Farmers in Motril and the surrounding area are far from happy that the processing plant for greenhouse waste is closed, precisely when there is most need for it.
Obviously, the main opposition party in Motril Town Council have not fallen mute, having been gifted this large stick to hit the Mayor’s party with, but regardless of motivation, they have a point.
The said socialist part, headed by Flor Almón claims that the PP has “abandoned local farmers” on the Costa Tropical, who were not informed of the pending closure, and that they should be doing something about the growing mountain of vegetation waste piling up.
The Compostaje de Vegetales de Motril is the provincial recycling plant for turning cuttings etc from greenhouses and plantations into compost. The problem is that non-biodegradable raffia cordage has been mixed in with the vegetation, which is no longer permitted. The EU had brought out a law which was incorporated into Spanish law (Ley 7/2022 de Residuos) that insists that plastic (cordage for example) must be separated from plant waste.
The PSOE claims that the other provincial plants do not have this problems because steps were taken in time, whereas the one within the municipality of Motril, did not, even when the opposition warned of this looming problem back in July. Although the law came into affect three years ago, nobody sat down with farmers to recommend and affordable and durable substitute for plastic cord for bundling the vegetable stems. The plant, they say, just shut down from one day to the next with no warning.
In the meantime, green houses are piling up with waste matter unable to shift it and transport companies who transfer this kind of cargo are left without work, even since the plant closed down on the 5th of August. There are photos of large piles of the remains from tomato, pepper and cucumber plants occupying the corridors between greenhouses.
So, who does this recycling plant belong to and the answer is the Provincial Council, which is run by the PP conservatives, and covers some 25 hectares of land because it handle vegetation waste from all over the province.
A growing problem is that one plant for the whole of the province is wholly insufficient, especially when you take into account that farming under plastic is not tied down to season and can churn out seven crops years, depending on what is being grown.
The Provincial Councillor for Agriculture, Antonio Mancilla, insists that its closure was inevitable because we realised that waste was being brought in from outside the province, such as Almería, which overloaded the installations.
By the time you get this copy of the Gazette, the plant will have reopening; Mancilla says on the 1st of September. The trouble is that Tide & Time (and Harvest) waits for no man.
(News: Motril, Costa Tropical, Granada, Andalucia)
Keywords: Compost, Recycling Plant, Vegetable Waste, Greenhouses, Tomatoes, Peppers, Cucumbers
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