MARIA DE LA SALUD
THE town council will investigate a mobile telephone company to see if it has reconnected an antenna which it was ordered to demolish under a court ruling issued in 2003. The matter was brought up at the plenary meeting, when it was reported that the cover of subscribers in the area had increased enormously over the past month. Councillor Jaume Mestre of the Mixed Group said “This sitution makes us suspect that perhaps the company has used some sophisticated system to reconnect the antenna from inside a house.” The council decided to order the removal of the antenna in 2002, alleging that it had been installed without a municipal licence. The company appealed, but the appeal was overturned by the court the following year. Maria de la Salud is the third town to question the presence of mobile phone antennae this month. Residents of Marratxi and Vilafranca are campaigning to have antennae removed from the town centres.

Ambitious plan

POLLENSA
THE environmental department of the town council has launched an ambitious educational programme in the local schools, which was presented yesterday by councillor Joan Comas of the Partido Popular. There will be 130 activities in the schools in Pollensa and its port, designed to raise awareness of the importance of protecting the environment. The activities involve sources of energy, rubbish and the rational use of water. The subject most in demand is how to save water. The programme will also include excursions in the municipality.

Camera control

ALCUDIA
CLOSED circuit television cameras have been installed at the accesses and corridors of the local police station and at the accesses of various schools on the orders of the town council. It aims in this way to prevent the possible theft of guns from the police station and vandalism outside school hours at the schools. The measure has been questioned by the opposition Partido Popular, who claim it infringes the law regulating the use of video cameras in public places. Councillor Coloma Terrasa called for filming to be stopped until it was verified that it was within the law. The cameras were installed at the request of the police chiefs and school teachers, but members of the police force have complained to the council that the recordings could infringe their right to privacy. The council says it is acting within the law but has agreed to put up signs warning of the presence of the cameras. At the schools, the cameras are only activated after school hours. Other municipalities such as Binissalem, Inca and Pollensa have been using video cameras and report success. The councils of all three towns say that they are a method of deterring vandals from destroying public property such as benches and waste paper baskets, and from causing damage outside school hours.

Work experience

CALVIA
THIRTY-THREE interns have started work in various council departments and other administration offices in order to obtain work experience. Twenty-three of them have university degrees and ten have had professional training. They obtained the posts through a programme organised by the Calvia council. The contract is for a year, and the interns will work 120 hours a month. The budget for the project is 238'392 euros. The council's education department has also granted five scholarships to history students and graduates, who will work on the archaeological remains found at Son Ferrer. They will start work on Monday and their duties will include cleaning and making an inventory of the material found on the site over the next three months.

Master class

INCA
JAZZ musician Jorge Pardo will give a master class at the Antoni Torrandell Music School on Tuesday. It will start at 8pm at the Santo Domingo cloister, as part of the school's activities to broaden the musical knowledge of its students. Pardo is considered one of the best jazz instrumentalists in Spain. He plays saxophone and flute. He has close ties with Majorca as it was here that he recorded his first album as a soloist. He has toured with the Paco de Lucia sextet and the group Flamenco Fusion.