Calvià recognises the best environmental initiatives in a gala held at the Galatzó Public Estate
The Multipurpose Room of the Galatzó Refuge held this morning the IV Edition of the Calvià Environmental Awards, an annual event that recognises the most innovative initiatives committed to the sustainability and conservation of the municipality in fields such as environmental restoration, biodiversity, ecological awareness and waste reduction. In total, six projects have been awarded a total endowment of 15.000 euros, in addition to another five recognised with stays at the Galatzó Refuge.
The gala, which was attended by Mayor Juan Antonio Amengual and members of the municipal government team, as well as different workers and professionals from the sector and representatives of the award-winning entities, included audiovisual screenings and live performances, in an event that stood out for its dynamism and informative spirit.
The Mayor of Calvià, Juan Antonio Amengual, has highlighted the importance of these awards as drivers of initiatives that contribute to the environmental improvement and sustainability of the municipality. Also, during the gala, two documentaries about the Galatzó Estate were presented, made by the filmmakers Luis Ortas and Ángel Galmés, who highlight the ethnographic value of the public estate and this emblematic natural space.
With these awards, Calvià Town Hall reaffirms its commitment to the conservation of the environment and its support for projects that contribute to sustainable development, involving citizens in the protection of the environment at a local level.
First prize (4.000€)
Calvianers Sostenibles Project (IES Son Ferrer, IES Calvià and IES Bendinat)
Their project to monitor three beaches analyses the environmental impact of waste on the sandbanks and raises awareness amongst students. The initiative, which received a third award last year, has several new features: each institute sponsors a primary school with which it collaborates and the tourism sector is also involved, making tourist establishments and tourists themselves part of the project.
Second prize (3.000€)
CEIP Son Ferrer's Parents Association
The award-winning project consists of improving the school playground by creating a system of vertical planters of different types on different walls of the centre to create a natural and healthy environment. To this end, the students will take part in the planting work in the planters and will help look after the plants.
Four third prizes (2.000€ each)
- Best environmental restoration and/or clean-up initiative: Protemar Association
The project involves land and seabed clean-ups at different points along the Calvià coastline during 2025. The Protemar Association has a long-term track record in environmental clean-ups, with a wide range of actions such as underwater, beach, land and torrent clean-ups. This is a project that continues over time and has a wide and varied cleaning schedule.
- Best action to promote or study biodiversity: ASDICA Association
The entity proposes the creation and placement of nest boxes equipped with anti-predator protection systems by young people from the ASDICA association. These boxes will be installed on the Galatzó estate and in the association's members' private gardens.
- Best environmental education and awareness-raising performance: Red Cross
The project involves environmental surveillance, using kayaks, of the moorings on posidonia at Portals Vells beach, complementing the work with tasks on land regarding the separate collection of waste. This task will be carried out by four volunteers from June to the end of September.
- Best sustainability promotion performance: IES Calvià
The institute will develop a 450 m² school garden divided into 35 plots in which around 200 2nd and 3rd year ESO students will be directly involved in practical learning about organic farming and sustainability, all of them students of the Biology Department's Cooperation and Community Services optative subject.
Recognition of other outstanding initiatives
In addition to the award winners, five projects have been recognised with a stay for four people at the Refugi de Galatzó (refuge).
- AMIPA IES Bendinat, for the creation of an outdoor Biology classroom with picnic tables with integrated games and a living roof with climbing plants.
- APAEMA, for its training for local livestock farmers in holistic management, a technique that allows improvement of soils and pastures.
- SEO Birdlife, for the development of a guide to birds on the Calvià coast with the most representative marine species of the municipality.
- Blue Marina Puerto Portals, for the creation of an educational classroom for the dissemination of the marine environment, offering a wide range of activities, such as talks or training workshops on sustainability and marine natural heritage.
- Obra Cultural Balear, for its training project in grafting techniques in the public space “Ses Quarterades que m’agraden”, where the entity has a collaboration agreement with the Town Hall for its management.