GREENPEACE has threatened to take legal action and stage major protests if the Spanish government pushes through plans to relax coastal planning regulations. The environmental group is angry following comments by Spain’s Environment Minister Miguel Arias Canete promising to make the Coastal Law ‘more compatible with economic growth’. The proposals would make it easier for [...]

By Wendy Williams THEY have long feared that a mobile phone mast has been causing cancer in their village. Now the residents of Benajarafe have scored a massive victory by having it removed. After a two year battle, Vodafone has been ordered to take down the controversial transmitter. The locals are adamant that the mast, [...]

THE Canadian multinational CNWL OIL is set to begin prospecting for oil and gas off the coast of Nerja and Torrox. The surveys, which will last for approximately one month, will cover a marine area of 150,000 hectares. It comes after the controversial project, which has been in the pipeline since 2006, was licensed by [...]

By Simon Littlejohn TO say the odds were stacked against me is somewhat of an understatement. However, being the eternal optimist and having perfected the art of patience during three years camping in Patagonia where I went in search of the elusive Patagonian Puma, I felt lucky. This time my destination was the Sierra de [...]

SOLAR panel owners could soon be flogging the electricity they create to energy companies. Those connected to Endesa’s electricity supply whose panels absorb more energy than they use will be able to inject the surplus back into the grid – and later have its value deducted from their bill. “We are currently developing a way [...]

AS I dipped my toe into the water and admired the stunning mountainous scenery around me, the charms of the Genal Valley were all too apparent. By Wendy Williams From my vantage point in the municipal swimming pool in Parauta, I was surrounded by a vast landscape of oak and chestnut forests and craggy peaks. [...]

THE Mediterranean diet, long renowned for its health benefits, could actually add three years to your life. According to researchers the diet – high in fruits, vegetables, fish and wholegrain cereals – provides a rich source of anti-oxidants that prevent cancer, heart disease and can even slow the ageing process. Indeed scientists from Sweden’s University [...]

IS it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s a brand new hybrid solar power station. The first of its kind in Spain, the AORA plant in Almeria uses an innovative energy generating system which uses less land and water while generating more usable power than any other solar energy system. AORA Solar is [...]

SINCE the launch of Spain’s first high-speed railway in 1992, the glamourous, sleek AVE trains have been the envy of the world and made Spain undoubtedly the world leader in the field. By Wendy Williams Advising the US on its own high-speed aims, as well as recently signing a deal to install an AVE line [...]

SPAIN’S new leader Mariano Rajoy will have the ultimate say in whether to allow the prospecting for gas off the Costa del Sol. While locally PP bosses insist drilling off Mijas would be a disasterous idea for tourism, Madrid’s environment department has already given it the go ahead. Now, Rajoy will have to decide if [...]

RAJOY’S new government has announced a €700 million nuclear waste dump for a village near Madrid, provoking mixed reaction from residents and green groups. The dump, to be built in the small town of Villar de Canas, is expected to create 300 new jobs – an obvious blessing for its residents given Spain’s current 21 [...]