Beasain will have 60 new orchards starting in September. The City Council of Beasain, in collaboration with Ekogune and Caritas, has launched the project and is carrying it out through the Laia cooperative. The Laia cooperative offers environmental services to municipalities: community composting or climate change issues work with municipalities in different localities. This is the first time a garden project has been launched.

Social character

“It was mainly the City Council that promoted the social character of the vegetable gardens project,” explains Rosa Aurkia of Laia: “The orchards are in many villages, but the City wanted to give the opportunity to start cultivating the land to people with special needs.” Along with the Department of Social Welfare, the distribution of orchards for the most needy will be processed.

In the allocation of 60 orchards, two other groups have also been taken into account: on the one hand, orchards have been allocated to local associations and schools, including Caritas. On the other hand, some orchards are intended to be distributed among the population; anyone can make the request.

Small and organic vegetable gardens

There are two conditions for processing the vegetable garden: These are small self-consumption orchards, they will not be able to sell the products of the vegetable garden and they will have to produce in organic.

The public gardens of Beasain will be part of the Ekogunea Foundation’s network of vegetable parks and will be assisted by the participants in the implementation of the gardens. “With the help of Ekogunea the association of horticulturists will be created. The association will lead the management of the gardens, as well as the relations with the City Hall and Ekogune”, tells us Aurkia. The participants will also be held accountable in exchange for working in the field.

Until June 30, the Beasaindarras had the opportunity to order the orchards. The works will begin in July and the promoters hope that in September, with the azades in hand, they will be able to start working the land of the orchards of Beasain.