It was announced today that the Permanent Commission for Prevention, Monitoring and Monitoring of the Effects of Drought (CPPMAES), chaired by the Minister of Environment and Energy, Maria da Graça Carvalho, and the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, José Manuel Fernandes, will meet until May 10th, in Faro. At this meeting, new decisions on the management of water resources in the Algarve will be coordinated. PSD Algarve welcomes this initiative.
The consequences of the drought and lack of water in the Algarve are a reality that could be very different if there had been political priority in relation to this dossier on the part of the PS Government. Such was not the case. Second Christopher Northdeputy and President of PSD Algarve, “Whoever governs obviously does not make it rain, but can implement public investments and decisions of various natures, with a view to alleviating the problem. Even today, people in the Algarve wonder why the connection to Pomarão, the Foupana Dam, the desalination plant or the demanding fight against the losses that occur in the urban water cycle, among others, has not yet been completed.”
The PSD Algarve has often warned of these omissions and the imperative need to take action. North emphasizes that “Today, we are paying the price for apathy and political muteness. It is necessary to make up for lost time and take measures with a real impact on the future, but it is not easy to solve the problem overnight. Anyone who says otherwise deceives people.”
The previous government decided by resolution of the Council of Ministers to approve measures to increase prices, cuts and rationing, contingency measures, many of which were necessary. The PSD Algarve said no to increasing water prices and made the measure fall, as it was unfair, incomprehensible and unfounded and applied to all municipalities, even those that complied with ERSAR guidelines.
The previous Government also approved a 25% cut in supply to the agricultural sector and 15% in urban supply, which revealed an inability to implement a global plan in which the needs for using water for multiple purposes are correlated with adequate water supply capabilities. storage, promoting the coherent and efficient use of water, ensuring universal access.
Second Christopher North, “Fortunately, the last two months have revealed an increase in precipitation in the Algarve, which has slightly alleviated the critical situation that the region is experiencing in terms of extreme drought. The measures in force put the maintenance of production at risk and lead to losses in the profitability and survival of agricultural holdings and the employment associated with them.”
By way of example, João Garcia, President of the Association of Irrigators of Silves, Lagoa and Portimão, stated that “in this irrigation perimeter of the western Algarve, contingency measures have been implemented for two years”highlighting that in November “the taps were turned off”, and that farmers since then “they don’t waste a liter of water”.
North points out that “It is a fact that the Algarve did not go from scarcity to abundance. But it is also no less true that with reservoirs more composed – they reveal levels similar to the same period in 2023 – it is important to re-evaluate the cuts imposed on the agricultural sector, checking whether there are conditions to alleviate the impositions and guarantee more water for farmers to be able to produce. And it would be a very important decision for the sector and for the Algarve, which, if taken, must be taken with certainty, safety and without creating the conviction that the problem has been overcome, as it is not” declared.
PSD Algarve
