Recuperem Girona TV3 interview, 17 Feb 2026
This was transcribed and translated by TurboScribe.ai, so there may be errors.
[Presenter] Good evening, and welcome to L'Estrevista of Girona TV. We have spoken to them on more than one occasion, of which so far it was the Girona Neta and Digne citizen platform. At the beginning of the month, after celebrating its foundational assembly, they were formalized as an association. And today we have here Jordi Tomàs, president of this association, and also Anna Ballestero, from El Parc No Es Toca. Welcome. Good evening.
[Jordi Tomàs] Good evening.
[Anna Ballestero] Good evening.
[Presenter] How are you? Are you happy to be part of the association, Jordi?
[Jordi Tomàs] Well, we are very happy, because we formed the association last week. We did the foundational assembly, where a lot of people participated. And what we have achieved is to form a board of directors with representatives from different neighborhoods in the city. This gives us a feedback input from the different important neighborhoods in the city.
[Presenter] If you allow me, we will recap a bit, because this citizen platform that began in May 2025 with the gathering of thousands of signatures from different neighbors who did not agree with the state in which the city was located, was also born here in Girona, together with El Parc No Es Toca. This demonstration was also held in the streets of Girona, where a lot of people participated. I don't know if you see it this way now, given the fact that it went out into the streets to complain. And now you are already a part of the association. This is the path you have taken. Now, once you are a part of the association, how can you continue to improve in this work you are doing to try to improve the state of the city?
[Jordi Tomàs] Well, the fact is that from now on, we have a contract that will still be in force until 2030, with which we have constituted ourselves as an association, among other things, to dance for the fulfillment of public cleaning services and for the maintenance of the city. I mean, the work has just begun. Because, in addition, Girona Neta i Digne will be part of a citizen monitoring group that will periodically meet with the City Council of Girona, and there we will be able to express our concerns, all the complaints that we are collecting through our social networks and WhatsApp groups. I mean, we still have a lot of work to do. We are just getting started.
[Presenter] 3:20: Because right now, how would you rate the state of the city? Because it is true that a few months ago there was a lot of noise, and now it seems that things have calmed down a bit. But I don't know if it is because the state of the city has improved or if it is because of some other reason.
[Jordi Tomàs] 3:32: Well, regarding this topic, I think that we have some WhatsApp groups that, thanks to them, we can collect people's complaints and opinions. We constantly receive photos showing that we continue to have containers overflowing and that we continue to have garbage on the ground.
[Presenter] Despite this change in the containers?
[Jordi Tomàs] Well, we are implementing these five containers per area, starting with Santa Eugènia, Can Giverd del Pla, Sant Narcís, and reaching the other parts of Girona. So, despite this novelty, which we think is right to do so, because Girona is so dignified, we think that anything that is a barrier is a problem. Okay? You can't complicate people's lives with calendars, with 7 to 10, you can only throw away the garbage, etc. So, on the one hand, this is being fixed, but we have to keep in mind that if the cleaning company doesn't have enough capacity to empty the containers, we will be the same again. We will see full containers and bags of dirt again.
[Presenter] So, you think this is the reason why these problems continue, not because people find it difficult, but because...
[Jordi Tomàs] Well, we continue to have some barriers, such as the card, which, if you want, we can talk about it later.
[Presenter] No, no, you can say it if you want.
[Jordi Tomàs] Well, the card, we think, continues to be an impediment. So, there are several issues regarding the card. Girona is dignified, we are the first ones interested and the first ones who want it to be recycled well. So, we ask that there are no barriers to recycling, that people's lives are not complicated. The cards are a way to, let's say, discourage people from recycling, because there are difficulties. Sometimes the container is not enough, and so on, and so on. So, there is also another issue, which is to base a tax system linked to a collection of data through the card. When this collection of data brings us many complaints, such as I have not been well accounted for what I have drawn, that this fraction does not account well what I have drawn from this fraction, and so on. So, you cannot base a tax system on a data collection system through the card, which does not work. So, what I would do, and what I would propose to the City Council, is, before penalizing or rewarding people, or, rather, linking a tax system to the card, we do one thing. First, we install the containers in all the fractions, so that they can be opened. In this way, we will see if they can be opened without a card, so that you can go there and throw away the rubbish. In this way, we are clearing variables from the equation. We will see if the incivility is because people do not want to open the container or for whatever reason. But, first of all, let's go step by step. We install containers so that they can be opened freely, without a card, and so that the people who want to use the card, rather, who want to transfer the card to the reader, can do it in the same way. If the City Council wants to reward these people, we do not prevent the containers from opening. But we do not prevent the people who want to use the card. Can I explain?
[Presenter] I do not know if you can bring this proposal. We are recording this on Tuesday, and we are recording it on Friday. Yesterday, the day of the broadcast, you have a meeting on Monday. I do not know if you will bring this topic to the monitoring group, or if you can make these proposals. What is your idea for this first meeting?
[Jordi Tomàs] Well, you said that this is the first meeting, and there will be more meetings, because this is what we asked in the motion we presented. This motion was approved by 26 votes in favour and 1 against. This is a very important thing. So, we do not know what will happen in this first meeting, frankly, because we have been called, but we do not know which other entities have been there. And we do not know which order of the day there will be. We have received a call. I understand that this first meeting may be to introduce all the members of this monitoring group. Maybe they will invite us to introduce ourselves. We do not know. But what is clear is that in this meeting, maybe not, but in the next ones, we do have a whole list of claims and proposals to make. Among them, this one. To reach an agreement with the City Council to say that the card cannot be withdrawn. Okay, we will not withdraw it, but that it is not mandatory or necessary to open the containers.
[Presenter] Another meeting that is on Monday, if I am not mistaken, is this one about the park [Parc de Jordi Vilamitjana i Pujol]. There was this agreement on the table that seemed to be able to save the park. I do not know how you see it and if you are optimistic about the City Council, if you think it will really make this effort to try to save the park. The meeting is on Tuesday, in this case.
[Anna Ballestero] Well, it is true that there was this agreement. We have not seen it. It is true that we have not seen it. But there is this agreement between the City Council and the City Council in which the City Council of Girona is committed to studying the change in the buildability of the place. But to study. That is what is committed. Therefore, today what has been proven is that the park can be built. Today, the park can be built. And later, this would be the definitive approval that was made by the Generalitat with a conditional from the ACA that said that the report would be favorable but that the City Council of Girona had to justify, had to prove that there was no other possible location that would be outside of the flood zone. That this would be the outcome of everything that has been going on. And that is why it ends up affecting the park. And well, from the first day we said that this was avoidable, that the park could be saved. It seems that it has been demonstrated that it has always been able to be saved. Now there is this agreement. We, of course, hope that this progresses in a positive way. But we will be on alert, we will be on the lookout. And we will remain mobilized until there is really a certainty that this can no longer be touched, that the park is no longer a green zone and therefore it is no longer buildable. We will remain mobilized, of course.
[Presenter] And you will be at this meeting, but you explained to me that you will not be there because it is a citizen platform. I don't know if you can be there or say that you will be there.
[Anna Ballestero] 11:20: Well, at the meeting we did invite neighborhood associations, the CAP. From the neighborhood associations we did have members of the platform and therefore we will be able to be there. But in this sense, as members of a neighborhood association, not as members of the platform, which we believe should also be invited, since the beginning we have been fighting to save it. We still don't understand how these meetings are not being called today. But we will be there, but we will be there as neighborhood associations.
[Presenter] We will be attentive to see how these meetings have gone. In any case, one thing that unites you is Recuperem Girona, this umberella that has united an association and a neighborhood platform in this sense. I don't know if there is also the will to continue doing things with Recuperem Girona, which unites these two causes, or more, we could say, because it is also clear that Girona Mes Digna has more than one, it is not just the issue of the trash, it0s also dealing with the issue of the city itself being clean. I don't know if there is a will to continue with Recuperem Girona.
[Jordi Tomàs] Of course there is a will. I think that with Ana, from the first moment we met and we explained the projects and the claims and the platforms, we understood each other right away. Just as we also understand each other with the friends of Les Pedreres. Because if one thing unites us, that is, Girona, clean and dignified, not only, as you said, not only do we address the issue of the palm trees, but we also address the issue of the maintenance of green spaces, of the bushes, of the weeds, etc. And this specific point unites us, that we want a green Girona, green and cared for. So with that, of course, we have a phenomenal park, the Jordi Vilamitjana Park, which we hope will end up being salvaged. And then we have another very important green area, which is the Les Pedreres Park. And with that, we have united and we fight together. And if we need to mobilize, we will mobilize again, in the same way we did on 24 September. I mean, as I said before, the work, I think, has just begun.
[Presenter] Totally. I don't know, Anna, if you want to add something about what makes us recover Girona, or if we have to. I don't know if there is a will to make you an association. I don't know how it is right now to take this step, but...
[Anna Ballestero] We, at the moment, will continue as a neighborhood platform. What we want is for citizens to always be able to come, to make open assemblies. I mean, all the decisions we make are always in an open assembly. And so, at the moment, we will continue in this line. If we see any need to constitute ourselves at some point, we would consider it and I understand that we would follow this line. But, well, at the moment, we are well as a platform. We believe that we represent citizens well, that we do it as well as we can, listening to everyone and letting everyone participate. And with Jordi, the same thing he said, when we met, we made that coffee, we saw this point in common and we said, well, we can work together because, in the end, we have this bond. And, well, everyone does their job, but we also work together because, in the end, the union is always the force. That's the idea.
[Jordi Tomàs] I wanted to say something about the idea of forming an association. I mean, I think it's important when... We, for example, have Girona Neta i Digna since May. You have it for much longer. But the natural way is to anticipate that things can be extended over time. As I said before, we have a contract with Escombraries that, until 2030, we will have to supervise and supervise, etc. But there is a key issue that is if we ask for control and we want to supervise a service, the first ones to be supervised are ourselves, through members and an assembly that forms part of an association. I mean, this is no longer the initiative of one, two or three neighbours. No. Now we have reached a point where we are interlocutors recognized by the City Council of Girona and by many means of communication. We have gone everywhere. This gives us a lot of strength. So we have to be an association for this. So people can see that these people are serious and self-monitoring. They have internal control systems through the members that will supervise the City Council of the association.
[Presenter] I know it is very soon, but I don't know if you have more or less how many people there are, how many people form the City Council, a bit like the association is starting to be born.
[Jordi Tomàs] Let's see, now we must be about 25 members. The truth is that we are now in the process to obtain the NIF. Well, we have already done the procedures, but now we want to create a small website to be able to put a contact form so that people can register as members. Being members is free, there are no fees. If we ever need money, we will ask for VISUMS or crowdfunding or whatever. It is a non-profit entity and in the same way that we found addendums through the signatures, it would be good if these addendums materialized with an important number of members. This is what gives us power.
[Presenter] Well, with this message we will close. We encourage the people who gave you support in May to present these signatures to also join as members. Thank you very much, Ana.
[Anna Ballestero] Thank you.
[Presenter] For the will you put for these two platforms. In this case, El Parc No Es Toca. We will see how it all ends and Girona Neta i Digne, which is just starting, but we will see how it goes with this group of monitoring and this meeting. Thank you.
[Jordi Tomàs] Good night.
[Presenter] Well, as you said, we spoke with Jordi Tomàs, president of Girona Neta i Digne and also with Ana Ballestero of El Parc No Es Toca, of these two initiatives that started a while ago with Ciutadanes platform and now they have become associations and continue doing their job to save Parc de Jordi Vilamitjana i Pujol and to keep the city of Girona clean. We will return tomorrow with another interview. Have a good night.
