Coastal woodland ‘neglect’ claim
NOT only residential areas of Orihuela Costa need better cleaning and maintenance services, the pine woods in Campoamor are also badly neglected, according to the opposition Socialist party (PSOE).
The area, just metres from La Glea beach, had benefitted from numerous improvements thanks to an employment workshop back in 2014, in which the regional government invested €650,000 and the Green-PSOE coalition council at the time an additional €140,000.
The students learned gardening, carpentry and construction skills while creating recreational areas, protecting and replanting vegetation, and improving accessibility for people with reduced mobility.
PSOE councillor Patricia Menárguez said they do not understand why this unique natural space in Orihuela Costa - with picnic areas, petanca courts, bicycle parking racks and a hiking trail – has been so neglected when it has everything required to be a place for residents and tourists to enjoy nature, right by the beach.
Walking through the area, she said it made her sad to see broken trees in the middle of pathways, pavements that need fixing, signposts graffitied or pulled down, places full of rubbish and overgrown vegetation.
“This is just one example of the lack of attention for Orihuela Costa from important council departments like hygiene and infrastructure, something which residents have been complaining about for years, she said.
“Now this is even more palpable because the department for the coast does not exist anymore, only one specifically for the beaches, but the coast needs more services than the beaches, it needs sporting facilities, culture centres with a library, better public transport, etc.”
Better management is needed to improve public services for residents in Orihuela
Costa, ‘who have a right to better quality of life’, she added.
“If there were a schedule to sort out the green areas, if there were more human resources all year round rather than just in the summer, we believe we could restore places as emblematic as these pine woods, where many people used to come to eat and spend the day near the beach,” noted the councillor.