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Consell unlocks €133,000 in assistance for renters

cartell 2021 ajudes lloguerThe Formentera Department of Housing is pleased to report applications are now being accepted from individuals and families affected economically by the Covid-19 crisis. The assistance totals €133,000, and “the terms have been reworked and the requirements simplified to make them more inclusive”, explained Ana Juan, vice-president and housing councillor of the Consell de Formentera. “With this second round of assistance we’ve tried to reach more people and made the rules more flexible. We’ll keep putting all our resources to helping people contend with the problem of renting on Formentera”, said Ana Juan.

Envisioned as targetted aid, the assistance must be used to cover rent payments or rent-related debt from November 2020 to June 2021. Depending on applicants’ social and employment situation, assistance can reach a maximum of 3,600 euros.

Applicants must be over 18 and residents of Formentera, and have a minimum four-month rental contract between November 2020 and June 2021 with monthly payments not to exceed €1,200. Applicants must also be current with rent payments for the months between November 2020 and June 2021.

Twenty days to apply
As with the previous round of assistance, the Consell de Formentera has launched an information line at 971 32 10 87 to facilitate access to assistance and answer any related questions. Interested parties have until 2 September, or 20 business days, to apply for assistance through the Citizen Information Office (OAC) or the Virtual Citizen Information Office (OVAC).

Complete details about rules and terms have been published on the website of the Consell de Formentera. Applications will be processed in order they were received.

6 August 2021
Communications Department
Consell de Formentera

200 traps to catch pine processionary butterflies

foto 2021 trampes BThe Consell de Formentera and Balearic Healthy Forests Service are pleased to make available to the public 200 traps to capture the pine processionary butterflies (Thaumetopoea pityocampa). Interested parties can request them at the Formentera Department of Environment at Carrer de Mallorca (15, Sant Ferran de Ses Roques) or by calling 971 32 12 10 (ext. 1).

The traps use pheromones to attract male butterflies and capture them, which in turn reduces the population of fertile males that can inseminate females. It is recommended they be installed in the first half of August, before the butterflies emerge from their chrysalises.

The insect was detected for the first time on Formentera in 2007 and was declared a plague in 2016. In recent years actions taken in an attempt to control the processionary have consisted in eliminating the bags which the caterpillars weave during the winter; capturing butterflies with traps; installing refuge boxes to encourage presence of chiroptera; aerial dustings and periodic ground treatment.

The pine processionary is a defoliating insect that feeds on the leaves of the native Balearic pine (Pinus halepensis). The insect does not itself kill the trees it defoliates, rather it leaves them more sensitive to drought or attack from scoliid insects which can eventually cause death.

Pine processionaries can also cause dermatological and allergic damage to people and animals as a result of the stinging hairs it has on the dorsal part of its abdomen. Balearic Healthy Forests Service remind the public that complete information is available on the website sanitatforestal.caib.es.

5 August 2021
Communications Department
Consell de Formentera

Reception for Mateo Sanz

foto 2021 Sanz A

Consell de Formentera president Alejandra Ferrer held a reception for Mateo Sanz Lanz to congratulate the local windsurfer on his recent Olympic diploma in the RS:X sailing class at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

At the gathering, which saw the participation of Vice-President Ana Juan and Councillor of Sport Paula Ferrer too, President Ferrer gave Sanz a jewel with a silhouette of the island’s skyline as a symbol of Sanz’s stellar representation of Formentera in Tokyo. The officials wished Sanz success in his future sporting challenges.

3 August 2021
Communications Department
Consell de Formentera

Thursday from 6.00pm, Formentera shuts Illetes to curb beach parties and protect nature reserve

foto 2021 reunio seguretat estiu AEarlier today Consell de Formentera president Alejandra Ferrer chaired a gathering of the island’s security forces that was aimed at enhancing inter-agency coordination and charting a response to recent parties, crowds and violations of Covid restrictions.

Attendees featured representatives of the Civil Guard, Formentera Local Police, Formentera Inspection and Environment Service, Balearic Office of Emergencies and Environment, Spanish Coastal Authority and a group of local officials including deputy premiere and commerce chief Ana Juan, chief of interior Josep Marí, environment and inspections chief Antonio J. Sanz and mobility chief Rafael González.

After the meeting, President Ferrer announced a forthcoming presidential decree requiring closure of all access points to the Illetes area in Ses Salines Natural Reserve of Eivissa-Formentera. From tomorrow at 6.00pm, guests may exit freely, but cannot enter without reservations at a restaurant located on the reserve.

The measure was designed to address the island’s rising Covid-19 case count, as well as recent reports of gatherings —some with alcohol, some without— where Covid rules have been violated. The decree also cites cases of street vending and damage to the local ecosystem.

The new regulations will take effect Saturday, with beaches closing at 10.00pm, as opposed to 12 midnight, as previously.

President Ferrer insisted that, whereas visitors to Formentera are typically respectful of the environment and rules, the current season has seen the emergence of uncivic tourists who flout public health measures and the authority of law enforcement, as meeting participants themselves attested.

Reinforcements
The island’s security forces pledged extraordinary efforts to implement the new provisions, which will see collaboration from FLP, the local, public safety and traffic arms of the Civil Guard and the Formentera Department of Mobility. In August, the Civil Guard’s aquatic and maritime units will provide additional help tackling drinks sales, unauthorised peddling, “party boats” and other arriving watercraft. Agents will also receive support from Formentera’s inspection and environment service.

The Balearic government has also vowed to send inspectors from the regional office of emergencies to enforce public health rules.

The president said attendees had also discussed the domino effect that the measure could have on other areas. “We’ll be flexible and if necessary these measures will be applied elsewhere too”, she said.

Message to public and business community
“Let’s be clear, we do not want the just paying for the sinners. We know most businesses are complying and trying to make it to the season’s end. The same goes for the islanders who endured a tough winter because they wanted to save their summer. Our intent is not to enact more restrictions, but we do want to stop offending behaviour that puts us at risk”. In that regard, Ferrer praised law enforcement for their hard work and applauded the business community and islanders for their patience. She also insisted the island’s government would “exhaust every means at our disposal to make the remaining 20 to 25 days in August safe. Nobody expects it to be easy, and it’s going to take the cooperation of one and all”.

Limited hours of operation
Additional talk revolved around preventing street drinking and crowds in Es Pujols and Sant Ferran, particularly at closing times. President Ferrer said the new restrictions on business hours would mean more work for law enforcement, and pledged to keep asking that protocol changes reflect consideration for Formentera’s reality on the ground: “It’s key to ensuring restrictions are effective and not counterproductive”, said the president, “otherwise they’ll be frustrating and unfair to the people and businesses that have been complying with them since the start of this pandemic”.

4 August 2021
Communications Department
Consell de Formentera

On 7 August, visitors get into La Mola lighthouse at no charge

cartell 2021 far de la mola gratuitaThe Formentera Department of Culture is pleased to report that on World Lighthouse Day this 7 August, admission fees will be waived at the Far de la Mola cultural and educational space. Until 31 October, the lighthouse will open Tuesday to Sunday 10.00am to 2.00pm and Wednesday and Sunday evenings, 5.00pm to 9.00pm. The lighthouse is closed on Mondays.

The building is divided into two exhibition spaces: the first, dedicated to a permanent installation on all things maritime —the undersea environment, underwater natural resources, sailing and light signage— and the second, devoted to temporary art exhibits.

3 August 2021
Communications Department
Consell de Formentera

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