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San Javier steps up battle against red palm weevil
New €160,000 contract to protect palm trees with low impact treatments
San Javier is launching a new offensive to protect its palm trees from the red palm weevil, one of the biggest threats to ornamental palms in south eastern Spain. The Ayuntamiento has put out to tender a contract worth just over €160,000, to fund a comprehensive programme of prevention and treatment across the municipal palm grove.The plan will cover all palm trees owned by the Ayuntamiento, from Phoenix dactylifera and Phoenix canariensis to different Washingtonia varieties, Livistona, Trachycarpus fortunei and even coconut palms and their offshoots. These trees, spread through parks, gardens, natural areas and roadside plantings, are all vulnerable to Rhynchophorus ferrugineus, the red palm weevil that bores into trunks and can kill a palm if it is not treated in time.
The contract sets out preventive, palliative and curative work with a clear double aim: to save as many palms as possible and to secure the long term future of the town’s palm landscape. The Ayuntamiento stresses that measures must minimise environmental impact, especially given the proximity of the Mar Menor, and avoid risks for people, pets and surrounding wildlife.
One of the key tools will be endotherapy, where phytosanitary products are injected directly into the trunk instead of being sprayed. This allows the pest to be tackled from the inside while reducing chemical drift and the chance of contamination. The tender also includes biological control methods, such as using nematodes and the fungus Beauveria bassiana as curative treatments against the insect.
Companies that win the contract will have to work closely with municipal technicians and follow the instructions of the contract manager at all times.
The initial term of the contract is two years from formal award, with the option of two further annual extensions up to a maximum of four years on the same conditions. With this investment, the Ayuntamiento of San Javier aims to strengthen a long term strategy “to halt the spread of the red palm weevil and guarantee the conservation of the palm grove,” consolidating protection for one of the municipality’s most recognisable natural assets.
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Address
Calle Padre Juan. Centro Cultural Principe de Asturias 30720 SAN JAVIERTel: 968 571 704
Oficina de Turismo de San Javier
The municipality of San Javier has three main offices giving tourist information to visitors, as well as two information points. The tourist offices are located in Santiago de la Ribera, on the ground floor of the town hall in San Javier and at the start of La Manga. There is also a summer tourist information point located on the seafront in Santiago de la Ribera as well as one at kilometre 12-13 of La Manga del Mar Menor next to Playa Mistral.
Due to its location on the fringes of the Mar Menor and Mediterranean, San Javier has a period of intense summer tourism activity during the peak summer months, although it is popular with retirees of all nationalities out of peak season.
Tickets for the annual San Javier Jazz Festival can be purchased at the Festival office in San Javier Town Hall, Plaza de España.
Timetables summer 2024:
Tourist office Santiago de la Ribera (Calle Padre Juan 30720, Santiago de la Ribera)
Weekdays 9.00 to 14.00 and 18.00 to 21.00
Weekends and public holidays 10.00 to 13.00
Telephone: 661 572285
Email: turismo@sanjavier.es
La Manga del Mar Menor (Gran Vía Km. 0 30380, La Manga del Mar Menor):
May 1 to September 30:
Weekdays 10.00 to 14.00 and 17.00 to 19.00
Weekends and public holidays 10.30 to 13.00
Telephone 968 128955 ext. 2
Tourist information point of San Javier (Plaza de España, 30730 San Javier):
Weekdays 9.00 to 14.00
968 573 700 ext #5351
Email: concejaliadeturismo@sanjavier.es
Tourist information point of Santiago de la Ribera (Paseo Colón on the seafront)
Weekdays 9.00 to 14.00 and 18.00 to 21.00
Weekends and public holidays 10.00 to 13.00
Tourist information point of La Manga del Mar Menor (Playa Mistral, km 12)
Weekdays 11.00 to 18.00
Weekends and public holidays 11.00 to 14.00
