Former mayor and officials of Puerto de la Cruz are suspected of polluting Playa Jardín beach

Prosecutor Francisca Sánchez believes that the former mayor of Puerto de la Cruz (Marco González, who held the position until August 16 of last year), as well as the current councilors of this city, David Hernández and Alberto Cabo, the Councilor for Ecology of the Cabildo de Tenerife, Blanca Pérez, and the former Councilor for Tourism, Alberto Bernabé, may have committed a crime against the environment.

Javier Davara, the chief engineer of the Island Water Council of Tenerife, is also on the list of suspects.

The investigation began in August 2024, after swimming was prohibited at Playa Jardín beach due to high levels of bacteria that could be hazardous to health. The reason for the investigation was a complaint from an environmental organization, filed on July 23.

The environmental prosecutor accuses the municipal authorities of Puerto de la Cruz of negligence. In particular, it is stated that the city's sewage network has "significant shortcomings," especially in the Punta Brava area, which is near Playa Jardín.

In Punta Brava, many houses are not connected to the sewage system that collects and treats wastewater. Instead, these houses discharge waste into cesspools. The prosecutor's office recalls that municipalities are responsible for the sewage system.

The city council is also accused of discharging wastewater onto Playa Jardín from the El Caletón and Playa Chica pumping stations.

These discharges occurred when the stations were overflowing, and no one had given permission for this. Moreover, the Canary Islands government had already fined the city council for these discharges, but the municipal authorities did not seem to be trying to legalize them.

The prosecutor's office notes that the El Caletón and Playa Chica stations do not have preliminary water treatment before discharge, and there is evidence that from January to June 2024 they discharged polluted water into the sea without treatment and without permission.

Prosecutor Francisca Sánchez emphasizes that the Puerto de la Cruz city council is responsible for monitoring the cleanliness of beaches such as Playa Jardín, controlling waste disposal sites to prevent water pollution, and ensuring the proper collection, treatment, and disposal of wastewater.

However, according to the prosecutor's office, the city council did not fulfill these obligations, which led to a deterioration in the water quality at Playa Jardín, which the Canary Islands Health Service had repeatedly warned about, especially since 2021.

Although swimming at Playa Jardín was not recommended from July 3, 2024, the prosecutor's office claims that the water was of poor quality as early as March 2024 due to fecal contamination.

The prosecutor also accuses the Island Water Council of failing to monitor waste discharges and maintain pipelines.

In particular, the Council is accused of not providing the Canary Islands government with data on discharge monitoring and the condition of pipelines, especially the underwater collector that discharges treated water into the sea near Punta Brava.

The Council is also accused of taking too long to repair a leak in this underwater collector. The prosecutor's office recalls that the leak was known as early as 2020, but repairs only began in 2023.

According to the prosecutor, after the closure of Playa Jardín, the Council only temporarily repaired the collector, although about 240 meters of obsolete pipe needs to be replaced.

The prosecutor's office also points to other problems, such as insufficient water treatment at the Punta Brava station and excessive use of chlorine, which can be dangerous if the water has not been sufficiently treated.

Based on these facts, the prosecutor's office believes that the six suspects may have committed a crime against the environment, which is punishable by imprisonment for a term of six months to three years.