High-voltage power line project will have “negative effects” on the Gerês national park
The Ponte de Lima-Fontefria (Galicia) high-voltage power line project will not see any lines crossing the Peneda Gerês National Park (PNPG) in the north of Portugal, but it will ‘become an eyesore’ in what is otherwise a mostly pristine natural landscape.
So says the president of the park’s co-management committee on Thursday, describing the project as “yet another obstacle in the landscape, which will have negative impacts from an environmental, social and economic point of view,” João Manuel Esteves told Lusa news agency.
At issue is the ‘Ponte de Lima—Fontefría double line, Portuguese section, 400 kV’, which, in July 2023, received a favourable conditional opinion in the RECAPE—Environmental Compliance Report for the Execution Project, according to the documents available on the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA) website.
The line covers the municipalities of Vila Verde, in the district of Braga, and Ponte de Lima, Ponte da Barca, Vila Verde, Arcos de Valdevez, Monção and Melgaço, in the district of Viana do Castelo.
The PNPG covers an area of 69,693 hectares and includes the municipalities of Melgaço, Arcos de Valdevez and Ponte da Barca, in the district of Viana do Castelo; Terras de Bouro, in the district of Braga; and Montalegre, in the district of Vila Real.
According to João Manuel Esteves, who is also mayor of Arcos de Valdevez, “the line will affect nine parishes” in the municipality, three of which are in the PNPG, such as the national monument villages of Sistelo, Gondoriz and Cabreiro.
On Wednesday, the mayors of the Alto Minho municipalities that are contesting the high voltage line expressed surprise at the green light for the work.
“We are surprised that any kind of licence has been issued. There are two injunctions from five municipalities against the APA. It’s not because a project is of community interest that you can bypass legislation, whether because of environmental issues or anything else. In this process, from the beginning, anything goes,” António Barbosa, the mayor of Monção (PSD), who is also the spokesperson for the municipalities of Porto de Lima (CDS), Ponte da Barca (PSD), Arcos de Valdevez (PSD) and Melgaço (PS), lamented to Lusa.
On Thursday, João Manuel Esteves said that the mayors are going to ask the Minister for the Environment for an audience after being surprised by the licensing of the work.
Esteves said that the mayors would meet next week “to hold a series of contacts with various organisations and, of course, with the Minister for the Environment.”
On Wednesday, an official source revealed that the minister for the environment and energy was gathering the necessary information to assess the project.
“In liaison with the competent bodies and entities, the minister is gathering the necessary information to assess the project to install this line,” said a source from the ministry headed by Maria da Graça Carvalho, in a written reply to questions presented by Lusa.
The Ministry of the Environment and Energy also indicated that the minister “is closely monitoring” the project.
Source: LUSA
