La Laguna to strengthen control over waste disposal and supported a resolution on Palestine.

Yesterday, at the La Laguna City Council meeting, the councilors unanimously supported the proposal of the Unidas se puede party. It concerns strengthening control over where waste is discharged on the city's coastline.

At the beginning of the meeting, Alberto Jorge de la Rosa was sworn in as the new councilor from the CC municipal group, replacing Miguel García, who had resigned.

What does the proposal entail?

• Urgently inspect all waste discharge sites for which the city council is responsible and eliminate any problems.
• The Department of Urban Planning must propose to private companies that discharge waste without permission (according to a report by the Ministry of Ecological Transition and Energy of the Canary Islands) to immediately find a solution to stop this.

The proposal came after a report from the regional ministry, which updated the list of waste discharge sites (with permits, without permits, and those in the process of being оформлення) in the Canary Islands. There are several such sites in La Laguna, and they are located near beaches.

The Environment Councilor, Domingo Galván, spoke about another report prepared by the Water Resources Department under the leadership of Councilor Ángel Chinea. It details the waste discharge sites on the La Laguna coastline, their status, and legality.

He noted that "most discharges have permits or are in the process of obtaining them." This applies to all facilities owned by the city council. But there are also private ones that are not regulated or about which there is no information. "Therefore, we will strengthen inspections," he added. A minor inaccuracy was also found in the list, as in the case of the discharge in Bajamar, which belongs to the city council but is already closed. Therefore, the list will be updated.

The proposal also envisages the creation of a working group with representatives from the city council, the government, and private companies to discuss solutions to the problem together. There are also plans to strengthen the work of the Health Department's laboratory to detect discharges and check the quality of seawater.

In addition, by a majority vote (one vote against from the Vox party), the councilors supported another proposal from Unidas to create a network of "climate shelters" – public places with air conditioning and free access, as well as improving green areas.

There are plans to explore the possibility of installing temporary awnings on streets with high traffic during hot periods, as well as awnings on playgrounds and drinking fountains in various locations.

Also, by a majority vote (the Vox, PP parties, and one non-affiliated councilor abstained), a proposal from the Drago Verdes Canarias party was supported, in which the city council expressed "commitment to the protection of peace, human rights, and the right of any people in the world to freedom, completely rejecting Israel's genocidal aggression against the civilian population of Palestine."

The text also mentions a ban on holding musical events in the city or the participation of artists funded by funds such as KKR, as well as the purchase and sale of land or real estate to Israeli investment funds. Sports federations are encouraged to refuse Israeli teams to participate in competitions in the city.

Councilor from Unidas, Idaia Afonso, recalled that some organizations have already expressed disagreement with the holding of the match on October 14 between CB Canarias La Laguna Tenerife and the Israeli club Bnei Herzliya. The Sports Councilor, Badel Albelo, noted that the city council has no authority in these sports competitions, but if they take place, representatives of the city council will not be there.

Meanwhile, the Vox party again raised the issue of immigration, proposing to conduct a survey on the opening of reception centers for minors in the city. This sparked heated debate. The secretary of the meeting reported that conducting such a survey is against the law. Mayor Luis Yeray Gutiérrez allowed the proposal to be discussed, but removed it from the agenda before the vote, considering the secretary's report.

During the discussion, Councilor Idaia Afonso from Unidas proposed to prepare a "legal report on the limits of political discussion and what we consider hate crimes that are systematically repeated at meetings since the arrival of the far right." She proposed that the city council refer these statements to court.

Afonso also proposed that a joint statement condemning lies and disinformation, signed by all councilors, be prepared by the October meeting, and that the network against rumors be restored. The mayor replied that they are already "working on a joint document that will be sent to other parties for approval."

In addition, the meeting approved changes to the budget, including an increase of 1.5 million euros. The opposition stated that 800,000 euros of this amount will go to the celebrations department, whose budget has already reached a "record" amount of about eight million, at the expense of other departments. The Finance Councilor, Paqui Rivero, stated that the celebrations budget is only 2.65% of the total, and the canceled items relate to projects that cannot be implemented this year.