The Formentera Office of Rural Affairs is pleased to announce the first drawing contest focused on rural women in commemoration of the International Day of Rural Women, 15 October.

Students from years one to four at Marc Ferrer Secondary School are encouraged to submit original A3-format drawings (twice the size of an A4 standard), and drawings must relate to women and aspects of the rural world like fishing, hunting, livestock, agriculture or any other topic that can be considered linked to rural living.

Councillor of Rural Affairs Josep Marí said the competition was about "turning a spotlight on and acknowledging the important role of women in the social and economic development of fishing, livestock farming and agriculture, otherwise known as the primary sector. Young people should think about this and be aware of it".

Submissions will be accepted until 13 October at the front desk of IES Marc Ferrer or at the Formentera Office of Agriculture, Livestock, Fishing and Hunting, located inside Centre Antoni Tur "Gabrielet", from 9.00am to 2.00pm. First-, second- and third-place winners in each grade level will receive €80, €60 and €40 cheques, respectively. The 12 winners can use their cheques to make purchases in book stores and computer shops on the island. Contest rules are available on the Consell de Formentera website.

Exhibition

The winning drawings can be seen from 15 to 22 October as part of an exhibition in the Centre "Gabrielet" courtyard.

6 October 2021
Communications Office
Consell de Formentera

Amid an increasing number of dog attacks on livestock in recent weeks, the Formentera Department of Rural Affairs wishes to remind pet owners of a municipal ordinance requiring them to accompany, leash and, when appropriate to an animal’s temperament, muzzle pets when on the public thoroughfare.

The reminder, which has been posted on information boards and in agricultural areas on the island, points to fines ranging from €30 to €15,000. The notice also highlights legislation defining canines which “possess a distinctly aggressive character or have been aggressive towards people or other animals” as “potentially dangerous”.

Department chief Josep Marí said the dog attacks were the source of great disturbance for local livestock farmers, “not only in terms of the animals that have been slain. There is also the distress of knowing property barriers have been breached and members of your herd have been hurt”. “I’m asking for responsibility from those pet owners who perhaps aren’t cognisant of the repercussions that letting your dog off the leash can have”, Marí continued. “Livestock and dogs can coexist without problems if we follow the rules.”

The island’s government is asking people who see unaccompanied dogs to report them to the pound by calling 630 08 31 28. Lastly, Councillor Marí praised livestock owners, which he described as “small farmers who protect hometown traditions and safeguard the local landscape”.

7 July 2021
Communications Department
Consell de Formentera

Earlier today top-ranking Consell de Formentera official Alejandra Ferrer and Jaume Escandell, president of the Formentera Farmers’ Co-op (Cooperativa del Camp), signed a €130,000 deal to support the public programme to enliven hometown agriculture and visually enhance scenic and rural swaths of the island. Primary sector chief Josep Marí and Co-op manager Carlos Marí were also present at the event.

The aid is meant to help reinvigorate agricultural activity locally and deliver the economic, social, cultural and environmental benefits that go with it. Other Co-op efforts include recouping land donated to the Farmland Reserve (Cens de Terres), piloting improvements on the Can Marroig estate and taking the lead on other core Co-op priorities.

7 June 2021
Communications Department
Consell de Formentera

The Formentera Fisheries Inspection Service, with help from custodians at es Freus marine reserve of Eivissa-Formentera and Punta de sa Creu, has launched an outreach campaign to inform seafaring recreational fishermen that from this year, all catches made in the reserve must be reported.

As with the rest of the marine reserves in the Balearics, catches can be reported by filling out a form on paper or with Diari de Pesca Recreativa — a smart-phone app devised by the Balearic Directorate General of Fisheries and Marine Environment in a bid to improve management of marine resources and monitor and evaluate recreational fishing in the region.

The app is a useful and intuitive tool which provides key insight about minimum sizes, protected species, places fishing is permitted and marine reserves. The Consell’s inspection office describes DPR as “the most appropriate system for sending and receiving information about catches”.

The app also gives users an easy way to report catches made in Balearic marine reserves, though paper declarations will be maintained for individuals like the elderly with access issues.

DPR is available for download at Google Play or the Apple Store. To access the app’s captures (catches) section, fishermen must fill out this online form on the Govern balear website.

2 June 2021
Communications Department
Consell de Formentera