Tenerife Residents Decry Unchecked Illegal Dump Near Schools
Residents of Santa Cruz de Tenerife report an escalating illegal dump near schools, plagued by rats and ignored by the city council despite repeated complaints.
People living in Santa Cruz de Tenerife say there's an out-of-control illegal dump in the ravine near Camino del Hierro, in the upper part of the Salud-La Salle area. It's between the Chamberí neighborhood and the area around Avenida Benito Pérez Armas.
Several schools are nearby, including the French International School of Tenerife, the School of Actors of the Canary Islands, and the Fernando Estévez School of Art and Design.
One local resident says the ravine is always full of trash and has a lot of rats. He says this has been going on for months, and the Santa Cruz de Tenerife City Council hasn't done anything about it.
Because the city councilor in charge of public services, Carlos Tarife, hasn't responded, the resident contacted Diario de Avisos to report the problem. He says he told the councilor about the issue back in December 2024, explaining that the area was "full of waste and rats."
In March, the resident contacted the councilor again, warning that "the situation in the ravine with garbage and debris continues to worsen." In May, he sent another message, saying that "it continues to worsen month by month" and pointing out the health risk from the rats and flammable waste, especially with the schools so close.
The resident says that even though he's contacted the councilor multiple times, the ravine is still getting worse, and he hasn't received any real help from the Santa Cruz City Council. "Everything is getting worse," he says.