Arona includes the tourist hot spots of Los Cristianos and part of Las Americas, so produces lots of waste on a commercial level. The council have a free collection service to take cooking oil from bars and restaurants for recycling. Smaller domestic users now have a municipal waste depot near Buzanada where people can take a diverse range of waste and leave it free of charge. This covers batteries, paint, wood, metals and aerosols to name just a few.

The example set by Arona is alreadt being picked up by neighbouring councils, all helping to improve the future of Tenerife.

There was a double shock along the east coast of Tenerife when 2 dead Sperm Whales (like the one pictured, from another incident) were found on the same day just a few miles apart. The discoveries happened at El Tablado in Guimar and Las Maretas in Arico.

The Guimar whale was  7 metres long and weighed 7,000 kilos while the Arico whale was slightly bigger at 11 metres long and weighing 15 tons. The bodies were taken away for examination to discover the cause of their deaths. Their are many dangers facing whales around the Canary Islands, such as pollution, shipping and sometimes sonar from military vessels. Tenerife environmental groups will be watching with great interest as they continue to try to protect these magnificent creatures.

The Canary Islands energy plat, PECAN, is committed to producing 30 per cent of all energy for the 7 islands through renewable sources by 2015. A key part of the new project a solar panel factory on the 400,000 square metre ITER site, will produce and test the latest and most efficient range of panels, that process will begin within weeks, and will create 300 new jobs.

The ITER site is already the home to wind power, and bioclimatic housing projects, but the new investment will move them to a higher level and make Tenerife a big player in the solar energy field.

It’s true that a lot of the glass comes from the large amount of bars and restaurants in this popular tourist town, around 48 per cent of the total, but it still reflects a strong commitment to the green policies adopted by the council. The grand total of glass given anew life last year was 802,740 kgs, up 41,000 kgs on the previous year.

Puerto de la Cruz has a very high profile with 166 glass collection points scattered around the municipality. It’s certainly proving to be a good economic and environmental measure from the council and is setting a good example to the rest of Tenerife.

The Canary Islands is at the forefront of cetacean care and research as a third of all species either live or pass through these islands. There is a huge appetite to see the beauty and grace of these creatures in their natural habitat, but it is impoertant that in doing so, we don’t cause distress or injury to the animals.

Reputable excursion companies have been keen to sign up to the guide lines and the distinctive Blue Boat flag, displayed on a boat, is your guarantee that they have promised to stick to the agreed proceedures to view dolphins and whales. These include safe distances to watch from and prohibited view points that could block the path of the animals. There are also time limits and restrictions on the number of boats that can be present in these areas at the same time.

The new leaflet is available to the public in Spanish, German and English at most Tourist Information points and several local cultural centres. It is hoped that if the public are aware of what is expected by their excursion boat, they can ensure that these rules are stuck to and if need be report anyone who flaunts the rules.

Used in a caring and responsible way, whale and dolphin watching trips can raise awareness of these animals and educate visitors to the dangers facing the cetacean population. It is in everyones interest to ensure that the Canary Islands continue to be a major centre to study, appreciate and conserve these majestic animals.

The new plant in the industrial zone near Barranco de los Torres is run by Ascan-Torrabonaf, who have considerable experience in mainland Spain. Since 2006  council cleaning services have dealt with 125,000 tons of rubbish, and as new residential areas open in Adeje, that total is rising. The new plant covers 10,000 square metres and has 2 large compacters to crush rubbish to a manageable size after it has been graded.

There are 250 points around Adeje, where rubbish can be put in different bins for paper and card, cans and glass. General rubbish is sifted through and added to the appropriate piles before it is passed on to El Rosario, Tenerife in the case of paper and card, the PIRS centre, Abona, Tenerife for cans, and Aguimes in Gran Canaria for glass. Gas oil can also be collected for treatment at the new depot as part of a free service. Ascan-Torrabonaf has 50 rubbish collection vehicles and employs 135 staff.

The Canary Islands are one of the home areas for the rare species, the deep trenches between the islands suits the creatures liking for depths of up to 1,500 feet. They are rarely spotted breaking the surface but the Ibero yacht, on a protection and preservation voyage, came across 3 males just 18 miles off Puerto Valero.

Gervais’ beaked whale is dark grey with a light underside and a white tip on the small head helps to make it stand out. The whales grow to 4.5 metres long for the make and 5.2 metres long for the female. The Canary Islands are a great place for whale and dolphin watching as a third of all the worlds species either live in, or pas through the island waters. 

The damming report for the CCOO union and World Watch magazine, shows an increase of 95 % in CO2 gases between 1990 and 2007. Last year a total of 16 million tons of CO2 contaminated the skies above the 7 islands. The biggest offenders were electricity and power suppliers but transport also weighed in with 45 % of the shameful total.

Leading the way was the Unelco electricity station in the Barranco de Tijarana, Gran Canaria with 1, 518, 051 tons of CO2. The Cepsa refinery in Tenerife accounted for 650,000 tons. The figures are still steadily rising but the Canarian government is hoping that new policies brought in in recent years, will start to chip away at the unwanted lofty position in the CO2 league.

It’s been a good year for the coast of Tenerife, the second annual campaign “La Mar De Limpia” promoted by the government, has cleared an amazing 1,200 kilos of rubbish from 6 zones. It is always an ongoing struggle to keep the shores clean but every effort really does make a difference and the involvement of 100’s of volunteers will help to spread the message about the need to protect the local environment.

The campaign started in July at Abades in Arico, and moved on to Playa Jardin, Puerto de la Cruz , Playa de la Ballenita, Buenavista del Norte, Los Gigantes marina, El Medano and El Puertito de Guimar (pic).

Other similar projects have taken place in the main tourist areas, backed by local councils, many becoming regular additions to the calendar. Long may they continue, but hopefully education will start to reduce the problem of discarded rubbish before it arises. 

The solar revolution is only on a relatively small scale, the panels will replace old cement panels on the roof of the Paul V1 auditorium, a bad weather alternative venue for the Pope’s audience with pilgrims. The hall holds 6,000 people, the new solar panels will create enough light,heat or cooling for the entire hall and may produce some extra power that will be fed into the Vatican power grid.

The solar panels have been donated to the Vatican by a Bonn based company Solar World and have a value of around 1.5 million US dollars.