A COW in Spain was destroyed today after it was found to be carrying ‘mad cow disease’.
The Salamanca farm animal tested positive for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), according to Spain’s agriculture ministry.
The ‘atypical’ strain of the disease was uncovered on November 10 during a routine screening, the OIE said, adding that the source of the infection was ‘unknown or uncertain’.
An earlier case of BSE was found in the same region in March, according to the OIE.
The discovery of BSE in British cows prompted the European Union to order a worldwide embargo on British beef and its derivatives in 1996 after it was learned that it can be transmitted to humans in the form of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
The World Health Organisation says that there have been 224 cases of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease from October 1996 to March 2011, mainly in Britain.
AN ongoing terror operation in Catalunya is attempting to uncover bombs and explosives.Bomb disposal experts have been mobilised as officers and sniffer dogs search several properties in Sant Pere de Ribes near Barcelona.
Regional Mossos d’Esquadra officers are expected to announce arrests later this morning from a series of dawn raids targeting Islamic terrorism.
The force tweeted early today: “An operation is underway in Sant Pere de Ribes.
“Several units are carrying out raids and arrests are expected throughout the morning.”
It added in a second tweet: “The operation is the culmination of an investigation which has been going on for months.
“It follows the detection of web users who in a coordinated fashion, praised and justified the actions of terrorist groups as well as inciting others to commit terrorist acts.”
Sant Pere de Ribes is around an hour south from Barcelona, near Sitges.
SPANISH energy firm Acciona has secured two six-year water treatment contracts worth €11 million in the Balearic Islands.
The first contract, worth €4.5 million covers most of southern Mallorca including the upkeep of wastewater treatment plants in Llucmajor and Felanitx, while the second, worth €6.5 million covers northern Menorca.
Acciona is looking to greatly expand its operations on the islands, taking control of the sewers from the Balearic Islands Water Agency (Abaqua).
The deal also includes the Llucmajor plant which supplies water to dozens of golf clubs in Mallorca.
Currently, Acciona provides water to three million people in 70 municipalities across Spain and with the deal starting early December that figure is likely to dramatically increase.
A BABY dolphin has been rescued from Marbella beach.
Biologists from the Aula del Mar in Malaga rescued the mammal from the shores in Marbella de la Fontanilla this morning.
The animal was extremely thin and was found full of parasites.
It has been transferred to the facilities of the Marine Species Recovery Center of Malaga (CREMA), where they will perform tests and treatments.
Divers from the Aquatic Unit of the Fire Department of Marbella participated in the rescue operation.
The 112 emergency number received several calls from locals yesterday warning of the existence of a dolphin that appeared ‘disoriented’ along the Marbella coast.
CLIMATE change scientists now project that the global temperature will increase by 3.2C by 2100.
Until now, global efforts such as the Paris climate agreement have tried to limit global warming to 2C above pre-industrial levels.
But now, experts believe we are reaching the ‘point of no return’ at an alarming rate, spelling disaster for the world’s major cities.
“We still find ourselves in a situation where we are not doing nearly enough to save hundreds of millions of people from a miserable future,” said Erik Solheim, the UN environment chief, ahead of this month’s Bonn conference.
One of the biggest resulting threats to cities around the world is sea-level rise, caused by the expansion of water at higher temperatures and melting ice sheets on the north and south poles.
Scientists at the non-profit organisation Climate Central estimate that 275 million people worldwide live in areas that will eventually be flooded at 3C of global warming.
Air pollution in Madrid will contribute to the ‘Heat Island’ effect
In Spain, the risk is the opposite, an intense desertification that will see temperatures resembling today’s Middle East and beyond.
Several Spanish coastal cities, from Cadiz to A Coruña, passing through Gijon, Bilbao, Malaga, Alicante, Valencia or Barcelona, face severe scenarios in the event of an increase in three-degree temperatures.
However, Climate Central highlights the risk of overheating in Madrid as an inner city, saying it will become its own ‘heat island’.
The capital is among the four worst projected sufferers of a greater increase in temperatures by 2100, surpassed only by Sofia, Skopje, and Belgrade.
The geographical peculiarities of Madrid mean a potential increase in summer temperatures of between 4.3 degrees and 8 degrees celsius.
Dozens of cities across the country could have average temperatures in summer above 45 degrees and reach records that right now seem unfathomable.
A recent study found that even if global warming is limited to 2 degrees, deserts would expand in Spain, North Africa and the Near East, while vegetation in the Mediterranean would undergo a severe change from the coasts to the mountains.
Prolonged periods of drought caused by climate change would also spark mass migration of peoples.
The study did not factor in human activity in the Mediterranean, including intensive agriculture and tree clearance.
YOU may have noticed patches of a brown substance floating in the sea off the coast of Malaga this year and mistaken the creamy-like product for filth.
But according to a new study, the substance, or ‘nata’ in Spanish, are made up of 90% air and water.
The study by the University of Malaga said: “The concentration of contaminants present in creams does not pose a risk some for health, since they appear at levels lower than those required in drinking water.”
The idea that the ‘natas’ are full of harmful, polluting products has been dismantled by the study, which collected 35 samples along the Malaga coast throughout this year.
While there are 25 more samples to be analysed, the first results are quite clear and suggest that 90% of its composition is air and water and only 10% is solid waste.
The objective was to look for the presence of Intestinal Enterococci and E.Coli, but their presence was at levels below the limits that mark excellence in bathing waters.
The study concluded that ‘not only are the waters off the coast of Malaga excellent, but the floating substances also meet the parameters of excellence’ according to the EU.
The origin of these ‘natas’ would be bubbles of air and water becoming covered with ‘mineral dust’, causing the brownish color.
The minerals are similar to those found in clay, such as mica and kaolinite, detrital minerals such as quartz, calcite and dolomite, and evaporite minerals such as halite, gypsum and anhydrite.
These foams, after their formation, move along the surface of the sea, trapping everything in their path, be they pollen grains, small microalgae, bird feathers, small branches, fishing lines etc.
The study was commissioned by the companies responsible for water management and sanitation in the province of Malaga: Acosol, Aguas de Torremolinos, Axaragua, Emasa and Hidralia.
RESIDENTS in Malaga have been left foaming after a washing detergent spill has left them without water since Monday.
Some 740 homes in Miraflores, El Palo, have been cut off after a foamy soap product was spilled into the well that supplies the water to the urbanisations.
Policia Nacional have already identified three people in the investigation of the spill that has affected the internal supply network in the Eastern District of the city.
According to police sources, water tanks have detected ‘a high concentration of detergents’, which was confirmed by the Municipal Water Company (Emasa) after analyzing the water in their laboratories.
Sources of the National Police explained last night that three people allegedly spilled the product by accident after cleaning a storage room near the well.
The police said the product is non-toxic, and that it was a foaming agent.
The cut of the supply remained in place until late Wednesday as authorities worked to empty out the pipes.
THE UN has warned ‘not nearly enough’ is being done to cut global greenhouse gas emissions.
Spain, in particular, is well behind in its actions to help stave off a critical two degree safety limit rise put in place by the 2015 Paris agreement.
Once this rise has been reached scientists claim the globe reaches a ‘point of no return’ and damage is irreversible.
But while the EU has committed to a 40% reduction in emissions by 2030 compared to 1990 levels, Spain is not doing enough.
It currently ranks at 21st out of the 28 countries of Europe in its policies to combat climate change.
However, the UN has collectively criticised all governments for not doing enough.
“A year after the Paris agreement came into force, we still find ourselves in a situation where we are not doing nearly enough to save hundreds of millions of people from a miserable future,” said Erik Solheim, head of UN Environment.
The annual review, which started in 2010, said pledges cover only one-third of the cuts needed by 2030 to keep levels below those in 2005.
However, it is not all bad as the report found that carbon dioxide emissions had remained steady since 2014.
The UN says that solar, wind, efficient appliances, planting more trees, and preventing deforestation would plug the gap.
The emissions gap does not cover the consequences of a US withdrawal from the accord and should that happen the picture will become bleaker.
In terms of ranking Sweden is the current European leader in cutting emissions, while the UK comes in fifth.
A MALAGA olive oil has been crowned the best in Spain for the fourth year in a row.
The Finca La Torre received the Food Award of Spain for the Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
The four-year winning streak is an accolade unmatched by any other Spanish company.
Based in Bobadilla, Málaga, the farm claims to have been producing olive oil since 1260 using herbs, earth and other organic materials for flavour.
Olive grower Víctor Pérez, 35, who trained as an agronomist at the University of Córdoba, applied to work at the farm after seeing an advert in a local newspaper.
He said the success of the farm is due to its diverse workforce.
“I think that having a team of workers from different countries favors us, because each one enriches the project by contributing their own perspective,” he said.
“We started picking the olives in October, the early harvest allows us to obtain more fruity, green and fresh juices.”
The farmers use sheep to naturally fertilise their 34,000 olive trees and make cheeses as well as vinegars.
Spain is the largest olive oil exporter in the world, with most of its farms in Andalucia, where 35% of farm labourers work with olives.
Exports of the ‘liquid gold’ are expected to soar by at least 45% over the next nine years.
SPANISH nurses will be given easier English language tests if they want to work in the UK.
Existing exams were too academic and have been blamed for a 96% drop in recruiting EU nurses, leading to a nursing shortfall across the NHS.
The exams were so difficult that even Australian nurses failed, despite English being their mother tongue.
The Occupational English Test is said to be easier as it tests nurses’ knowledge of medical terms in contrast to understanding complex scientific processes and articles.
Under the new rules, set by the Nursing and Midwifery Council, overseas nurses can take a simpler exam to demonstrate their English language capability.
The move comes into force this month and the Royal College of Nursing said it would ‘firmly oppose’ any relaxation in standards ‘just to plug workforce gaps’.
HEALTHCARE, education and jobs will receive the lion’s share of funds from Andalucia’s purse next year in what has been hailed as a ‘strong social budget’.
The Junta has approved a total of €34.7 billion for 2018, 4.5% more than this year.
Some €30 billion will go towards implementing new policy, with the remaining figure going towards paying off debt.
Minister of Finance, María Jesús Montero stressed that the budget was of a ‘strong social character’, with 83% of total funding going towards social expenses.
“The budget seeks to revitalise public services and ensure the creation of employment for the citizens of Andalucia,” Montero said.
Almost a third of the entire budget will go towards health, with €9 billion alone going towards the maintaining of the Andalucian Health Service, the biggest allocation in its history.
The Junta has identified unemployment as a key issue and funding for education and training schemes have also been given a priority.
The education system alone will receive €7.5 billion, of which €1.5 billion will go towards supporting universities.
A further €2.1 billion has been allocated for schemes including vocational training for employment and an innovative industrial employment program.
They are expected to benefit up to 35,000 people.
Funding for public services has also increased by 1.2% with improvements to be made to the Malaga metro and the completion of the new Hospital de La Línea.
The figures will now be forwarded to the Andalucian Parliament for debate and final approval.
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