Crews set out spreading garden clippings across Formentera countryside

foto-biotrituradora premsa1The Formentera Council's environment department announces that crews will begin dispatching garden clippings rich in bio-matter to fields across the island. Three thousand cubic metres of  green scraps already put through the chipper at the es Cap de Barbaria waste treatment plant are awaiting delivery.

“By taking the reins of management of our waste we can avoid sending it off site”, explained environment chief Daisee Aguilera. “We can turn it into an asset for the local ecosystem and agriculture”, part of a strategy for healthy fields which the councillor referred to as “closing the loop” in terms of managing organic waste. Gardeners' trimmings bolster the land's water retention, reduces evaporation, and “more than anything is a great way to trap all the moisture from recent rains in the soil”, Aguilera pointed out. The material is also effective for mulching, a technique consisting in covering the base of plants in order, among other benefits, to trap in moisture and prevent weeds.

Contacting transporters
Islanders interested in obtaining garden clippings for their land have only to pay for transport. The three firms assisting in transport—Foreva, Formentera Trucks and Construcciones Isla de Formentera—will take advantage of return journeys on trips to the treatment plant to haul away loads and dispatch them across the island. Beneficiaries of the service will pay based on the amount of clippings they wish to receive—€15 for 5m3, €20 for 8m3, €25 for 14m3 and €35 for 20m3. Islanders should contact the environment office (àrea de Medi Ambient, 971 32 12 10) or one of the freight companies directly.

The effort will help free up the Es Cap de Barbaria staging area for other uses, such as a compost pile with material collected from the island's medium-sized and large generators. The resulting compost will also be destined for local farmers' fields, enabling even more materials to be cycled back into the ecosystem. Gardening scraps were chipped with a “biochipper” purchased by the Formentera Council with help from the EU's Leader fund. The administration owns two smaller chippers which it loans to islanders free of charge so they can shred green trimmings generated at home. The service can be requested at the Citizen Information Office (OAC) or by contacting the environment office.


April 3, 2019
Àrea de Comunicació
Formentera Council