From September 5 to 7 some 128 exhibitors will converge on the small village to set up stalls on the three levels of terracing in a stunning location where the pine forests meet the low clouds. The village has around 700 inhabitants and life is centred around a working museum of arts and crafts where the great Canarian traditions are kept alive. For the three days of the festival, the locals are joined by arts and crafts people of the other Canary Islands and much further afield.

One of the main crafts taking centre stage is Cestoria, the art of basket weaving, Pinolere festival doubles as an international competition for this highly creative and practical art form. There are also displays of hand made cigars, a speciality of La Palma, home made jams, honey and cheeses and clothes and home decorations.

The festival is a celebration of a way of life, and there is always lots of music, dance and displays of traditional sports and games. Most people come away loaded up with new wines and food to try, all at reasonable prices supporting small independent business families. The showground is well sign posted up from Puerto de la Cruz, or this year you can make use of a shuttle bus servive from Titsa (green national company) from La Orotava bus station. Entrance to the showground is 2.50 euros, hopefully the sun will shine on this special scene, but it can get a little chilly up north so go prepared.

For a taste of what you can expect to find, pop along to the Cultural Centre in Los Cristianos, Tenerife, they have an exhibition called El Monte Canario (the Canarian Woodland) which runs until September 2. This is a big undertaking, sponsored by the Social Work Foundation of La Caixa bank, the exhibits are large and interactive. From display cases of eco systems, to chunks of tree stump, there is plenty to see and feel, some of the video displays encourage interaction to select certain changing scenes from different times of the year.

Everything is dealt with from the insects that thrive in the woodlands, to the fungal infections and fires that ravage the landscape from time to time. As you walk around, you will hear birdsong and see some of the traditional crafts made from the trees and shrubs in the woodlands.

The exhibition is FREE and open from 8am to 10pm from Monday to Friday and 9am to 1pm on Saturdays, closed Sundays.

Vidrieras Canarias on the Sainetas Industrial Estate in Telde, have recycled 30,000 tons of glass so far this year, already an increase on the 27,000 tons they dealt with last year. In total, the 7 Canary Islands use around 60,000 tons of glass a year, so the company are making good inroads into the clinking mountain of glass.

Using state of the art technology, Vidrieras are able to seperate bottles by colour into clear, green and frosted, this makes the whole process much quicker and more efficient. The glass is blasted clean with a 1,500 degree wash and then reformed to make new bottles. Thanks to careful use of ingredients, the factory is working towards making all new bottles 90 % recycleable, in theory the bottles can be used and re-used with no limit, saving vast amounts of energy and avoiding more pollution.

This was the second year that the initiative has taken place, backed by councillors for youth, sport, social services and community participation. There was a good mix of volunteers of all ages and both sexes, the Punta Blanca Surf Club, as always, was keen to help the local environment, as they get to see the conditions of the coast up close on a regular basis.

The volunteers started at 9.30 and split up to tackle different sections of beach and rough land. The purpose of the clean up is two fold, to improve the local area, and to spread the message of green awareness. Seeing the harm that careless dumping can cause, is a good way to educate people to think before they just throw their rubbish where other people like to play. As well as the usual paper and wrapping materials, the teams found glass, old car seats, plastic, metal, wood and even car batteries.

There were some more unusual finds. Someone had abandoned a case of 24 full, half litre bottles of white wine, these were of course carefully disposed of. They were not the only signs of party people in the area, beer cans and bottles were found in the old unused fish packing factory in Alcala. After all the hard work, there was time to relax and replace the spent energy with a giant paella.

REMEMBER EVERY LITTLE HELPS…

Ecologistas En Accion is a Spanish pressure group of 300 smaller environmental organisations, and in their latest annual report, Banderas Negras 2008, they have included their damming assessment of the Canary Islands. Spokesperson, Theo Oberhuber says the problems have got worse in the last 10 years. Ecologistas claim the the Canarian government have offered 3 urban amnesties over the last 10 years, allowing illegal coastal buildings to remain in place.

Encroachment of building developments and building on maritime and rustic land are identified as major threats to the future of coasts around all of the Canary Islands.

The area next to the new resort of Palm Mar, was formed by a sea of volcanic lava, that has left a rugged rocky landscape of salt pools and wild plants such as Tabaiba. The lighthouse was built from stone quarried from the nearby Mount Guaza, and although it was boosted by a new automatic lighting system in 1978, it remains an iconic image and marker for the reserve.

The Tenerife government is to spend 300,000 euros to clean up the tower, build a small car park and a small jetty for access, and to convert part of the building into a teaching centre, to educate the many hikers that walk through the nature reserve.

All across the world scientific experts are working hard at ways to limit CO2 emissions, and Spain is doing its part. This year, the 12 th annual Congress of Spanish Geologists is meeting in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria to look at ways to make a difference.

The congress runs from July 14 to 18 and will be based at the Alfredo Krauss auditorium, where 500 delegates will pool their knowledge and ideas. Representatives and speakers will not only be from Spain, Holland, Italy and several other european countries will be taking an active interest.

As well as using the auditorium, some of the experts will be going out around the Canary Islands to see at first hand some of the problems facing the islands. Visits have been arranged to Roque Nublo and the Maspalomas sand dunes in Gran Canaria and even further afield to Tenerife, Fuerteventura and El Hierro.

The houses are partially dug into the ground, to absorb and contain ground heat and are fitted with solar panels and small wind turbines. The houses have been placed in the optimum position to enhoy the winds that blow in from the north east. Recycling will also be practised on the site and a desalination plant will turn sea water into clean drinkable water.

Architect Maria Delgado is very relieved to finally see the project reach fruition. If it is a success, it will be the blueprint for estates of bioclimatic houses across the Canary Islands.

The 17,032 kms of tunnels are made up of three main levels that are linked by fissures, off shoots and the odd chasm. The lava came from Pico Viejo on the eastern slope of Mount Teide, started by an eruption 27,000 years ago and added to by later activity, inside the tubes, the different layers of lava can be clearly seen as well as smaller channels where water has followed the meandering of the caves.

Cueva del Viento is a steep 10 minute drive above Icod de los Vinos in the north of Tenerife, it is well signposted and less than 5 euros by taxi from Icod. The visitors centre is in the heart of the small village and was added for the reopening of the tunnels to the public in mid June after a 15 year closure. For the opening few months the tour is free but that is to be reviewed, you are recommended to wear sturdy shoes or hiking boots, and take an extra coat or pullover, the north is often cooler and cloudy and inside the tunnels, there is a distinct chill.

A minibus takes parties of around 20 at 10 am and Noon each day, starting with a 10 minute drive up into the pine forest. From there a 30 minute walk leads through the trees and onto the historic Camino Real track up into the mountains. The scenery is stunning, with Mount Teide in the background and vast ranges of flowers and plants en route. the entrance point to the cave is a heavy metal grill that opens upward to reveal stone steps hewn into the rock, before leading onto more sturdy modern metal stairs.

Once inside, the light on your hard helmet, powered by a waist belt power pack, will illuminate a 20 foot high chamber where you can gather to hear the first of the informative talks by your guide, with the help of a wall chart in Spanish and English. Moving onwards and downwards, the chamber narrows to a tunnel, where the roof is only just above your head. Small galleries feed off the main route, and stacks of worn rock almost block the way at times. There is a wealth of insect and small animal life in the tunnels but in the selected 1,200 metre stretch of the tour, you will probably only see some spiders, most of the creatures live in the less disturbed sections.

Walking is a slow and careful process as the floor is very rough and rocky, and the minimal lighting of the helmet lights only clears a small area ahead of you. Clambering up into one of the galleries, you get some idea of how far some of the smaller tunnels wander and it’s good to know the tunnels are bone dry despite strands of pine tree roots poking through the roof. At the end of the selected stretch of tunnel is a large chasm, just before another small opening up to the surface. This is sealed closed with another metal gate but that doesn’t stop the sun light and warmth making a fleeting appearance.

The tour includes a good 90 minutes below ground and is a real treat for all the senses. Tours have to be booked in advance via the website www.cuevadelviento.net or on 922815339. Cueva del Viento is the biggest of the volcanic tubes and caves in the Canary Islands but there are many of them, some still remain uncharted and potentially dangerous. The contrast between the destructive history of the volcano and the lush flora and pine trees, recovering well from last years fires, is startling and helps to show what a cycle of natural growth Tenerife has gone through. This Icod council backed tour is the perfect way to see the underside of Tenerife and appreciate some of its powerful and turbulent history.

Fundacion Neotropico  does a great job, rescuing turtles that have been injured by pollution and discarded waste from fishing nets to plastic carrier bags. Thanks to their care and dedication, these wonderful creatures are in many cases, soon fit enough to return to the sea again. Today four Loggerhead turtles were given back their freedom, three of them had lost a fin due to entanglement with debris in the ocean. Neotropico keep careful records of the creatures they help, identifying them by the scales on their faces, these are as unique as a fingerprint. Using this method, they have noticed that many wounded turtles that they release, recover well, even with a missing fin and adapt to swim again.

The four turtles released today were between 3 and 5 years old, which makes them very young, they can live to as old as 100 years or more, and their average weight is 100 kg with a shell of around 122 cms long. They eat fish, crabs, mussels, seaweed and jellyfish as part of their diet. Making good use of the sea currents, they can appear in most oceans of the World but there is no evidence that they breed in the Canary islands.

As well as education, Aguaviva has been about entertainment, and they kept up that spirit right through to the final day, with free diving lessons from Las Vistas beach and the ever popular salsa dance sessions by the fisher sellers statue near the old Los Cristianos beach. Just because Aguaviva has finished, it doesn’t have to be an end to involvement in local environmental projects, there are contact details on this site for several organisations and your nearest cultural centre will have plenty of posters and details of forthcoming events. Living on an island, should really bring home the dangers facing the oceans and the challenges that still lay ahead.

You can see more photos of the AguaViva Concert by visiting:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/alexveccia