'Clean up the Costa'

Campoamor Market Rubbish Spoils Agua Marina Promenade

2009-04-05T20:33:00.004+02:00

Whilst it is important that the Campoamor Market is successful, what we don't want is for it to spoil the environment around it because of litter left by the stall holders and shoppers, but that is just what is happening!

On a walk along the Paseo Marítimo in Agua Marina I noted a substantial quantity of litter spoiling the cliff edge alongside the promenade as can be seen from the photographs. It is obvious that the vast majority of this has originated from the market which is held in Calle Fuego.

The litter being seen here has three causes, firstly that some of the stall holders fail to clean away all their rubbish correctly, secondly that the Council fails to ensure that the area is cleaned properly after the market has finished, and thirdly that a small minority members of the public can't be bothered to take their shopping rubbish home.

This unacceptable situation will be brought to the attention of the Ayuntaniento in Orihuela Costa with a request that the rubbish is cleared without delay.

Viva TV show the Fly-tip

2008-12-02T18:49:00.007+01:00

In my article on the 6th November entitled Local television helps the campaign. I mentioned the interview given to Viva TV and the proposed transmission during the Revista programme scheduled on a Friday evening. The showing of the interview was delayed until the 21st November 2008.

Los Verdes have now received a copy of the 4 minute transmission and for those of you that missed it you can see a repeat of the Viva TV Interview on YouTube. It was filmed at the fly-tip site and shows the extent of the volume and type of rubbish that has been dumped, and the damage to the environment.

A report, and a copy of all the footage of the Fly-tip taken by Viva TV to support the interview, is to be submitted by Los Verdes to the Seprona division of the Guardia Civil. This is the department responsible for investigating acts of destruction to the Environment.

Second Grand clean-up = 74 Bags of Litter

2008-11-12T21:36:00.007+01:00

Today (12th November 2008) the second grand clean-up took place at two sites, simultaneously, in Orihuela Costa.

Two groups of volunteers, approximately 50 in total, showed that they care about the environment we live in by collecting 74 (100 litre) bags of litter. The clean-ups started at 10.00 am and lasted for approximately 1 hour.

The first location was at the eastern end of Calle Niagara, to continue the work of the first grand clean-up which tackled the western part of the road.

The second site was the barranca that runs from the underpass at the Cabo Roig roundabout on the N332 towards the playa Cala Capitan.

All the volunteers felt it was a worthwhile effort and the Los Verdes coordinators were asked when and where the next Grand Clean-up will be. This will be announced at the earliest opportunity once the choice of location has been made. There is still time for sites to be suggested. This can be by email to cleanupthecosta@gmail.com or by telephone to 965319660.

More Photographs are available for viewing HERE

Local television helps the campaign.

2008-11-06T15:20:00.008+01:00

This week has been a busy one for the promotion of the Clean up the Costa campaign, with two local television companies inviting appearances on their programmes to outline the aims, history, and the future progress of the campaign.

On Wednesday 5th November 2008 (yesterday) I was invited again to take part in the Vega Life news programme on Canal Vega Television, an Orihuela based company, and given the opportunity to publicise the second Grand Clean-up that is happening on Wednesday 12th November at 10.00 am. The hour long programme is carried out in English.

Today (Thursday 6th November) VIVA TV recorded an interview about the campaign, for inclusion in the news programme due to be published on Friday 14th November at 6.15 pm. The location chosen for this (interview) was the massive Fly-tip site highlighted in the article 'Is this the largest Fly-tipping site in Orihuela Costa?' on this campaign Blog, and reported recently in the Local English Press (Round Town News and CoastRider).

These are two more opportunities to promote the work of the campaign, by bringing it to the attention of the viewers throughout the local and adjacent areas, including I’m sure Orihuela Town Council representatives or observers.

Hopefully this will add more pressure on the PP ruling party in the Ayuntamiento to honour it’s responsibilities towards tackling the major problems of fly-tipping sites and general litter left lying about in Orihuela Costa in particular, and in the Orihuela Municipality as a whole!

Second Grand Clean-up - Two Sites!

2008-11-02T14:56:00.004+01:00

The date for the second Grand Clean-up to take place is to be Wednesday 12th November 2008 commencing at 10.00 am.

Following the fantastic result of the first Grand Clean-up, due to the tremendous response and work of the volunteers on the day, we are proposing to tackle two sites at the same time, one at each end of Orihuela Costa. We will need all the volunteers we can muster for this to be a success.

For the first location, we are looking to carry on the clean-up of Calle Niagara (site of the first clean-up) by tackling the eastern half of the road, from the dual carriage way of Calle Pintor Ribera towards the Playa Flamenca Commercial Centre. The meeting place is to be at the lower end of the road near the commercial centre.

The second location is to be in the Cabo Roig area. The aim is to remove the rubbish and litter from the barranca that runs from the roundabout on the N332 towards Playa Cala Capitan. The meeting place is to be near the ambulance station (formally the post office). If there are enough volunteers we would also like to clean-up some of the undeveloped waste ground sites between Calle Mar and the N332.

To save people travelling too far, we would suggest that those who live in the North of the area to meet in Calle Niagara, and those living in the South of the area to meet at Cabo Roig. The Ayuntamiento and the Saturday market at Playa Flamenca would seem to be a good dividing line.

Volunteers are reminded to bring gloves to protect their hands, refuse bags will be provided. If you have your campaign hats and badges don't forget to wear them so that other members of the public can see what's happening and hopefully will join in to help Clean up the Costa.

Volunteers can pledge their support or obtain more information by emailing cleanupthecosta@gmail.com or telephoning 965319660 (English) or 965328190 (Multilingual).

Is this the largest Fly-tipping site in Orihuela Costa?

2008-10-22T22:33:00.016+02:00

Alongside the AP7 on the western side where the Autopista runs between the Dream Hills 2 and the Entre Golf urbanisations is possibly the largest illegal Fly-tipping site in the Orihuela Costa area. It is so large that it can be seen on Google Earth. When using the zoom-in on the location the dumped rubbish can be seen.

When travelling from Dream Hills 2 across the bridge over the Autopista towards Entre Golf the start of the illegal Fly-tip site can be seen where the unmade up track begins. I say the start of the tip because it runs along both sides of the track for approximately 1000 to 1500 meters. Because of easy access from either end of the track it is the Mecca for Fly-tippers for anything including builders rubbish, unwanted furniture, and packing materials. It has been suggested that animal carcasses have been seen there, although none were seen on my visit.

At the end of March 2008 when the Clean up the Costa campaign was launched pictures of this tip were included in the press release. On the 17^th April 2008 when a list of Fly-tipping sites, supported with photographs, was presented to the Partido Popular Councillor for the Coast, José A. Aniorte Grau, at a meeting in the Ayuntamiento in Playa Flamenca, this site was included in the list.

Since that date nothing appears to have been done to remove this blot on the landscape. At the time of the meeting Clr Aniorte stated that no Bye-law existed on the statutes of the Orihuela Municipality to enable the Council to force the owners of private land to clear the rubbish dumped on their property, or for the Council to act to clear it instead, or to prosecute the offenders carrying out the Fly-tipping. Taking a benevolent attitude to the lack of action it must be presumably the reason that there has been no action to clear the site in 7 months.

Well now that has all changed! At a full session of the Town Council the new Bye-law regulating the control, collection and management of urban waste within the Orihuela Municipality was unanimously approved. The Council no longer has any reason not to deal effectively with the Fly-tipping problems within Orihuela Costa. It has the powers needed to ensure the removal and cleaning up of any Fly-tip sites irrespective of whether they are on public or private land. Within the Bye-law are the powers to prosecute and fine those responsible for the illegal act of Fly-tipping up to the sum of 3000€.

The Council has the Power, let's see if it has the Will, to eliminate this menace to the environment.

Is this the largest Fly-tipping site in Orihuela Costa? If you know of a site that is bigger let us know. If you have a Fly-tip site near you lets us know. Send us, by email to cleanupthecosta@gmail.com , the location details, and some photos, and we will prepare an up-to-date list to present to the PP Councillor for the Coast and ask that the Council deal with these sites without delay.

Click on the photos above for enlarged copies.

More photos are available to view HERE

Calle Antillas is not the West Indies

2008-10-20T18:49:00.013+02:00

The Residents on Calle Antillas in Las Filipinas East might have been forgiven in thinking that as the name of their road suggests they would be looking at beautiful scenery from their properties. How wrong could they be, it certainly isn't anything like the West Indies or the Philippines!

Today (20th October 2008) I visited the road at the request of a Resident to look at the two problems suffered by the householders. Not only do they have to put up with enormous quantities of Fly-tipped builders rubbish but also a rotting mountain of garden and other rubbish. Both types have been there for sometime and are continually being added to.

One could try to say that the garden rubbish is just part of the normal daily tipping by local residents, but no, there is far too much for that. There would appear to be a deliberate dumping of waste in this road, possibly by gardening companies with rubbish not from this area, and a failure by Colsur (the current refuse handling company employed by the Council) to remove it. The Council must deal with the Fly-tipped building rubbish direct as Colsur do not have to and therefore will not deal with this problem.

The situation that the Residents have to live with daily is totally unacceptable. The Council have failed in their responsibility to keep the street and green area in this locality of Orihuela Costa clean.

The information and photographs will be forwarded to Councillor Aniorte with a request for immediate action to clean up this road in the fight to Clean up the Costa. There cannot be any excuse for this rubbish to remain there any longer, as the Council now have the necessary Bye-law to deal with any rubbish on private land, an excuse given for non-action on their part in the past.

Click on the photographs for enlarged copies.

Second Grand Clean-up - 12th November

2008-10-18T17:52:00.004+02:00

We would again give our sincere thanks to all those fantastic volunteers who helped to clean-up a very large part of Calle Niagara last Thursday (16th October).

We have already been asked by many people when the next Grand Clean-up will take place. It is to be Wednesday the 12th November 2008 and will start at 10.00 am. The final choice of location is still to be decided and will be announced closer to the day.

Depending on the number of volunteers available on the day, perhaps we might be able to tackle two sites at the same time, one at each end of Orihuela Costa! If those persons who are going to attend could confirm this by email to cleanupthecosta@gmail.com or by telephone to 965319660 this will help us to assess if this (two locations) is possible.

140 Bags of Rubbish from Calle Niagara

2008-10-16T13:15:00.017+02:00

Today (16th October 2008) we had the first of the Grand Clean-ups in Orihuela Costa and what a fantastic response from the Residents of the Coast. These clean-ups are in addition to those carried out by local groups in their own area.

In excess of 70 people gave their time to help clean-up a large part of Calle Niagara with the result that approximately 140 bags of litter in total, were collected, from three locations in the road. The clean-up began at 10.00 am and lasted for about one hour. Some of the residents wanted to spend more time cleaning but the temperature was rising and it was felt that enough had been done at this time. Residents who live close to Calle Niagara are intending to carry on the work on future occasions.

The excellent result of this show of people power and community spirit is a very much cleaner C/ Niagara and shows the Council what can be done where there is a will.

Following a telephone call to the Ayuntamiento in Playa Flamenca, shortly after the completion of the Grand Clean-up, to request the collection of the 140 bags, it has been reported to the Los Verdes coordinators that the bags were removed within 2 to 3 hours.

Was this a sign of efficiency by the Council or a desire to clear away the evidence of their failure to keep Orihuela Costa clean!

The Los Verdes Working Group in Orihuela Costa give their sincere thanks to all who took part. The response from the Residents was greater than could have been hoped for. Details (location, time and date) of the second Grand Clean-up, in approximately 4 weeks, will be announce shortly.

I'll let the photographs tell the story better than I can.

Click on the photographs to see enlargements.

Campaign promoted on Canal Vega Baja TV.

2008-10-08T22:25:00.007+02:00

Today Ulla Perret and Elliot Sampford , members of the campaign coordinating team were invited quests on the new daily news and current affairs programme 'Vega Life', transmitted on Canal Vega Baja television daily from 12.00 to 1.00 pm and which is aimed at English speaking viewers.

In addition to discussing various news items the opportunity was given to outline details of the Clean up the Costa campaign with particular emphasis to the Grand Clean-up to be held at 10.00 am on Thursday 16th October 2008, in Calle Niagara, Orihuela Costa.

We are hoping that the television company will follow up on the publicity today with a visit on the morning of the event. The more publicity that the campaign gets, the more volunteers will help, with the result of a cleaner Orihuela Costa.

Earlier in the day Monserrate Guillén, Los Verdes councillor for the coast, held a press conference for the Spanish media to announce the Grand Clean-up.

Photograph: Left to Right; Ulla Perret, Natalie Sampford, Gérard Perret

Signs for Extra Help

2008-10-04T22:35:00.005+02:00

To help the registered volunteers after they have completed a 'People's Litter Pick-up' we are now able to provide signs (as shown in the photograph) that can be placed in the ground on the area that has been cleaned. There is an alternative option of signs that can be attached to fences or walls.

To receive the signs register with the campaign and tell us when and where the clean-up will be. These are in addition to the Free starter kits of hats, badges, stickers and initial supply of refuse bags. Those who have already completed and notified the campaign of their successful Litter Pick-up will receive the signs in the next few days.

To register your wish to help 'Clean up the Costa' with a People's 'Litter Pick-up', or to report the success of your 'Litter Pick-up', send an email to cleanupthecosta@gmail.com .

Clean up the Costa at the Campoamor Market

2008-10-02T17:59:00.006+02:00

On Thursday the 2nd October members of the Los Verdes Working Group in Orihuela Costa, who are coordinating the Clean up the Costa campaign, were present at the Market in Campoamor to promote the campaign in general and the Grand Litter Pick-up to be held in Calle Niagara at 10.00 am on Thursday 16th October 2008.

The interest and positive response from the public was very encouraging with several confirmed pledges of attendance at the clean-up in C/ Niagara, in addition to registrations for the campaign in general.

Several people took the opportunity to talk to representatives of Los Verdes of Orihuela about their concerns in respect of the management of the market. (See the Los Verdes in Orihuela Costa Blog for more information)

Grand Litter Pick-up – Calle Niagara

2008-09-27T18:36:00.010+02:00

In addition to the individual Pick-ups that the various groups of volunteers are arranging Los Verdes would like to organise a Grand Litter Pick-up once a month for large problem areas that are not being cleaned by the Council.

On the 10^th July 2008 on this Blog I posted an article on the litter on Calle Niagara and the failure of the council to have it cleared, despite it being reported to them. You can see from the photograph the litter is still there!

At 10.00 a.m. on Thursday the 16^th October 2008 we are holding a Litter Pick-up of the location shown and others along the length of Calle Niagara. We are asking that as many volunteers as possible give approximately 15 minutes of their time to help clean up this area. The more help we have the greater the amount of litter we can clean. We can show the Council what changes people power can make to the cleanliness of Orihuela Costa.

Our aim is to clean as much of the part of the road marked green on the map as possible. The meeting point is shown. Remember to bring your gloves to protect your hands. We will bring the hats, badges, labels, and bags.

Please help to Clean up the Costa, by giving just 15 minutes of your time once a month to help on the Grand Clean-up! For further details or to pledge your help on the 16^th October email cleanupthecosta@gmail.com or telephone 965319660.

Click on Map to see enlargement.

Calle Niagara is just 200 metres from the Saturday market in Playa Flamenca.

Lucky 13 Save half a day!

2008-09-21T17:00:00.004+02:00

On Sunday 21st September 13 volunteers attended a clean-up organised by Josephine and Graham Cantello in the Las Ramblas urbanisation. The location they tackled was on Avenida Las Ramblas de Oleza, with particular attention to the area where the communal rubbish bins are sited.

Josephine said “It was not as bad as it usually is but needless to say, it did need a clean and disinfect. 13 people turned up which turned a half day of cleaning into just 1 hour”
.

This excellent turnout showed that many hands make light work and the task was soon completed.

Josephine added; “It was brought to my attention that another area on Las Ramblas was in need of a clean so arrangements are now being made for next Sunday when, we hope, with the aid of our "flyers", we will get a good turn out.

14 Bags of Litter in I hour.

2008-09-13T15:04:00.008+02:00

Residents with Los Verdes campaign coordinators

Several residents from the Sol Beach and Vista Azul 2 communities in Cabo Roig held a 'People's Litter Pick-up' on Thursday 11th September starting at 10.00 am with the result that 14 bags of litter were collected in approximately 1 hour.

The event was organised by Bernadette Dunkley, Vice President of Sol Beach, following registering with the campaign and receiving a Free starter kit. Her colleagues on the clean up included Wendy, Rita, Barry, Sue, Amelia, and Patrick (apologies to any one I've missed).

The area they chose to tackle was the recreation area situated on Calle Ortosa, which includes football pitches and petanca courts. The transformation of the area following the clean up was tremendous, the football pitches did not look like rubbish bins any more and the surrounding space was clear of litter.

Bernadette commented that “We have planned our next session for Thursday next and hopefully by then we will have more helpers. It was a good satisfying morning.”

On a return visit to the site latter in the day, to take some photographs of the result of the clean up, I personally noticed people looking at the campaign stickers put on the bags of collected litter. A gentleman who noticed my campaign badge asked for more details about the scheme and commended the effort of the residents.

My apologies to the residents for a lack of photographs after the clean due to my clumsiness in dropping my camera on the morning and finding that sticky back plastic doesn't fix everything.

Council agree to co-operation with Campaign

2008-09-05T16:05:00.001+02:00

A meeting was held on Tuesday 2nd September 2008 in the Ayuntamiento in Playa Flamenca, between four members of the Los Verdes Working Group for Orihuela Costa (Gérard & Ulla Perret, and Elliot & Natalie Sampford) on behalf of the Clean up the Costa campaign, and Councillor Jose Antonio Aniorte, PP Councillor for the coast.

The result of the meeting was that it was confirmed by the Councillor that the Council will co-operate with the 'People's Litter Pick-up' part of the campaign in that it (the council) will ensure that any bags of rubbish or other items that are marked with the campaign stickers will be collected, that it will provide free of charge large rubbish skips for the larger 'Pick-up' projects that it is notified of by the campaign, that it will supply free of charge a quantity of refuse bags for use by the volunteers to the scheme. A small quantity of bags that was available in the Ayuntamiento was given to the Los Verdes representatives following the meeting.

9 Starter Kits issued in 1 Day

2008-09-04T15:00:00.001+02:00

Following the launch of the 'People's Litter Pick-up' part of the campaign in the local press, on the campaign Blog, and on two of the local chat forums; between 10.30 am & 12.30 pm during the Los Verdes surgery held on the 3rd September 2008 at the Celtic Isle in Playa Flamenca we issued 8 Free People's Litter Pick-up starter kits to residents who called in. With 1 further telephone request latter in the day that gives a total of 9 registrations to the campaign and the issuing of kits in 1 day.

FREE Starter Kits at Los Verdes Surgery

2008-08-31T12:19:00.002+02:00

To help with the distribution of the FREE Starter Kits, available for the People's 'Litter Pick-up' as part of the campaign, these will be available for collection during the Los Verdes surgery to be held between 10.30 am and 12.30 pm, on Wednesday 3rd September at the Celtic Isle in Playa Flamenca, Orihuela Costa.

Los Verdes members lead by example

2008-08-22T12:16:00.011+02:00

Members of the Orihuela Costa Working Group of Los Verdes de Orihuela this week lead by example as part of the ‘People’s Litter Pick-up‘.

On Calle Panticosa, close to the Consum supermarket, opposite the exit of Calle Acuario there is a small plot of land that people have decided to use as a rubbish bin. This is a major access road to the local urbanisations and the site of the rubbish was a poor reflection on the area.

Four members of Los Verdes this week spent 30 minutes tidying up the area. The result of the ‘Litter Pick-up’ was the collection of 10 bags of rubbish, a mattress, and a wooden sunbed. Having completed the task a telephone call was made to the Ayuntamiento to request that the bags and other items be collected by the Council. It was pleasing to see that within 24 hours all the rubbish had been removed.

This example shows that a joint effort of a ‘Litter Pick-up’ by members of the public and the collection of the rubbish by the Council can improve the look of Orihuela Costa.

Launch of Clean up the Costa part 2 - People's 'Litter Pick-up'

2008-08-21T15:05:00.018+02:00

The increasing volume of Litter is ruining the cleanliness and look of more and more areas of Orihuela Costa. The continually expanding eyesores caused by Litter strewn along roadsides, across pavements, around parks and recreation areas, in green zones, in fact now almost everywhere, is totally unacceptable.

Where does the Litter we all see lying around our area come from? The only way that Litter gets to where it is, is by being thrown away by people, who are too lazy to be bothered to put it in a refuse bin, or to take it home if there's no bin close by. The type of person with the attitude that someone else can clean up my rubbish and dam the consequences to the area and those who live there.

The Litter doesn't come from the Council, and no matter how hard it may try and how much money it spends on the problem it is currently fighting a losing battle. It's a sad fact, but reality, that the problem of Litter is getting worse, and that Litter attracts more Litter! The Council cannot fight the battle alone!

It is the responsibility of everyone to help reduce, and ultimately eliminate, the amount of Litter lying around. Both the Town Hall and the Inhabitants of the area need to be involved. Ideally we need to stop Litter from being dropped in the first place, but until this happens we need to make sure that any that is dropped is picked up. We need to adopt a different solution from that of complaining to the Council and expecting them to solve the problem on their own. We, the people who notice the Litter and care about what it’s doing to Orihuela Costa, need to start to take action by helping to clear it up ourselves.

We all know spots that we pass regularly, either on foot or by car, that are an eyesore, covered in Litter, and with just a little effort for 10 to 15 minutes in picking up the Litter it would make a big difference.

Los Verdes suggest to the Residents of Orihuela Costa that if their calle, or community, or urbanisation, or green zone is in need of a clean up and they are you fed up with seeing Litter scattered around, spoiling their quality of life, now is the opportunity to do something about it! Spare a few minutes of your time to pick up some Litter in your area, and along with similar actions in other areas by other caring volunteers, we will begin to make a difference. This is an opportunity for those Residents who are concerned about the problem to join together for action! Whether you are an individual, a group of Residents, a school group, or a community that wants to help tackle the problem of Litter join the campaign now. With Residents of an area working together there is a powerful force at work. This is a problem that affects us all and needs the support of us all!

As campaign co-ordinators Los Verdes would like to create a register of individuals, or groups, or communities, of concerned residents who want to help to 'Clean up the Costa', irrespective of whichever political party they support. If an individual area has a Litter problem that is too big to be cleaned by a few local residents then we can contact volunteers on the register and ask for their help. Those people who are already picking up Litter in their area won't feel so much alone, they'll be part of a growing number of caring volunteers. Other Residents will become more aware of the campaign, and want to join in, as they see more and more people picking up Litter wearing their free campaign hats and badges.

This second part of the 'Clean up the Costa' campaign starts in the first week of September 2008 and Los Verdes ask and encourage people to carry out their initial 'Litter Pick-up' during September and October to give Orihuela Costa an 'Autumn Clean'.

There will always be a need for Litter to be cleaned up, until attitudes towards throwing Litter everywhere change, so the People's 'Litter Pick-up’ is part two of the ongoing campaign, that will possibly need to run for at least the next three years.

Register with the campaign today and help make Orihuela Costa a cleaner place to live in. In return for your involvement and offer to help the environment of Orihuela Costa, Los Verdes will give you a FREE 'Litter Pick-up' starter kit containing hats, badges, stickers, and bags.

We want you to be able to tell the whole of Orihuela Costa about your successful clean up! Send us your 'before and after' photographs and we will publish details of the work on the 'Clean up the Costa' campaign Blog so that other volunteers can see the result of your efforts.

Los Verdes will be asking the Council for it's help in that; they collect the bags of rubbish, marked with the campaign stickers; they provide, free of charge, rubbish skips for the larger 'Litter Pick-up' projects; they provide a free supply of plastic bags to the campaign, for the volunteer 'Litter Pickers'. Tell us where and when you will be carrying out an organised 'Litter Pick-up', and we will inform the Council so they can make sure the litter that's collected is dealt with properly.

To register your wish to help 'Clean up the Costa' with a People's 'Litter Pick-up', or to report the success of your 'Litter Pick-up', either send an email to cleanupthecosta@gmail.com or telephone 965319660 (English) or 965328190 (Multilingual)

HEALTH & SAFETY
It must be remembered that at all times when carrying out a 'Litter Pick-up' the health & safety aspects of the task must be considered, including the wearing of protective gloves. Potentially dangerous items should not be collected but left where they are and the exact location reported to the Council, either directly or through the campaign coordinators, for the Council to deal with in the appropriate manner. Items considered within this category would include; drug taking materials and equipment such as needles and syringes; possible toxic materials and liquids; excessively heavy objects.

Clean up the Litter - Peoples Litter Pick-up

2008-08-03T15:37:00.002+02:00

The Orihuela Costa Working Group are currently finalising the arrangements for part two of the Clean up the Costa campaign, with an intended launch in early September 2008.

It is intended to hold a press conference, with accompanying press release, in Orihuela Costa within the next two to three weeks to issue details of part two of the campaign which will be based around more direct residents involvement.

Full details will be published here on the Blog first, but I can reveal there will be a free starter kit including a cap.

If you want to be one of the first to know the details send an email to the campaign email address shown on the Blog with the title 'Tell me More' and you will receive priority notification.

Three months on and Calle Niagara is still not Cleaned

2008-07-10T14:38:00.007+02:00

At the meeting held on the 17th April 2008 between Los Verdes, represented by Councillor for the Coast, Monserrate Guillén, supported by members of the Orihuela Costa Working Group, and the Partido Popular Councillor for the Coast, José A Aniorte Grua, Calle Niagara was included in the list, supported with photographs, of the sites within Orihuela Costa that were subject to litter fly-tipping and required cleaning up by the Council.

On the 24th April 2008 Los verdes received an email from Javier Canovas, Asesor to Sr Aniorte, in which it was stated that Calle Niagara had been cleaned up.

As can be seen from the photographs, 12 weeks on, and the rubbish alongside the public pathway is still there in full view to the public; residents and visitors alike. Despite assurances given by the Council representatives nothing has been done to clear the rubbish at this location. It is not a case of the area being cleaned and then more rubbish being dumped, because it can be seen from three dated photographs that the appearance of the rubbish has not changed, just more added. This shows that 'Litter attracts Litter.

There cannot be any doubt that Council cleaning department vehicles must have been driven along this major access road at some time in the last three months and yet the rubbish has been ignored.

This highlights the need for the continual running of the Clean up the Costa campaign, possibly for the next 2 or 3 years, or until public attitude to the dumping of litter changes.

The Los Verdes Working Group in Orihuela Costa is at this time preparing the launch, at the beginning of September 2008, of the second part of the ongoing campaign. Further details will be published in the next few weeks.

‘Dog Fouling’ Byelaw gets closer

2008-06-12T15:26:00.004+02:00

Los Verdes are fully aware of, and concerned about, the problems that the unsocial behaviour of some dog owners causes by their failure to clean up the faeces of their dogs from public areas.

The Party has been working on this problem by putting pressure on the PP government in Orihuela to find a solution for some time. On the 15^th November 2007 this matter was brought to the attention of the PP controlled Council by the issue of a ‘Question’ from Manuel Gallud Gilabert, one of the three Councillors of the Municipal Group of Los Verdes of Orihuela, for discussion at the Pleno (Council Meeting) held on the 27^th November 2007. The matter of the control of dangerous dogs was also raised in the same question.

The Council was requested, amongst other items to take the following action in respect of ‘Dog Fouling’.

That the lack of a Municipal Bye-Law relevant to the problem of the control of ‘‘Dog Fouling’ is rectified without delay.

That the Council authorises urban areas in the city, in the rural areas, and in the coast, so that the owners of the dogs can take their animals to do their toilets without soiling the public highway.

That the Council installs throughout the municipality a sufficient number of dispensing machines of bags or utensils, and collection bins, to enable those persons walking their dogs to collect, and correctly dispose of, the faeces of the dogs.

That the Council initiates and promotes an information campaign which provides all the information to the citizens of the obligations that comes with the possession of a dog and it’s fouling within public areas of all types, and the legal consequences should they choose to continue to allow their dogs to foul the public areas.

Despite the reply being given, by the ruling PP party that this matter was already in hand and under consideration at that time, (this seems to be the PP’s stock answer when questioned on a failure of duty on their part) there has not been anything forthcoming up to this time. Our three Councillors have raised the matter in subsequent Plenos (council meetings) to continue putting pressure on them (PP) to honour their obligations to take action to ensure that the residents live in a clean and safe environment.

It would seem that the persistent pressure has had an effect. Los Verdes have been made aware that it is the intention of the PP government to present a Byelaw (Ordenanza Municipal) to the next monthly meeting of the full Council (Pleno), due on the 24^th June 2008 for approval and inclusion within the Municipal Statutes, to control the problems of ‘Dog Fouling’ and the Ownership of Dangerous Dogs.

The approval of the Byelaw is the first and most important stage in the campaign to ‘Clean up the Costa’ of this problem, and it is hoped to report good news after the 24^th June 2008.

80% of Fly-tipping is done by 20% of the Population!

2008-06-04T23:20:00.012+02:00

80% of the illegally dumped rubbish in Orihuela Costa is dumped by 20% of the population of the area. That is if the logic follows the Pareto Principle, The Law of the Vital Few, or the 80:20 Rule as it’s more commonly referred to.

My experience in business and in life has shown the general principle to be valid, plus or minus a percentage point or two.

In line with the theory it would seem to follow on that 80% of the illegally dumped rubbish is located in 20% of the Fly-tip sites in the Orihuela Costa area. Could it be that if the Council concentrated just 20% of its cleaning effort on clearing those sites, we would all see an 80% improvement in the cleanliness of Orihuela Costa?

Can it be that 80% of the population who complain about the levels of rubbish will do nothing to clean it up, whilst 20% will? Does it follow on from this is that 80% of the residents accept the presence of rubbish, whilst only 20% do not? Surely this cannot be true!

Let’s now consider another aspect of unwanted litter on our streets, namely that of the presence of dog fouling. The rule suggests that 80% of the problem, the volume of dog faeces not cleaned up, is caused by 20% of dog owners.

Then there is the matter of litter thrown from cars. Is it possible that 20% of car users are responsible for 80% of the roadside rubbish, surely not?

Perhaps the percentages are all wrong! Perhaps it is more realistic in these circumstances that it should be the 95:5 rule. This would suggest that just 5% of the population dump 95% of the rubbish, or its only 5% of dog owners who don’t clean up after their animals and account for 95% of unwanted dog faeces on the streets, or it’s only 5%of motorists that are litter bugs. Those are better ratios!

But are they? If that is a more realistic ratio then it would suggest that 95% of the population who complain about the levels of un-cleared rubbish will do nothing to help clean it up. That 95% of the residents accept its presence in public areas! That cannot be true, can it?

The concept of the Pareto Principle I believe is valid, but does it matter what the actual percentage ratio is? What does matter though is that we all must surely agree that the amount of the various types of rubbish thrown and left on our streets, parks, playing fields, and open country is un-acceptable in a modern society.

Some of the important questions that we must find answers for are; how do we educate the fly-tippers to stop using public areas as their personal tip; how do we educate irresponsible dog owners to clean up their dogs faeces; how do we educate the majority of the population to get involved in clearing litter to help keep their local environment clean, rather than relying on the minority to do the job for them?

The most important question of all is;

how do we stop Orihuela Costa becoming an illegal landfill site?

New email address

2008-05-19T12:25:00.002+02:00

To help make it even easier to send in information, photographs, or questions that relate to the campaign an additional email address has been set up, it is cleanupthecosta@gmail.com .

Alternatively the Los Verdes address of losverdesorihuela@yahoo.es can be used.

We were told they'd been cleaned, but they haven't !

2008-05-16T15:23:00.013+02:00

Having said in my previous post that there is good news about the cleaning of the sites notified to Councillor for the Coast, Sr. Aniorte, I have to report some bad news!

Having been given the assurances that the clean-up of rubbish on public areas would be completed within three weeks from the 17^th April 2008 (date of the meeting), visits have been made to inspect some of the notified sites. Yes some have been cleaned but several of those that we recently visited have not been.

The following are examples and I invite the reader to spot the difference. The dates the photographs were taken are shown on them.

Calle Sagitario

In his email dated 24^th April 2008 sent to Los Verdes (see previous posting for reference) Javier Canovas, advisor (asesor) to Sr. Aniorte wrote:

“En contestación a la petición por parte de los verdes a don Jose Antonio Aniorte, y recibiendo por parte del mismo ordenes de revisar, comprobar y contestar a su petición, les informo:

las siguientes calles ya habian sido limpiadas y retirados los vertidos solidos antes de la reunión mantenida con el concejal de la costa:
cl Sagitario,”

(Translation by Google Translate)

In reply to the request by the Greens to don Jose Antonio Aniorte, and receiving by the same orders to revise, check and reply to their request, they reported:

The following streets had been cleaned and removed the rubbish before the meeting with the councilman from the coast:
cl Sagittarius,

You see from the photographs that not all the locations within this road have been cleaned.

Before

After

In order to be fair I should point out that these are in an area that might be considered as C/ Pluton as it's at the junctionof the two

Calle Niagara

Javier Canovas wrote:

“A continuación le informo de las que han sido visitadas personalmente por Javier Cánovas:

cl Niagara con cl Iguazú: el día 22/04/2008, estaban retirando toda la poda y los residuos solidos. por lo que a dia de hoy, ya estará en perfecto estado”

Here inform those that have been personally visited by Javier Cánovas:

cl Niagara with cl Iguazu: on 22/04/2008, were withdrawing all the pruning and solid waste. as far as today, it'll be in perfect condition.

Before:

After:

Green Zone Barranca corner of C/Niagara & C/Iguazo

See quotes above.

Before:

After:

Other sites on the list presented to Clr. Aniorte will be visited in the coming days to check on the progress of the clean-up.

Good News, The council have started the Clean-up

2008-05-16T13:37:00.002+02:00

Following the meeting with Councillor Aniorte on the 17^th April 2008 Residents in some areas have seen an improvement in the cleanliness of their area as a result of the Council’s reaction to the campaign.

The following extracts are from emails we have received from contributors to the campaign since the clean-up began.

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"Dear Elliot. As you can see, the rubbish has now been cleared, ..........Many thanks."

"HI good morning You may be pleased to hear (and see) that some clearance work was started on the "rubbish tip" at the end of our cul de cac yesterday morning....Hope this is of some use to you. Good luck with the campaign."

"Action at last!!!!

Thanks to you all, as at last the large amount of rubbish in front of Bosque De Las Lomas 1 and 8 is (hopefully) being removed. A man and a digger has been moving it into large mounds, hopefully to be removed completely.

.........Thanks again - greatly appreciated."

"Hi,

Thought you would like to know, that the rubbish was cleared away yesterday, well at least it has been put into neat piles. I assume it may be taken away at some time.

One wonders how long it will take before people start to fly tip there again"

"Thank you for your update on the Fly-Tipping problem.
Whether your drive has had immediate effect, I do not know, but on Thursday and Friday the mound of debris behind Mercadona was mostly removed."

"I have attached some photos of the recently cleared land next to Bosque 8. As you said at the meeting, the topsoil has been totally destroyed, leaving nothing but sand. I can't say I'm impressed with the clean-up, as some larger items have been left behind. The people next to it are now complaining about the dust, which to be fair was horrendous the other day when it was quite windy. The area is now being used as a dog toilet, even by the people who live opposite! However, it does look better than it did before - but for how long??"

"This is to confirm that the plot of land on Calle Victoria has been cleared as previously notified to you. Also it has stayed that way which is great, all we need now is for the plant life to grow back."

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It is good news that the Council have started to honour their duty of keeping the environment we live in clear of rubbish. It’s a pity though that it has been necessary to have this campaign to remind them of their responsibility to the inhabitants of Orihuela.

We must not be complacent as this is just the first part of the Campaign. There is still a lot more that needs to be done, both by the Council and the Residents, to ‘Clean up the Costa’.

Email by S Pokroppa for the Partido Popular

2008-05-14T15:11:00.005+02:00

This is the English text of the email issued by S. Pokroppa on the 28^th April 2008 that I referred to in my posting on the 13th May. This was issued 1 month after the start of this campaign, 11 days after our meeting with Sr Aniorte, PP Councillor for the Coast, at which we presented him with the list and photographs of 30 sites reported by the residents of the Costa.

The Partido Popular have been in power controlling the Orihuela Municipality for 20 years, and only now after the launch of our campaign do they seem to admit there is a major problem of illegally dumped rubbish in our area. Only now are they prepared to take action after being forced to by the power of the public speaking out.

THIS IS NOT AN INITIATIVE BY THE PP, BUT A FORCED REACTION!

The email was issued in three languages, English, Spanish, and German.

“Message from the 0ffice of the Councillor for European Residents, Beaches & Infrastructure, Orihuela Costa.

We would like to ask all the residents of the Orihuela Costa for their cooperation and assistance in identifying the illegal fly-tipping throughout our area. We also want to penalise the culprits and your help in identifying them is also essential.

Orihuela is a large municipality covering a large geographical area and a rapid response from responsible citizens in identifying the illegal fly-tipping area quickly, and if possible, those responsible, will assist us to clear the problem areas and bring the offenders to account. For this reason it is very important that the Police, all the workers and all the Residents are cooperating with the town hall.

Whenever an illegal fly-tipping is taking place please inform us by phone on 96 676 00 00, or come personally to the town hall to inform us. It would help if you could provide, if possible, photos of the incident or the fly-tip, and the exact address of the location. With your help it will be easier to start the process of cleaning our area and please keep in mind that because of the size of our municipality and the sheer volume of vacant land, it is very difficult for us to know all the existing rubbish tips, so we need your help.

The team at the town hall are fully committed and are very conscious of the wonderful potential we have in our area, and it is in all our interests to keep it clean and tidy. Fly-tipping problems can be sorted out quickly by bringing them direct to the town hall. Bringing these problems to the newspapers will not solve the problems and will only delay their eventual resolution.

The office of the councillor for European Residents, Beaches and Infrastructure Orihuela Costa, together with the headed councillor, are people willing to work without a break until this matter is resolved to everybody’s satisfaction and the offenders are penalised.

Your local town hall team is asking all of you, the residents of Orihuela Costa, for your cooperation. This is also your municipality and with your help we can make this area an even better place to live and an area of what we can all be proud.”

The text of the last sentence in the fourth paragraph has caused concern amongst some of the residents on the Costa and has been interpreted as a veiled threat by the PP.

There is a very big flaw in the message of the email. Reference is made to “ penalise the culprits”, “bring the offenders to account”, and ” the offenders are penalised” but this cannot happen at the moment as there is no Byelaw in relation to any matters relevant to the problem of Fly-tipping. Councillor Aniorte has admitted this fact.

The PP have had 20 years in power to sort this out but only now act to correct their own failure. Their own failure to ensure that the residents of the Orihuela Municipality have a clean environment to live in!

The Campaign to date

2008-05-13T16:00:00.010+02:00

Let me begin this first post by apologising for the length of it, but it’s necessary to detail the history to date.

The launch of the campaign was made at a press conference held in Orihuela Costa on the 26^th march 2008. Between the 28^th march 2008 and the 4^th April 2008 the local non-Spanish papers (Costa Blanca Nachricten, Leader, Coastrider, Roundtown News, and Costa Blanca News) published articles about the campaign. On the 9^th April 2008 and second press conference was held, but this time in Orihuela, to bring the campaign to the attention of the Spanish media (papers, radio, and television) with coverage in the Orihuela Municipality.

The following is the Press Release issued on the 26^th March 2008.

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Los Verdes (The Green Party) of Orihuela - Press Release.

No More Fly-Tipping – Clean up the Costa.

Fly-tipping, the act of illegal dumping large amounts of rubbish such as building waste, furniture, white goods and other such items on any land or street, is the scourge and blight on the environment, effecting both the urban and countryside areas alike in the Orihuela Costa region.

Los Verdes (The Green Party) are launching a Campaign to make the Orihuela Ayuntamiento aware of the locations of the many Fly-tipping sites that are ruining and damaging the quality of the environment, the quality of life of the inhabitants of the area, and ultimately the economic future of the area.

The aim of the Campaign is to supply the PP Council, through the office of the Councillor for the Coast, José A. Aniorte Grau, with photographs and specific location details of all the illegal, ugly, and dirty Fly-tipping sites within the Orihuela Costa area.

This will hopefully be the shove that the PP Council needs to act to honour its duty, to maintain the environment in a clean and natural condition. This will be a reminder to them of their need to rectify their failure of duty of care to the environment and the inhabitants of Orihuela Costa, and if they choose not to act, as they have failed to in the past, we will name and shame them by all the means available to us, including our Councillors raising this matter in future Council meetings.

To ensure the Campaign is as successful as possible Los Verdes (The Green Party) need the help and involvement of all the Inhabitants of Orihuela Costa. We need to work as a team.

We are asking Residents to send us photographs of any illegal Fly-tipping sites that they are aware of in the area, along with the details of the exact location and the date the photograph was taken. If they see actual acts of illegal dumping taking place, to take a photograph, so long as they do not put themselves in danger, showing details of the vehicle and business name if possible, if it’s a company vehicle.

The photographs and details should be sent by email to – losverdesorihuela@yahoo.es with the subject title of “Fly-tipping”. Los Verdes (The Green Party) will collate all the information received and will forward it to the Council for them to act as they should, to clean up the areas, and to take action to stop it happening again.

We also ask the local papers to help with the Campaign, by forwarding any photographs and information that they receive from residents, if this is easier for some of their readers, to us at the Los Verdes (Green Party) email address, and also by allocating a small area of space in their publications, as a type of name and shame gallery. This could include both sites where Fly-tipping has occurred and not been cleaned up, but also any pictures of culprits carrying out illegal dumping.

We do not want to live within an illegal landfill site, to be surrounded by, and have to live amongst the filth created by Fly-tippers and ignored by the Council!

Los Verdes (The Green Party) ask for the help and involvement of the inhabitants, of the coast, to force the PP Council to honour its responsibility to keep Orihuela Costa clean and a fit place to live!

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The response by the residents of Orihuela Costa was excellent.

On the 16^th April 2008 a list was drawn up of 30 sites where rubbish had been illegally dumped.

On the 17^th April 2008 this list, supported with photographs, was presented to the Partido Popular Councillor for the Coast, José A. Aniorte Grau, at a meeting at which Los Verdes (The Green Party) were represented by our Councillor for the Coast, Monserrate Guillén, supported by members of our working group for Orihuela Costa. Between this date and the launch of the campaign Sr. Aniorte had already been made aware of the location of some of the sites, through photographs published by the media in papers and on websites, and the council had begun to clean up some of the rubbish.

The result of the meeting was that Los Verdes were assured by Councillor Aniorte on behalf of the ruling PP Council, that all the sites on the list, that are on public land, would be cleaned up within a period of three weeks from the 17^th April 2008, but that there isn’t any Council Byelaw (Ordenanza Municipal) in existence within the municipality to be able to ensure a clean up of fly-tipping on private property at this time.

The situation that there isn’t any Byelaw in relation to the problem of Fly-tipping is unacceptable. Los Verdes will continue to push the PP ruled Council to draw up and present to the Pleno (Council Meeting), for approval, the required Byelaws.

Two days after the meeting with Sr Aniorte, Los Verdes received emails from a few of those who had contributed to the campaign, by sending us photographs of fly-tipping sites, to confirm that the council were starting to honour their duty of cleaning up the rubbish.

On the 24^th April 2008 an email was received from Javier Canovas, assesor (advisor) to Sr Aniorte to confirm receipt of the list of sites and to confirm action taken as at that date.

On the 29^th April 2008 an email was issued by S Pokroppa, an asesor appointed by the PP, on behalf of the Ayuntamiento as a direct response to the campaign. The text of the email was to tell the residents that the town hall is starting an initiative to clean up the fly-tipping, and that it wants the residents to either telephone, or visit the Ayuntamiento, to report if Fl-tipping is taking place. The residents are advised in the email that “Bringing these problems to the newspapers will not solve the problems and will only delay their eventual resolution”. To some residents this comment has been seen as a veiled threat by the PP.

On the 6^th May 2008 an open meeting was held at the Celtic Isle in Playa Flamenca, Orihuela Costa, to outline the progress of the campaign up-to-date and discuss future action.

The following article appeared in the Leader newspaper http://www.costablancaleader.com/news/article.php?article_id=15286&article_section_id=1 .

“Green Party Propose Citizens’ Participation for Clean Up
By Sally Bengtsson

(Published: 11/05/2008 Edition No.: 211)

The Green Party held a ‘Clean up the Costas’ meeting last Tuesday, May 5th in a bid to put together a plan of action to get the area looking more pristine and attractive.

Los Verdes are the third largest party in Orihuela, with three councillors. They initiated the ‘No More Fly Tipping’ campaign a few weeks ago after becoming fed up of living in squalor and tired of waiting for the PP to eradicate the problem. The campaign was taken up with so much vigour by local residents that it became apparent that people felt very strongly about the filth all around them.

On March 31st the front page story in the ‘Leader’ about the campaign acted as a catalyst, with hundreds of readers sending in photos of fly tipping sites. The reaction was so strong that a press conference was called on April 9th, which was covered by Spanish media, and newspaper websites; the problem becoming visible for the whole world to see.

According to Elliot Sampford, the party spokesman, “The local government was obviously not happy with the widespread publicity and could not bury their head in the sand any longer. After being in power for 20 years they have finally decided to start cleaning certain sites up.”

The main problem appears to be that fly tipping is not illegal in Orihuela Costa, there is no by law like those that exist in neighbouring municipalities such as Torrevieja or Pilar de la Horadada, which forbids fly tipping.

However, the comments which came from those present at the meeting were that “We don’t want to live in a land fill site, we want to live on clean streets. We are not rats.” Another person commented on the fact that the mess is depressing and that visitors have to pass the rubbish. Other complaints were that the bin men should sweep up any rubbish they spill after emptying the bins.

It seems that the root of the problem is that in the whole of Orihuela municipality there is no eco park, and no where for builders to dispose of their rubble, hence people dumping their rubbish late at night, on waste land.

The Green Party then went on to suggest we take up a project which has worked very successfully in the UK. Basically the idea is for residents to participate in keeping an area clean, in conjunction with the local council. It involves a small amount of people’s time, but makes a world of difference. One idea is for the council to provide skips free of charge and the residents provide the labour to clean up an area.

One local resident commented at the meeting that in one road they had cleaned up a plot of wasteland and once it was clean, people stopped dumping rubbish on it, so it did stay clean. Another resident commented on the fact that there is a proven correlation between clean areas and a drop in crime. One lady had another idea. She had stood in her local park and given out doggy bags to all the dog walkers passing by. This had made a huge difference to the state of the park and people had continued to pick up their dog excrement ever since.

It appears that small actions can result in big change. It is no good sitting back and complaining, which we Brits in general are very good at doing. As Elliot mentioned, Orihuela Costa is a huge area and the Town Hall alone cannot solve all the problems alone. We all need to play a positive role in improving the area. “When you see some rubbish in the road, pick it up and dispose of it.”

The Green Party suggested people send in to their web site before and after photos of areas which have been cleaned.

Another suggestion was to encourage people to recycle for the good of the whole world, through education. In other areas of Spain orange groves have been adopted by locals, who maintain them and reap the rewards in oranges.”

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Work is now in progress to plan and launch the next stages of the campaign.

I think that brings this history up-to-date, but I’m bound to have forgotten something.