Solar farm opposition

SA POBLA local council has confirmed its plans to appeal against a project to build a solar power farm at the entrance to the town.

Council representatives recently met with residents in the affected area, located on the Llubi road very close to the first houses, to hear their opposition to the plans and vowed to file an appeal against the project.

In a related development, the Balearic Islands government has refused permission for a solar farm in Inca and Selva due to the expiry of the access and connection permits for the electricity supply.

Residents, environmentalists and the local councils had also firmly opposed the plans to install more than 74,500 solar panels in what was to become a ‘megapark’ occupying 52 hectares of land in both towns, and had collected 1,000 signatures for a petition against the project due to the scenic damage it would cause.

The decision could still be appealed by the company in charge of the project.

Big budget boost Billion-euro hotels

HOTELS in tourism hotspots in Mallorca have a combined value of €14.7 billion.

Valuation society Tasalia has assessed 740 establishments in 17 tourist towns on the island to obtain the global value for 2022.

The study revealed that each hotel room is valued at more than €134,230, with each establishment valued at an average of €19.8 million.

According to Tasalia’s figures, the sector has increased its value by nearly 21 per cent since the last study carried out in 2018, mainly due to a reduction in the number of threestar hotels and an increase in four and five­star establishments.

Regarding individual towns, Andratx has the most expensive hotel rooms in Mallorca with an average of €194,160, followed by Muro with just over €172,500, Sant Llorenc with €165.348 and Calvia with €160.074.

Tasalia also predicts that average prices per room will increase by 8 per cent this year, reaching an estimated €144.970.

THE regional Women’s Institute has increased its budget for this year by an extra €2.4 million.

IB­ Dona now has a total €9.1 million to improve and increase its activities and services in the fight against gender violence and in favour of equality.

Institute Director Maria Duran announced the budget boost during the presentation of last year’s campaign results that focused on four lines of action, namely “empowering women in the economic sphere, working on co­education, reducing the ratio between victims of gender

Uncovering the past

ARCHAEOLOGISTS working in the Bellpuig monastery in Arta have discovered a series of ceramic remains that date back to prehistoric times.

Members of the team explained their findings last week in a conference at the Cafeteria Teatre Arta.

According to the Mallorca Island Council, the aim of the archaeological dig, which is part of a general restoration project in Bellpuig, was to “obtain all the available informa ­ tion on the history and evolution of the buildings and surrounding areas.” violence and the population and, finally, making the islands a territory free of sex tourism.”

Experts have also discovered elements of late antiquity and the Islamic period ­ sixth and 12th centuriesincluding a large necropolis with 41 tombs, as well as other discoveries thought to date back to the Spanish Civil War or the Second World War.

Bellpuig was declared an Asset of Cultural Interest in 2004.

Two of the main services offered by IB­Dona, the 24hour gender violence helpline and the accompaniment of victims, have evolved significantly between 2019 and 2022.

Calls reportedly increased by more than 34 per cent, while numbers of accompaniments for victims shot up by more than 58 per cent.

Contact IB­Dona by calling 971 178 989, WhatsApp 639 837 476 or visit ‘IBdona’ on Facebook.

THE countdown has begun to demolish the controversial campsite in Colonia de Sant Pere.

Owners have a maximum of five months to raze the 88 bungalows of the old tourist complex that was declared illegal 17 years ago, which triggered an ongoing legal battle that finally came to an end in February last year, when the Balearic Islands High Court ruled that the installations had to be demolished.

The owner of the campsite recently offered the bungalows to the regional government free of charge in a bid to help solve the housing shortage on the island.

The offer had to be turned down, as the court also ruled that the bungalows cannot be dismantled and moved elsewhere.