DGEG concedes government considering second ‘administrative easement’ (invasion of private property)
The agricultural community of Covas do Barroso – fighting desperately to save a way of life threatened by lithium exploration – is facing new horrors.
Officials from the DGEG (department of energy and geology) have notified “several private landowners of the likely authorisation of a second administrative easement in the concession area of the Savannah Resources mining company”.
A press release from the Association for the Defence of Covas do Barroso views the development as continuation of what it dubs Savannah Resources’ harassment of resident communities.
“The use of a new administrative easement demonstrates that Savannah still does not have the consent of the local community of common land and the vast majority of private individuals.
“Both the land already subject to easement and the land that is the subject of this new request represent almost the entire area that the company needs. There is also land in dispute following a process of acquisition from private individuals that resulted in the usurpation of common land”.
The release paints a picture of a community being ‘hung out to dry’.
The association has long railed against the lack of any kind of institutional support. It now describes the “presence of 24-hour private security, both in inhabited areas and in the mountains.
“This presence generates a feeling of insecurity and invasion among the local population. Several inhabitants have reported attempts to prevent them from travelling on land and roads used by the community, discomfort at feeling constantly watched, difficulty resting due to the noise of engines at night and road insecurity as a result of dangerous driving”, presumably by people employed by prospectors.
The release also cites “several attempts by the GNR to isolate and intimidate landowners in order to dissuade them from their right to resist the ongoing aggression.
“The appearance of new video surveillance equipment on public roads, including the use of hidden cameras, violates people’s right to privacy and increases the feeling of permanent surveillance.
“Despite all these attacks, the people of Covas do Barroso and Romainho will stand firm and resist with all the means at their disposal.
“We hold the government fully responsible for the escalation of resistance if it decides to authorise a second easement. We will not give up”, concludes the press release sent out yesterday.
Today, Correio da Manhã writes about the derisory amounts of money offered to landowners for the invasion of their property – stressing that court actions are in place as the community tries to fend off what may be inevitable. Only recently, Brussels classified four mining projects in Portugal as strategic (this one included) the idea being that their implementation is fast-tracked as they are considered ‘vital’ for Europe’s green and digital transitions.
While the communities of Covas do Barroso and Romainho do everything they can to ‘turn the tide in their favour’, this struggle is looking increasingly complicated. ND
