Another example of push back against government’s ‘water management masterplan’
Environmental NGOs from the C7 Coalition have warned today that they will file an injunction if construction of the Pisão Dam in Crato, in the district of Portalegre, goes ahead.
Speaking to the Lusa news agency, Hélder Careto, from the Land Use and Environment Study Group (GEOTA), one of the C7 entities, explained that the coalition will seek an injunction to prevent “serious damage that would be difficult to repair” in the dam construction area.
“If the works begin, we will proceed with an injunction, since, with the start of works, we will have an imminent situation of serious damage that will be difficult to repair in the area affected by the project,” he said.
The C7 Coalition’s warning comes precisely on the day when several contracts will be signed related to the implementation of the Crato Multi-Purpose Hydraulic Development Project (EAHFM), also known as the Pisão Dam.
At the ceremony, at Crato Town Hall, the project financing contracts and the concession for the construction of the primary infrastructure will be signed, as well as the consignment order for the construction of the dam, according to the Alto Alentejo Intermunicipal Community (CIMAA), responsible for the implementation of the project.
At the beginning of the year, the Castelo Branco Administrative and Tax Court (TAFCB) issued a ruling annulling the Environmental Impact Statement included in the project’s Single Environmental Title, following a lawsuit filed by the C7 Coalition.
In February, the Minister for the Environment, Maria da Graça Carvalho, announced that the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA) had appealed against the court decision that annulled the EIS for the Pisão Dam, which has an investment of over €222 million.
Earlier this month, minister for territorial cohesion Manuel Castro Almeida – also the lead candidate for the AD – PSD/CDS coalition for Portalegre in the upcoming elections on May 18 – announced that construction work on the dam could go ahead.
Speaking to Lusa at the time, the minister explained that the TAFCB “resolved the pending legal issues” and that the ruling “is favourable” to the progress of the work.
“Secondly, all the necessary authorisations and licences have been granted by the Portuguese Environment Agency and the Institute for Nature Conservation and Forests,” he added.
Also contacted at the time by Lusa, José Janela, from the Portalegre regional branch of environmental association Quercus, one of the non-governmental organisations responsible for the action in the TAFCB, considered the government’s statements to be “incorrect” (in other words, another case, of an executive mis-truth).
“The TAFCB ordered that the case be referred to the South Central Administrative Court for consideration of the appeals, but without overturning the decision that ruled in favour of the Emvironmental NGOs,” he stressed.
According to CIMAA, which covers the 15 municipalities in the district of Portalegre, the ministers for territorial cohesion and environment and energy are expected to attend today’s ceremony.
Funding for the project was transferred out of the PRR (Plan for Recovery and Resilience Plan) to the national state budget, and increased from €151 million to over €222 million – setting 2027 as the deadline for completing all components of the Pisão project.
Source material: LUSA
