A further protest against a plan for sunbeds and a chiringuito beach bar on the beach at Son Serra de Marina is to be held this coming Monday at 11am. This latest protest is in response to a revised project that has been drawn up by the relevant town hall (Santa Margalida), the previous one having been rejected by the Council of Majorca.
Monday's demonstration, as with the human chain protest in January which attracted more than 5,000 people, has been organised by the SOS Son Serra group with the backing of the environmental pressure group GOB.
Both organisations argue that the facilities which Santa Margalida wants to install on the beach in the summer are totally unjustified because there are already services (bars for instance) right by the beach. In addition, at the point where buildings end in Son Serra the beach is wholly unspoiled and is backed by dunes. GOB points out that this area, sometimes referred to as Na Borges, after the torrent (stream) of the same name that runs into the bay of Alcudia and which marks the boundary between Santa Margalida and Arta, is defined as place of community interest. GOB, furthermore, says that the town hall has posted a budget surplus and yet it seems to only be interested in exploiting the beach for financial reasons.
The town hall's plan is said to require an area of 300 square metres of beach which would be prejudicial to the dunes system because of more intensive use of the beach, claims GOB. Under the revised project the number of sunbeds would be reduced from 100 to 60, while ideas for, for example, a floating waterpark, have been dropped.