A BRITISH-RUN transfer company on the Costa Blanca has been the ‘first in Spain’ to upgrade a VTC-licensed diesel car to dual fuel.
Alicante Transfers Ltd made the upgrade this month on a VIP Mercedes Vito mini-van, which is also the first Vito in Spain to receive the new technology.
Duel fuel motors can help to reduce diesel emissions by ‘30% to 40%’ while also reducing cost by up to ‘25%’.
“We are working with Benidorm Town Hall to lead the way in the future of the VTC license,” Alicante Transfers Ltd owner, Dave McQueen, told the Olive Press.
A March 2019 decree from the Valencian Generalitat stated that VTC licences will only be transferred to new cars if they use ‘eco-friendly’ forms of power generation.
The decree states ‘electricity’, ‘hydrogen’, ‘natural gas’, ‘lpg’ and ‘hybrid’ cars will be particularly sought out amongst the new, greener measures.
“Very few mechanics can convert a diesel engine to duel fuel,” Jose from Eco Truck Services, in Zaragoza, told the Olive Press.
“It helps to give new life to diesel engines, which create a lot of emissions, but generally make for better engines than petrol cars.”
McQueen said the procedure cost €4,600, and took 10 days, but his business would soon make back the costs through reduced fuel consumption.
A group of Greater flamingos (Phoenicopterus ruber) in Coto Doñana National Park, with sand dunes in the background. Andalucia, Spain.
FOWL PLAY: Greater flamingos in Coto Donana National Park, which is threatened by drought
THOUSANDS of waterfowl are at risk in the Donana National Park due to a series of management blunders that are seeing eggs and chicks being massacred by hungry wild boar.
More than 300 different species of birds use the marshes of Donana to breed, feed and rest throughout the year.
But the area is at risk from farming, cattle and a lack of proper protection measures, claims a leading wildlife organisation.
HOGWASH: Uncontrolled populations of wild boars are eating chicks in the park
“All this ornithological wealth is threatened by intensive irrigation that draws groundwater, along with a string of problems arising from its management, among which are the uncontrolled population of wild boar and the inadequate management of livestock,” said SEO/Birdlife in a statement.
It added: “The overexploitation of its groundwater for agricultural use, especially for the cultivation of strawberries and blueberries, is causing a real threat to the values of this World Heritage Site.”
Donana National Park is Europe’s most important wetland, but some birds are at serious risk of extinction, such as the grey-headed teal, while others have already abandoned the area.
SITTING DUCK: Some bird species have abandoned Europe’s most important wetland
Cattle farming causes extensive damage when cows overgraze and trample on nests as they move about.
SEO/Birdlife said they appreciated the work the government of Andalucia has done to tackle irresponsible farming practises, but it is still concerned by the wild boar population in the park.
“They prey on the eggs and chicks of many of the species that build their nests on the ground or at low altitudes,” the organisation added.
MADRID is banning aged cars from its city centre in a bid to reduce monster levels of air pollution.
The vintage veto, coming into effect this week, will banish older vehicles from within the perimeter of the M-30 ring road.
And from April next year, owners will have to display an environmental sticker detailing their vehicle’s emissions levels, issued by Spain’s DGT traffic authority.
A new speed limit of 70km per hour has also been set for the area as part of the new mobility plan from Madrid Town hall, which covers 472 hectares of the capital.
Police checks and traffic cameras are also in place to prevent cars without the eco sticker from entering the controlled drive zone.
Those classified as 0 – electric cars with zero emissions, ECO – hybrid vehicles, C and B – modern diesel and petrol cars – will be the only vehicles admitted.
Petrol-powered vehicles produced before 2000 and diesels made before 2006 will not qualify for eco stickers, meaning they are permanently barred from the city centre.
Fines for rule flouters will not be enforced until after the law comes into effect on April 24, 2019.
UP-IN-SMOKE: Spaniards worry climate change is affecting their health
MORE than half of all Spaniards believe climate change will threaten their health, the economy and the survival of the human species, a YouGov study has revealed.
Health is their main concern, with 64% fearing that lives could be put in jeopardy by the appearance of new and more deadly diseases and a rise in extreme weather events.
And over half – 52% – thinks that climate change will cause new world conflicts for natural resources like water and ultimately, endanger the future for mankind.
But Spanish pessimism runs deeper than that, with 51% believing climate change will have huge impact on their pockets as it pushes up the price of energy, food and insurance – and those earning the least feared it most.
Those earning less than €12,000 per year (44%) said that measures to combat climate change would weaken the economy, whereas only 35% of people on double that salary shared the same opinion.
But, the survey showed, climate change has become a reality accepted by everyone, since 0% of the respondents believed it was a myth.
THE EU has given its backing to a wide-ranging ban on single-use plastics in an effort to protect the world’s oceans.
Under the proposed directive, items that make up over 70% of marine litter such as plastic straws, cotton buds disposable plastic plates and cutlery will be outlawed by 2021, and 90% of plastic bottle recycled by 2025.
MEPs also agreed that cigarette filters containing plastic should be reduced by 80% by 2030 and propose that the ban should cover materials like expanded polystyrene, used in packaging numerous products from food to heavy goods.
NGOs like Greenpeace and Amigos de la Tierra have applauded the measures as ‘historic’, commending the measures that will force producers to pay for the contamination they generate.
ENVIRONMENTAL groups are taking legal action against the Junta for ‘failing to tackle toxic air’ in the Campo de Gibraltar.
Ecologistas en Accion has filed a complaint with the Health Ministry, claiming nothing has been done to protect citizens from a rise in air pollutants caused by the expansion of ‘toxic’ industries in the Bay of Algeciras.
According to the green group, more than 10,000 tonnes of dangerous pollutants were released into the atmosphere last year.
This includes potentially lethal cancer-causing chemical benzene, as well as other fine particles.
The writ comes as Cadiz province was officially declared to have the worst air quality in Spain.
And alarmingly, La Linea, which borders Gibraltar, ranks as the 30th most polluted place in the world in terms of air quality.
The shocking stats were revealed in a damning World Health Organisation report which lists the world’s ‘most contaminated’ towns and cities.
Adding salt to the wound, Cadiz also came bottom in the list of Spain’s ‘most sustainable cities’, produced by the Observatory of Sustainability (OMS).
Junta boss Susana Diaz
Ecologistas en Accion insists the Junta is failing to fulfill its duty to ‘adopt whatever measures are necessary to achieve a high level of protection for people and the environment’.
It adds that the Sevilla-based body is failing to ‘adopt plans to improve air quality and adopt control and inspection measures.’
“It needs to develop a quality control system that ensures consistent and transparent measurements or estimates of pollutants by law,” said a spokesman.
The group says oil refineries and other industries are posing a real threat to public health.
A recent study by the Carlos III Health Institute, funded by the Ministry of Health, revealed Cadiz, Sevilla and Huelva to have the highest number of cancer deaths in Spain.
San Roque, meanwhile, has one of the highest percentages of lung and bladder cancers in the country, directly linked to air pollution and in particular benzene.
The surrounding towns, including Puerto Real and San Fernando, also have far higher than average cancer rates than national averages.
SPANISH green party Equo is demanding an ‘immediate ban’ on the herbicide Glyphosate which has been linked to terminal cancer.
The call comes after American courts ordered the manufacturer to compensate a victim who fell prey to the disease after exposure to the product.
Developed in the 1970s by Monsanto, now owned by pharmaceutical giant Bayer, Glyphosate has been denounced on multiple occasions due to its negative effects on the environment and human health.
Based on official government data, ecologists claim that at least one of Spain’s three major rivers is contaminated with the substance.
Equo pointed to Bayer’s difficulty in getting its manufacturing license renewed in Europe. “It’s no coincidence that the European Parliament blocked Monsanto which has been accused of interfering with scientific reports about Glyphosate”.
However the European Commission maintains that use of the herbicide in the EU is based on ‘scientific evidence’, adding that every country is free to use it or ban it as they choose.
Carlos Vicent, Bayer’s Spain and Portugal spokesman, commented: “The court’s decision doesn’t change the fact that more than 800 scientific research reports state that Glyphosate doesn’t cause cancer”.
SPAIN has been revealed to be one of Europe’s main contributors to the ‘toxic’ crude oil refining industry.
According to a new study by GlobalData, Spain, Germany and Italy account for more than 35% of the active refineries across the continent.
Spain is the third highest user of such refineries, with a capacity of 1,542,000 bpd (barrels per day) from 10 refineries in 2017.
Gibraltar-San Roque, operated by Compania Espanola de Petroleos SAU, has the highest active capacity of 241,000 bpd. Cartagena and Bilbao refineries follow with 220,000 bpd each.
Years of research have linked living close to refineries with higher cancer rates.
It is believed toxic pollutants emitted in the refinery process – like benzene – contribute to various types of cancer.
In the Cadiz region, the prevalence of cancers and rate of mortality were recently revealed to be among the worst in Spain.
The allergic asthma rate amongst children is the highest in the country while the overall mortality rate is 20% above the national average. According to a CEPSA report, a string of very heavy polluting incidences related to power shutdowns and subsequent start-ups, has produced voluminous clouds of particulate pollution covering the surrounding area.
COMPANIES with women at the helm are less likely to break environmental laws.
A new study claims that for every additional woman appointed to a corporate board, the company experiences an average 1.5% reduction in ‘litigation risk’ – or a breaking of environmental laws.
The study’s author Chelsea Liu put this down to the fact men and women tend to have ‘different ethical standards’.
She said: “Male directors are stereotypically power-oriented, whereas female directors show greater universalistic concerns for other people. Female voices in the boardroom could therefore conceivably help companies to keep the welfare of local communities in mind when making environmental decisions.”
The study, which was published in the Journal of Corporate Finance, analysed 1,893 environmental lawsuits filed against companies.
A BRITISH expat couple have called in lawyers after a hotel was built just feet from their home, allegedly breaking environmental laws.
John Hillman, 72, and wife Lori, 65 insist their community was not warned about the construction, which has blocked almost all their light.
They have joined residents at Urbanizacion Zahara Beach to seek legal help and launch a petition, which has nearly 2,000 signatures.
They believe the wall, which now reaches three storeys high and is set to add an attic, is against the law in Spain.
SHOCKING: Wall from hotel is just inches away from residents’ homes, blocking out sunlight
“It is completely out of order. We now can’t see anything at all and they still look like they have more to add to it. Before we had beautiful views but it’s all been blocked now,” pensioner John told the Olive Press.
The Hillmans, who have owned their property in Zahara de los Atunes, near Cadiz, for nearly 30 years, claim workers on the 28-apartment Turisticos Gran Sol project have even discarded cement and polystyrene onto their terraces during building work.
They have also attempted to cap and build the car park over a well, which keeps flooding the site with toxic water.
RUBBISH: Construction of the hotel has left expats’ balconies littered with waste
The couple, who divide their year between Zahara and Sussex, claim waste water from the site is going into nearby dunes, killing grass and swamping the area with stagnant water – a breach of the Ley de Costas.
“There is a growing group of residents waking up to the scale of the damage, which the environment department seem to do nothing about,” added Lori.
Despite numerous letters and calls to Barbate Town Hall demanding answers and documents, residents have received little information about the vast project.
It took the group almost five months to obtain plans of the complex.
The project may now be in trouble after residents said signage has been taken down and building has stopped over the past few days, however this has not been confirmed.
Either way, residents added the damage is already done.
“The first time we heard about the project was when a JCB was bashing our back patio wall at 8am, trying to pull our huge tree out.
Works have allegedly flooded the dunes with waste water
“We managed to stop them after my son threatened to call the police,” added Lori, an acupuncturist who works in Gibraltar.
They claim that they were not given the statutory 20-day warning period in order to make their allegations against the scheme.
“It’s the injustice. No one ever knocked on our door explaining about the rubbish or to warn us about the building work,” added Lori.
The couple, along with other residents, have since sought legal help and launched a 1,600-strong petition.
It comes after the EU fined Spain a staggering €12 million this summer for a ‘prolonged failure’ to comply with a European directive on dealing with sewage and treatment.
The majority of offending towns are in Andalucia, including Barbate, Tarifa, Nerja, Estepona, Coin and Alhaurin el Grande.
Barbate Town Hall and Apartamentos Turisticos Gran Sol failed to comment in time for press.
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