Mijas distributes 33,000 super-seeds across its Sierra to regenerate plant life scorched by wildfires and combat creeping desertification.

In a hands-on bid to reverse decades of environmental damage, the Spanish town of Mijas has distributed more than 33,000 “supersemillas” across its Sierra, aiming to regenerate plant life scorched by wildfires and threatened by creeping desertification.

The plan, led by the Ayuntamiento de Mijas in partnership with the local firm Exploramás, relies on a centuries-old Japanese technique known as nendo dango. Volunteers crafted small balls of clay, natural fertilizer, substrate and meadow seeds. Once scattered on the ground, the clay casing shields the seeds from birds, wind and sun until rainfall gradually dissolves it, allowing germination without any need for planting or irrigation. A similar nendo dango approach has already been used on the Costa del Sol dunes.

Deployment of seeds follows successful experiments

The second phase of the project saw the seed balls dispersed around the former Los Arenales quarry near Mijas Pueblo and in the Hipódromo area, zones still recovering from recent fires. The effort builds on an earlier workshop held between 20 and 21 October at Cortijo Don Elías, where roughly 700 residents, students and association members rolled the balls by hand. Participants included pupils from the Las Lagunas, Sierra de Mijas, Torre Almenara and Villa de Mijas institutes, students from Kampus Formación, and members of the Fuenmijas Parkinson’s association and Afesol.

Organisers had originally planned for 27,000 seed balls; the final tally exceeded 33,000, a figure chosen in part to symbolically represent the workforce of General Electric, which supported the social action through Exploramás.

Mayor Ana Mata takes part

Mayor Ana Mata joined Environment Councillor Marco Cortés and Education Councillor Juan José Torres for the distribution. She described the Sierra’s recovery as a collective responsibility and stressed that involving schools, associations and businesses turns a practical restoration project into broader environmental education. This latest action continues broader volunteer-led efforts to revive the fire-damaged forests of the Sierra de Mijas.

“When administrations, companies, young people and social groups work together, we achieve results that go far beyond a single environmental action,” Mata said. “We are also teaching values and respect for nature.”

By combining traditional low-tech methods with broad community participation, Mijas is betting that a few tens of thousands of carefully made seed balls can help tip the balance toward greener slopes and greater resilience against the Mediterranean’s intensifying dry spells.

Fuengirola residents demand action as railway bridge deteriorates despite repeated warnings.

Residents in Fuengirola are increasingly concerned about the condition of railway infrastructure after another incident involving falling concrete from the elevated railway structure near Los Boliches station on Tuesday, November 10.

An elderly local woman was walking close to the station when pieces of concrete reportedly began falling from the structure above her. Concerned that somebody could be seriously injured, she immediately contacted the emergency services.

Police vehicles and two fire engines arrived within minutes. Firefighters subsequently removed fallen concrete and other loose material from the structure in an attempt to reduce the danger to pedestrians and passing traffic.

Photographs taken at the scene show a substantial area of damaged concrete, with sections of reinforcing metal exposed and visible deterioration around the affected area. A hole approximately one metre long was also reported in the concrete structure supporting the railway.

The incident has once again raised questions about the maintenance of the coastal railway, particularly as the central government, who is legally responsible in this case, have reportedly been warned about the problem previously. Today, nothing but a strip of police tape warns of the danger of falling concrete.

Adif warned but concerns continue

According to information provided by another concerned resident, both Fuengirola Local Police and the town hall have notified Adif, the state-owned company responsible for Spain’s railway infrastructure, about the deterioration. However, the local Malaga government says that despite these notifications, the situation has not been properly addressed.

The latest emergency response involved firefighters removing loose material, but residents want to know whether a comprehensive structural inspection has been carried out and when permanent repairs will take place.

There were also initial concerns about whether trains should continue running while firefighters dealt with the situation. Services were reportedly allowed to continue, with Renfe ordering trains to reduce their speed when passing the affected section.

In a previous incident, a pedestrian narrowly avoided being struck when a piece of concrete fell from the elevated railway structure at Los Boliches station. Firefighters attended and Local Police recorded a formal statement.

Read the earlier report: Crumbling railway: Fuengirola pedestrian narrowly avoids falling concrete at Los Boliches Station.

The recurrence of falling concrete in the same station area, following the earlier incident, raises fresh questions about what action was taken after the first warning.

Costa del Sol infrastructure under scrutiny

Concerns about deteriorating infrastructure are not limited to Fuengirola. Several Costa del Sol mayors have been publicly demanding improvements to transport links and greater investment in infrastructure.

Mijas mayor Ana Mata recently criticised the lack of progress, saying that the area had effectively been left with infrastructure dating back to the 1980s.

Speaking at a mobility forum in Malaga on November 12, she said: “En materia de infraestructuras, nos hemos quedado en los años 80.” (In terms of infrastructure, we’re stuck in the 80s). Her comments reflected growing frustration about the pressure on roads and public transport as the population of the Costa del Sol has increased.

Estepona mayor José María García Urbano has also repeatedly called for improvements to the A-7, including better access arrangements and investment in the busy coastal road.

For residents, the concern is increasingly about whether essential infrastructure is being maintained sufficiently, rather than simply whether new projects are being delivered. Many locals now complain how it looks like it is all going to “rack and ruin.”

Railway disasters increase public concern

The latest Fuengirola incident comes at a particularly sensitive time for Spain’s railway network. The January Adamuz disaster, which claimed 46 lives, and the October 28 collision near Urda, which killed 69 people, have shaken public confidence in railway safety.

The consequences have extended to the highest levels of the Transport Ministry. Óscar Puente resigned as Transport Minister on November 3, accepting political responsibility for the Urda disaster. Adif president Luis Pedro Marco de la Peña subsequently resigned. The tragedies have also prompted renewed demands from railway workers for greater investment in maintenance and improved safety procedures.

Although there is no suggestion that the damage at Los Boliches is connected to either railway disaster, the latest incident has added to public anxiety about the condition of the country’s transport infrastructure.

For the resident who raised the alarm in Fuengirola, the concern is straightforward: people should not have to walk beneath a railway structure fearing that pieces of concrete could fall on them.

With previous warnings reportedly already passed to Adif, residents now want answers about inspections, repairs and who is ultimately responsible for ensuring that the structure is safe.

How many more warnings will it take before something is done?

Dog owners buying treats and oils for their pets would hardly expect them to lead police to an industrial cannabis laboratory. But biscuits containing cannabis derivatives, found during inspections of specialist shops in Barcelona province, helped uncover a business producing and selling thousands of products, with narcotic substances worth more than €600,000.

The Guardia Civil dismantled the laboratory in La Llagosta in an operation announced on November 12. Two people are being investigated on suspicion of drug trafficking: the company’s owner and the chemical engineer who ran the laboratory. No arrests have been reported.

Following the Crumbs

The investigation began in July 2025, when officers inspected specialist cannabis-growing shops, known as grow shops, across Barcelona province. During those checks, they found biscuits and oils for animals containing cannabidiol, or CBD, supplied by a company based in La Llagosta.

The products prompted further enquiries into their origin and the business behind them. Investigators traced the supplier to two industrial units. One was used to store goods and prepare customer orders, while the second contained production areas and laboratories where oils were extracted and cannabis resin made, weighed, labelled and packaged.

More than €600,000 in drugs seized

The scale of the operation became clear when officers searched the premises. They seized 11.5 kilos of hashish, almost seven kilos of marijuana buds and more than 133 litres of cannabis oil, packed into 17,657 bottles. Thousands of vaping products and refills were also found. Laboratory testing by the National Institute of Toxicology and Forensic Sciences identified cannabis and cannabis resin, as well as psychotropic substances including hexahydrocannabinol (HHC) and H4-CBD.

The Guardia Civil said these substances are subject to controls and authorisations and cannot be sold freely as consumer products. The discovery does not make every CBD product illegal. Investigators focused on the substances identified in this case and the authorisations required to manufacture and sell them legally.  Officers also immobilised around 1,750 litres of oils intended for manufacturing, more than 705 litres of cannabis cosmetics and 416.2 kilos of plant material.

Seeds, CBD tea packaging, dog biscuits and machinery used to extract oils and make resin were among the other items secured. The estimated retail value of the substances identified as narcotics exceeds €600,000. That figure relates to the controlled substances, rather than the total value of every product and item found at the premises.

Orders were sold online

Customers placed orders through the company’s website. Once payment had been received, the logistics unit prepared and dispatched the goods. If an item was out of stock, it could be made at the company’s own laboratory. According to investigators, the owner managed the business from Thailand, while the chemical engineer oversaw the laboratory, including product formulations, composition and quality and safety checks. The company is believed to have been selling these substances since 2018.

The investigation was carried out by the Guardia Civil’s Manresa unit, with support from its Fiscal and Border Patrol and SEPRONA, the nature protection service. The case and seized materials have been placed before the Civil and Investigation Section of the Court of First Instance in Mollet del Vallès. The investigation remains ongoing.