The Algarve Socialist deputy Miguel Freitas today addressed a series of questions to the Minister of Agriculture and the Sea based on the deterioration of conditions in the fishing port of Portimão/Lagoa and its shipyards, which are in a "pitying state".
This week, the congressman visited the Barlavento fishing port, accompanied by the vice-president of the Chamber of Lagoa and a councilor, as well as other PS figures, to speak directly with businessmen in the sector affected by the situation.
In his application to Minister Assunção Cristas, the deputy wants to know if «in the process of transferring competences from IPTM to Docapesca there was any survey of the need for investments in the Algarve's Fishing Ports» and «if so, what is the value of planned investment for 2014 and 2015?».
Miguel Freitas also addresses the issue of degraded equipment in shipyards, namely the hydraulic tractor and "travel-lift", which, for a year, has not been used to lift boats weighing more than 150 tons from the water, which has already led to companies that operate there losing work in a score of trawlers weighing around 300 tons, like the Sul Informação revealed in a report dated February 5th.
As for the equipment issue, it is known that the Government is even aware of the problems, as the press officer of the Secretary of State for the Sea told the Sul Informação, at the beginning of this month of February, that the General Directorate of Natural Resources, Security and Maritime Services, an entity that recently received the port protection functions that previously belonged to IPTM, «It is already preparing the tender for the repair of the “travel-lift” in Portimão».
However, Miguel Freitas wants to know if «the Government considers these investments and the maintenance of these equipments urgent, due to the damage that their underutilization causes in the companies based there» and also «when these investments are foreseen in the Docapesca plan».
The PS deputy underlines, in the application sent today to the Ministry of Assunção Cristas, that, despite the maritime activity in the Algarve being "a priority for its development", there has been "a disinvestment and, in some cases, situations of abandonment by the central administration, namely the IPTM, with regard to the maintenance of the port areas under its jurisdiction».
Because, he stresses, "although the Government and the central administration have been alerted to this fact, the situation in these shipyards is of enormous degradation, with the lack of maintenance of equipment and the pavement, which harms the approximately four dozen companies existing there'.
"Since 2012 the crane tires (travelift) need to be replaced, which has not happened, and as a result, repairs to boats weighing more than 150 tons, in particular drag boats (300 tons), were impossible. which constituted an important support for the invoicing of companies and which started to be repaired for Spain", such as the Sul Informação reported firsthand.
In addition, «the hydraulic tractor has been stopped for a few months and boats that are “dry” cannot be transported to the sea, particularly maritime-tourist vessels that are collected during the winter and are afraid they will not have this means ready until the end of the year. month of April, when they want to return to their activity».
Miguel Freitas recalls that «the four dozen companies that depend on this equipment employ around 130 workers, having reduced more than a third of their employment during 2013, due to the growing shortage of work».
On the other hand, «the three main fishing boat repair companies existing in the Barlavento Fisheries Port employ 34 workers (monthly average), pay 60 euros in space occupancy rents and 000 euros in ascents and descents, in the use of travelift, on average per year'.
The losses in turnover, from July 2012 to February this year, resulting from the inability to use the crane, «were estimated by the three companies at around 250 000 euros», but the «investment needed to replace the travelift tires is of 200 000 euros'.
Recently, the jurisdiction of fishing ports across the country went from IPTM to Docapesca, but so far there is no news. That is why the socialist deputy in the Algarve has addressed this question to the Ministry responsible for the sector, to find out when these problems will have a solution that will allow the capacity of the shipyards to be restored in the fishing port of Portimão/Lagoa.
Francisco Martins, Mayor of Lagoa, in whose territory this fishing port and the respective shipyards are located, has also drawn attention to the problem in meetings of AMAL, the Intermunicipal Community of Algarve, having also requested an urgent meeting with the administration of IPTM, which never came to fruition.
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