“Families and small farmers cannot be the ones to pay the price for choices that have only benefited a few” argued the Secretariat of the Algarve Left Bloc in relation to the announced increases in water prices in the region.
The party considers that other measures are more urgent, such as “the use of wastewater to irrigate gardens and golf courses; or support for the agroforestry ecological transition”.
The Left Bloc also regrets that “AMAL and the Government have not implemented the investments identified for a long time to alleviate the problem of water shortages, given that low rainfall – worsened by climate change – has been going on for around a decade in the Algarve”.
They also point out their criticism of PS Algarve – which oversees AMAL – “for now opting for the facilitist solution that does not solve the problem: increasing the price of water, moreover covering the second level of consumption”, in which the increase will be of 15%.
The Bloc considers the measure “socially unfair and penalizing the income of families in the region, already faced with situations of high precariousness, low wages and unemployment”.
“It is unacceptable that, of the 43 golf courses in the Algarve, only two use wastewater. These waters should be used for washing streets, watering gardens and industrial purposes”, said José Gusmão, MEP for the Bloc and head of the list for Faro.
João Vasconcelos, former deputy for BE, adds that “some local authorities in the region prefer to waste millions on fireworks and other events in order to garner votes during elections instead of investing in essential infrastructure. The government and local authorities must now take responsibility for the necessary investments, while there is still time”.
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