovered: tea. This heartwood, a product of the concentration of the resin inside the tree, produced an enormous demand for the construction of large civil, military and religious works, as well as for obtaining pitch, a product in great demand for the caulking of ships.
The pine forests became important productive areas and were overexploited. Large areas were lost, especially the oldest pines, which were the ones that produced the greatest amount of firewood. In the interior of these pine forests, in some lost place, lie the remains of a kiln used to obtain the pitch that was exported to ports and shipyards.