El Javea Town Hall yesterday approved in plenary session, and unanimously, the definitive versions of the Local Plan for the Prevention of forest fires and the local plan for agricultural burning. This process concludes an exhaustive work started in February 2017, pioneering in the Valencian Community, and which proposes a series of actions to reduce the risk of forest fires or minimize their consequences.
The document includes all the peculiarities of Xàbia, which has 68 square kilometers of municipal area, of which 22 are forest area (36% of the total) and a scattered number of homes, many of them in the interface area, in which live 7% of the population.
The plan classifies the 35 urbanizations according to the risk of fire and makes an analysis of the points that may be vulnerable (recreational areas, viewpoints, green areas, campsites and points such as the green waste transfer area or the eco-park) and the different areas of special environmental interest: from the Montgó Natural Park, the forest park of the granadella, the Montgó and Penyasegats de la Marina LICS, special bird protection areas (ZEPA) such as the Cap de Sant Antoni or the Penyasegats, the six flora micro-reserves or the sea caves.
The document makes a series of proposals for action - economically valued - in forestry, forestry, crop recovery or the creation of firebreaks or forest tracks, preparation of sector plans or training of residents. Some of them have already been running since the start of the plan's drafting, such as the acquisition of portable self-defense systems, training of residents in housing estates, firewalls, or the own plans for coves such as Granadella or Portitxol, now in the drafting phase.
It also includes the means and infrastructures that Xàbia has to act in the event of fire, such as the network of hydrants available throughout the term, the water tanks, the forest tracks or strategic routes, the firewalls, the surveillance points or the own means Available for extinction as the Civil Protection group, which is trained and legally accredited to intervene in forest fires, and structures its organization in case of emergency through Cecopal.
The local fire prevention plan has an estimated implementation period of 15 years, with periodic reviews, and is adapted to all sectoral regulations. The councilor for Citizen Security and Emergencies, Pepa Gisbert, has valued the great technical work of the Local Police and the drafting team behind this document, as well as the important effort that was made to involve neighbors in areas
interface so that they are aware of the protocols to follow in case of fire.
