The Formentera Council wishes to express its deepest sorrow following the death at noon today of a woman on a beach between Es Ministre restaurant and Es Pas des Trucadors. At approximately 1.00pm lifeguard and rescue services were notified that a woman, 61 years old and Austrian, was unconscious on a beach. According to witnesses at the scene, the woman was in an area where the water was calm and swimming was authorised when she suffered a sudden attack.

A number of beachgoers performed cardiac resuscitation until lifeguards arrived, at which point the latter carried on with the task. The victim was then transported by rescue service watercraft to the Es Ministre beach where an ambulance sat ready to take her to the hospital. None of emergency services' efforts were successful, however, at saving the woman's life. The victim had come to Formentera as part of a group day trip from Eivissa.

The Formentera Council's environmental arm has announced it will award a 35,492.93-euro contract to the firm Técnicas de Control Prevención y Gestión Ambiental Ltd for the drafting of a local sector-specific plan on solid- and urban-waste management. It will be the first time such a directive is devised uniquely for Formentera, and, according to CiF environment councillor Daisee Aguilera, will contain “criteria which turn on social and economic factors as well as environmental sustainability” in addition to “a clear emphasis on the distinct variables that come into play on each of the Balearic Islands”.

Highlighting the plan as a breakthrough, Aguilera pointed out that all the preceding directives had been for Eivissa and Formentera both and “failed to take into account factors specific to Formentera”. Indeed, one particular hurdle which haunts waste management on Formentera is the question of transport to Eivissa. To that effect, the councillor highlighted yearly waste-transfer costs of one million euros and invoked recycling which is, for its part, cost-free. Recycled materials, emphasised Aguilera, generate money that offsets the cost of transport. The councillor underscored the administration's efforts to raise awareness among private citizens and big waste generators about separating trash and recyclable materials and promised, “this is an effort that will reap both environmental and economic payoffs.”

In the councillor's words, “the directive will lay out the most appropriate model for managing waste on our island” while “seeking alignment with European, state and regional laws”. Aguilera homed in an additional aim the new directive will strive for: zero-waste production on the island. “This plan will help lay the foundation for new tender of the municipal waste collection contract”, she added. An initial deadline for the first draft of the document has been set at 21 months from today's date, though that could be trimmed down to nine weeks.

Rafael González, chair of the Formentera Council's Office of Infrastructure, reported today on the maintenance operations carried out this summer at the island's three public schools, framing the work as crucial “to making our kids' return to the classroom as smooth as possible”.

Aided by employees from outside firms, the Council's technical personnel painted the two buildings of Mestre Lluís Andreu primary school —as well as the schools in Sant Ferran de Ses Roques and la Mola— inside and out. Council employees also did regular maintenance, of electrical fixtures, lightbulbs and taps, at all three schools. The price tag on the maintenance work ran roughly 23,500 euros.

Making entry at la Mola school pedestrian-only
Councillor González also referred to another change on the arterial that runs just in front of la Mola's local primary and early-learning school. Vehicle traffic was blocked on a stretch of carrer Angela Ferrer de la Mola “to make getting to and leaving school a little bit safer”. The new pedestrian zone is marked off by four points, two at the entrance and two at the exit. The changes there came with a price tag of 6,500 euros.

The Formentera Council's bureau of environmental affairs has announced it is organising a clean-up of Formentera's surrounding seafloor. Anyone interested in participating can register by calling 971 32 12 10 or emailing infoambiental@conselldeformentera.cat.

A meeting point has been set on Saturday September 24 at 9.00am in front of la Savina's Formentera Mar tower. According to CiF environment head Daisee Aguilera, organisers waited for the season's end because summer is when plastic and other litter are most abundant in the island's waters. The area of clean-up will extend from la Savina to Espalmador, Aguilera said, explaining that that is where boat traffic is highest. She also acknowledged that the scope of the intervention would depend on volunteer turnout and the weather.

The current initiative is part of a broader push for environmental awareness that the Council has driven all season long. Aguilera described the freshly created post of door-to-door canvasser, a person who will visit businesses, restaurants and hotels to educate people about correct rubbish disposal and improving Formentera's image.

The councillor thanked Ferrovial Services, S'Aigu Formentera, Orcasub, Blue Adventure Diving Formentera and Carbónicas Tur for their support in organising the project. Sponsor companies will provide boats, snorkelling equipment and snacks for volunteers. The Council will also present volunteers with a free set of Formentera's newest permanent recycling bags.