Navigating the Future of Renewable Energy in Fuerteventura
Innovative startups are leading the charge in transforming the island’s energy landscape.
In recent years, Fuerteventura has emerged as a beacon of renewable energy potential, attracting a wave of startups eager to tap into its abundant natural resources. With consistent sun exposure and favorable wind conditions, the island is paving the way for sustainable energy solutions. Local entrepreneurs are developing cutting-edge projects, from solar farms to wind energy installations, all aimed at reducing reliance on fossil fuels and promoting ecological sustainability.
The economic impact of these ventures extends beyond the energy sector. By fostering a clean energy ecosystem, these startups are not only creating jobs but also boosting tourism, which remains a cornerstone of Fuerteventura’s economy. As visitors increasingly seek eco-friendly travel options, the island’s commitment to renewable energy will enhance its appeal as a green destination. This shift not only supports local businesses but also positions Fuerteventura as a model for sustainable tourism in the Canary Islands and beyond.
As these innovations take root, the collaboration between local government and emerging energy companies presents a unique opportunity to shape the island’s future. Investment in technology and infrastructure could position Fuerteventura at the forefront of renewable energy in Spain, setting an example for other regions. The island’s strategic initiatives not only promise to reduce carbon footprints but also unlock new economic pathways for future generations, ensuring that sustainability and profitability go hand in hand.
Source: Gobierno de Canarias
UGT Public Services considers the reinforcement of health transportation announced for Fuerteventura insufficient and demands that the Health Area Directorate provide comprehensive planning that responds to population growth, geographic dispersion and the sustained increase in healthcare demand on the island. The union rejects that the announced incorporation of two advanced life support nursing ambulances and a single basic life support ambulance can be presented as a sufficient solution to the current shortcomings of the service. UGT Public Services reminds the director of the Health Area of Fuerteventura, Tomás Pérez González, that it is the majority union organization in the health transport of the island and deplores the fact that the configuration of new resources is publicly announced without having previously listened to the representation of the workers. “The Health Emergencies Technicians who provide daily service know where saturations occur, which resources bear the greatest pressure and what the real needs of each area are. We do not understand that a reinforcement model is closed without first listening to those who know that reality on the ground,” say the union representatives of UGT in Fuerteventura. Basic life support ambulances support the greatest care pressure One of UGT’s main objections is found in the configuration of the announced reinforcement. The union points out that approximately 80% of the care pressure falls on basic life support ambulances, which is why it considers it difficult to justify incorporating two advanced resources compared to a single new basic life support ambulance. UGT warns that reinforcing advanced resources without adequately sizing the basic life support ambulance network may end up causing units designed for more complex emergencies to have to take on services that could be attended to by basic life support resources simply because they are busy. “If the basic life support ambulances are saturated, the sanitized units will end up covering services typical of a basic life support ambulance. The real problem will arise when a serious emergency occurs and the advanced resource that should attend to it is busy in another service due to a lack of available basic life support ambulances.” For UGT, the increase in resources must respond to real care activity and not only to the overall number of ambulances incorporated. “Attention in an emergency cannot depend on the postal code” UGT also questions the differences in the configuration of the advanced resources planned for the different areas of Fuerteventura. Meanwhile, Puerto del Rosario and Morro Jable have medical resources, the advanced units announced for Corralejo and Gran Tarajal would be advanced nursing life support ambulances. The general secretary of UGT Public Services in Fuerteventura, Sonia Arredondo, firmly supports the professionalism, excellence and training of Nursing staff, but rejects that the geographical characteristics of the island are used to consolidate different levels of territorial coverage. “The geographical uniqueness of Fuerteventura requires advanced resources equipped to the maximum. We do not understand that, depending on where you live on the island, you may or may not have an advanced ambulance with a doctor and nursing staff. The inhabitants of Fuerteventura deserve the same level of protection in the event of an emergency regardless of the municipality in which they live.” UGT also considers it especially debatable that certain advanced resources may depend on medical coordination located outside Fuerteventura and defends that an advanced life support nursing ambulance should not become a structural substitute for a medicalized unit when the healthcare needs make it advisable to have the latter. Non-urgent medical transport is once again the great forgotten UGT Public Services denounces that the announcement of new resources once again leaves non-urgent medical transport (TSNU) practically out of the debate, despite being an essential piece for the daily functioning of public health in Fuerteventura. The union warns that the pressure on this service will continue to increase as a consequence of several factors that are evolving simultaneously: population growth, aging, an increase in chronic and dependent patients and greater hospital and outpatient activity. Each new specialized consultation, periodic treatment, rehabilitation session, diagnostic test or hospital procedure can also generate a need for transportation for those patients who cannot travel on their own. Added to this situation is a particularly important reality in Fuerteventura: territorial dispersion and great distances. A transfer from the south or north of the island can keep both the vehicle and the Health Emergency Technicians that make up its staff busy for a considerable period. Therefore, the number of services alone does not fully reflect the care pressure: the kilometers traveled, travel times, hospital waits and subsequent returns of patients to their homes must also be analyzed. “While we talk about urgent transportation, Health Emergency Technicians who provide services in non-urgent health transportation endure an enormous workload on a daily basis. We cannot expand hospitals, consultations, treatments and health services without also asking ourselves who is going to transport the patients who need access to them.” UGT warns that undersized non-urgent health transport ends up having a direct impact on users through longer waiting times, delays in pick-ups and returns to home, and difficulties in meeting established schedules for treatments, consultations or tests. UGT demands dialogue before consolidating the new model UGT Public Services denounces that the Fuerteventura Health Area Directorate did not take into account or convene the union representation of the sector before closing the configuration of the new resources. The union demands a meeting to jointly analyze the needs of urgent and non-urgent transportation, the real number of basic life support ambulances needed, the territorial distribution of advanced resources, their professional staff and the staff of Health Emergency Technicians necessary to put into operation any increase in vehicles with guarantees. UGT makes it clear that it is not opposed to the increase in ambulances. On the contrary, it considers that the increase in resources is necessary, but understands that it must be carried out on the basis of a study of needs and with an overall vision of the system. “If the Administration itself recognizes that the enormous population growth in areas such as Castillo, Salinas, Nuevo Horizonte, Antigua or Matorral forces it to increase health resources, it must assume all the consequences of that diagnosis. Fuerteventura needs comprehensive planning of health transportation, urgent and non-urgent, and not partial measures that may fall short from the moment they are implemented,” concludes UGT Servicios Públicos.
Originally reported by www.lavozdefuerteventura.com, rewritten by the Fuerteventura Times AI Editorial Desk.
