The Ministry of Environment and Mobility of the Balearic Islands, at the request of Calvià Town Hall, has launched a Pilot Scheme of a self protection strip against forest fires in Costa d'en Blanes, as an example of a residential area located in an urban/forest interface, with both the benefits and problems of both environments.


This measure, which is intended to stress the importance of FIRE PREVENTION and forms part of the European Project PYROSUDOE, which is integrated in the European programme INTERREG IV, consists of the preparation of a fire protection strip surrounding the perimeter of the Costa d'en Blanes urbanisation, by way of clearing away dead leaves and cleaning up the forest, protecting both the urbanisation from a possible fire in the "Serra de Na Burguesa" and this wooded area from a fire started in the urbanisation.

The scheme has involved the setting up of a fire barrier of 2,500 metres long and 30 metres wide, covering a total area of 7.5 hectares. The 2 main innovations of the project are the use of aircraft to clear forests of felled trees, etc. in areas of steep slopes and difficult access, and the neighbourhood involvement and participation in every aspect of the project.

The neighbourhood participation in maintenance will require the creation of an environmental volunteer group from the Costa d'en Blanes urbanisation, which will, in coordination with the Calvià Town Hall, carry out, periodically, cleaning and maintenance of the new fire barriers. It is also planned to have various informative chats and training sessions for the Residents Association of Costa d'en Blanes, over the next few weeks, on measures for self protection from fire in private gardens in the area and the behaviour of fire in forest areas.

Once this pilot project in Costa d'en Blanes has been successfully tested, the experience of the volunteer group can be spread to other areas of the municipality with similar environmental risks.

It must be added that in recent months there have been other fire prevention activities in Calvià, such as a fire barrier between El Toro and Cala Portals Vells, as well as cleaning up and reforestation of the area that was burned in June last year beside the El Toro urbanisation.