Lots to discuss locally on the environmental front. With Litter leaflets, Environmental Action Plan, Flotel reclamation and more we shall struggle today to keep our edition within time limits. Here goes:
Some of you may already have seen the Litter leaflets going round Gibraltar at present and for the rest of June with the help of AquaGib who are keen to support Governments’ current greening up efforts. 17,000 leaflets will have been sent during the month of June. Everyone should get a copy delivered personally unless you get your bills online in which case you will see the leaflet appear on June’s account. If you would like an electronic copy of this plse email us at: esg@gibtelecom.net and we shall be very happy to send you one. Please feel free to share widely- let’s encourage everyone to make use of the right facilities for the right kind of waste and help clean up Gibraltar! Linked as this is to one of our Clean up the World objectives a reminder that this year’s clean up falls on Saturday 21st September.
Regarding the recent re-launch of the revised EAMP (Environmental Action and Management Plan) by GoG, we welcome its publication having publicly called for this to happen for some time now. We were consulted along with other parties and many of our recommendations have been applied within the plan. There are a few issues however that remain pending and we shall be issuing a fuller statement shortly that will also be posted on our website discussing the merits and shortcomings of the plan in more detail.
The Flotel is in Gibraltar; well its sitting in the DryDock at present looking like it needs a lot of work done to it. The ESG is very pleased to see that the GoG has taken heed of the concerns expressed by many in the community, as well as the ESG’s own objections to the original plans which involved the reclamation of an important water feature at Ocean Village.
While detailed plans have yet to emerge on how this will be preserved for the continued enjoyment of the local community, as well as implementing the intention to improve water quality, we are glad that the initial statement by Government shows they have taken concerns on board.
Listeners may remember a series of heavy fumes at the CEPSA Oil Refinery towards the end of May. Well, we did contact the company and address our enquiry to them hoping to have heard back by now as to the cause of the incident which spanned a few days. We also questioned the total lack of information that was made available to frontline residents and the rest of the Campo area including Gibraltar, who were all very alarmed about the excessive and unusual smoke emissions. We shall publish a reply once this has been received.
Some of our members have expressed concerns to us over the rubble mountain at Eastside and the intense activity with earth moving machinery on site for some time now. We have made enquiries to Government and are in the process of receiving detailed information as to the level of monitoring and standards of safety which we are assured are being applied.
Contact us if you wish to take part in Septembers CUTW –if you want more information on anything you have heard today – call us on 200-48996 or 54960000, email esg@gibtelecom.net. Thanks for listening.