Tag: trees

Latest Gran Canaria News, Views & Sunshine

Foundation Investigated for Alleged Mismanagement of Public Funds Meant for Care of Unaccompanied Migrant Minors

The 7th Investigative Court of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria has opened a preliminary investigation into the Social Response Foundation Siglo XXI and four of its directors. The Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office in Las Palmas filed a complaint against them, alleging crimes that could include forgery of commercial documents, mismanagement, and embezzlement of public funds. The investigation aims to determine whether this nonprofit organisation, and its officials, could have misused public funds intended for the care of unaccompanied migrant minors, during the migration crisis of 2020 that was precipitated by the pandemic confinement on the islands, leading to a build up of arrivals having to be assessed and cared for by the Canary Islands Regional Government, using hotels left empty due to the lack of tourism. The estimated amount involved in the alleged misuse stands at around €12.5 million between 2020 and 2022 on Gran Canaria alone.

 

Canary Islands Expect Rain and Potential Storm Weather Next Week

The Canary Islands are preparing for a change in the weather next week, as a significant increase in cloud is expected bringing higher probability of rain. The effects of a powerful storm forming in the Atlantic Ocean are likely to extend to the Canary Islands as well as neighbouring Madeira and The Azores.

 

The Canary Guide #WeekendTips 2-4 June 2023

June is here and that means that summer is just around the corner. The Patron Saints’ festivities in honour of San Juan de Bautista and San Antonio de Padua are just getting started on Gran Canaria, and in Pueblo de Mogán the main Romería pilgrimage for San Antonio El Chico is this first Saturday of June, as well as the start of the build up to those in Arucas, Santa Brígida and Moya. This weekend also brings the biggest outlet fair shopping experience back to INFECAR and a collectables fair in Gáldar.
OPERATION KILO is this weekend, at all participating supermarkets, asking you to add a few non-perishable food items to the Food Bank collection boxes to help families in need.

Vox Enters Canarian Politics, Stage Right: Anti-Migrant, Anti-Feminist, Anti-Green, Anti-Autonomy, Anti-LGBT, Anti-Multiculturalism, Pro-Franco politics find a foothold on The Canary Islands

The Canary Islands were unable to avoid the rise of the far right on Sunday, unlike in 2019, writes Natalia G. Vargas in Canarias Ahora. Vox, which previously had no representation on the islands, managed to make its presence felt in several municipalities and councils this May 28. They also secured seats in the Canary Islands’ regional parliament, securing four deputies. “Defending what is ours, our own, and fighting against insecurity” were the slogans that underpinned Vox’s campaign in The Canary Islands, along with “family, employment, and freedom.” This rhetoric, coupled with an electoral program that was repeated across all local elections in Spain, proved sufficient. Dozens of cities and towns on the islands welcomed their first far right candidates of the modern democratic era into Canarian politics, with urban areas serving as their main strongholds.

La Alcaldesa Bueno Secures Incredible Majority in Mogán

Mogán, May 29, 2023 – The often controversial incumbent, O Bueno, La Alcaldesa, has achieved an unprecedented and resounding victory once more in Mogán. The candidate who switched her party’s name, for these elections, to “Juntos por Mogán”, a local ally of the regionalist conservatives “Coalición Canaria” (CC), will once again assume the role of mayor. Her party has clinched a rather noteworthy 17 out of the 21 seats in the Municipal Council of this popular tourism destination located on the sunny southwest of Gran Canaria.

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Mogán kicks off Gran Canaria project for reforestation of ravines through the Green Forest Fund

The mayor of Mogán, Onalia Bueno, along with the councilors of Rural Development and Environment, Ernesto Hernandez, and Maintenance of Public Roads, José Martín, checking the improvement of the plot.
A 5,000 square meter public plot of Mogán land, next to the village of Veneguera, has been cleared specifically for tree planting after the summer. The projected has been financed with about €5,000 from the “Green Forestry Fund” of the Cabildo de Gran Canaria. Mogán has thereby become the first municipality on the Island to carry out ravine reforestation, as part of the the island government’s wider reforestation project.
Several tons of rubbish, solid waste and plant debris were removed along with remnants of the 2007 fire that occurred across the island and which had still not been removed, said a press release from the local town council.
Invasive species in the area, such as the tuneras cactus, have also been removed from the land.
After completing this first phase of clearing and removal of waste, the project will continue on this plot after the summer, when a second phase will begin, aimed specifically towards reforestation using native flora such as tabaibas, cardones and other indigenous seedlings. Waiting until after the summer season should help to ensure that the new plant life can be well established through the coming winter season.
The financing from the Green Forestry Fund also includes another clearing and reforestation of ravines project for the Mogán area around Las Filipinas, in the Barranco de Arguineguín.
Cardón Canario
Tabaiba

Seeking volunteers to help replant trees after the Gran Canaria fire…

Would you like to volunteer to help in the official reforestation effort on Gran Canaria?  The official Cabildo project is called Greening Gran Canaria.  The Canary is working with the Volunteer Network Gran Canaria, and the Nabojelpen project in Arguineguín, to organise community involvement from English speaking residents on the island, with transport funded by donations to The Long Walk 2017.
If you would like to be included in future communications regarding this effort, please email GreeningGranCanaria@TheCanaryGuide.com

The Cabildo has opened a reforestation project for Gran Canaria to citizen participation, with a calendar of actions that will begin in areas affected by last September’s wildfire. They expect exceed 20,000 volunteers given the interest shown by individuals, schools, companies and groups to get involved in Greening Gran Canaria
This was announced last week by the President of the Cabildo de Gran Canaria, Antonio Morales, along with the Minister of Environment, Miguel Ángel, who added that the institution and the citizen collaboration will not only succeed in ensuring a greener island for future generations, but also create youth awareness of the importance to protect the environment.
For this ambitious plan, which goes far beyond the recovery from the fire, the Cabildo already has the €4.5 million Green Forestry Fund approved earlier this year, in addition to the €500,000 approved by the Canary Islands Government after the fire and €300,000 from the State.
The area affected by the fire is the one that needs a most immediate intervention, and in fact work to treat and prepare the land began as soon as the fire was declared fully extinguished, so as to stop the effects of erosion and to assess damages that the arrival of torrential rains could potentially create. If we only receive light rains this year it will allow the greenery to begin to sprout.
An area of 1,930 hectares affected by the fire has been assessed, leading to the conclusion that 70% is Canarian pine, where it may not be necessary to intervene at all, even reaching up toward 96% if urban or agricultural lands are included allowing for the initial interventions to be centered around the remaining 4% in need of direct intervention. On that basis Morales has calculated that they will concentrate reforestation efforts on around ten percent of the area, which supposes some 200 hectares or replanting and associated work.
20 members of the bravo teams began to prepare the ground for these actions, which are not only limited to planting, it also covers irrigation, cleaning and even sponsorship of plots.
Those who wish to participate in voluntary environmental actions only have to register at the webpage voluntariado (only in Spanish)
Individuals, neighborhood associations, business personnel and general volunteering is invited on Sundays between now and December 10, and then restarting again on Sunday January 14. 

 

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