Alejandro Marichal: “With this agreement we are improving cleanliness in the municipality and generating job opportunities for unemployed people in San Bartolomé de Tirajana.”
Ruyman Cardoso: “We are working in areas that have gone years without maintenance, where other types of waste are also appearing, which we are removing.”
The Cleaning Department of the San Bartolomé de Tirajana City Council has presented the balance of the work carried out within the framework of the collaboration agreement with the Foresta Foundation, a system that has allowed the reinforcement of actions in neighborhoods, roads and public spaces of the municipality since its launch on December 26.
During this initial phase, the work crews carried out 51 days of work, covering more than 135.000 square meters and removing 36 tons of plant waste, equivalent to 279 cubic meters. The work included clearing vegetation, pruning, collecting and removing plant waste, as well as targeted cleanup of solid waste in particularly degraded areas or those affected by weather events.
This device, which has an investment of 1.166.708 euros and will last until May 2027, has allowed action in different points of the municipality such as Los Olivos (El Tablero), Sonnenland, San Fernando, El Pajar, Castillo del Romeral, Juan Grande and the area of the road between El Tablero and Montaña La Data, as well as in the International Field and other public areas.
The First Deputy Mayor, Alejandro Marichal, highlighted the strengthening of the municipal service and the change in the cleaning management model. “When we began this term, we encountered serious problems with cleaning and services without current contracts. In recent months, we have implemented measures to improve the service, and this agreement allows us to take action in the access points to neighborhoods and in areas where it was necessary to reinforce cleaning,” he stated.
Marichal also emphasized the project's dual objective: “With this agreement, we aim to improve cleanliness in the municipality, especially along roadsides and in degraded areas, while simultaneously offering job opportunities to unemployed residents of San Bartolomé de Tirajana.” In this regard, he noted that the program has already carried out more than 50 interventions in its first four months of operation.
For his part, the Councillor for Cleaning and Waste Collection, Ruymán Cardoso, explained that the work is mainly focused on the removal of plant waste, although in many of the areas where work has been carried out “we find spaces that have gone years without maintenance, where other types of waste such as bottles, cans or household items also appear.”
Cardoso also highlighted the response capacity of the unit to extraordinary situations: “After the last storm, action was taken on beaches, ravine edges and different points of the municipality to remove accumulated waste and recover these spaces in the shortest possible time.
The director of the Foresta Foundation, Alicia Rodríguez, highlighted the social and environmental impact of the project, noting that "in these four months we have been able to train and employ 20 people with employability difficulties and act in more than 15 areas of the municipality, improving spaces that needed intervention."
Rodríguez also highlighted that “the 36 tons of plant waste removed reflect an improvement that residents are already noticing,” and stressed that the project combines employment and training: “It not only offers a job opportunity, but also training in the forestry field, which allows participants to improve their qualifications and facilitates their access to the labor market.”
The project incorporates training activities related to the forestry sector, including the use of machinery, irrigation systems and occupational risk prevention, with the aim of strengthening the professional skills of the people hired.
With this device, the City Council continues to reinforce the cleaning service and consolidate a continuous intervention throughout the municipality, with special attention to the neighborhoods and areas that require more intensive actions.
