New blue energy aimed at trying to head off what is looking increasingly inevitable for the Algarve’s west coast is calling an anti-oil march for next week in Lagos.
The plan is to start at the train station and walk to the council building on the other side of the river, stopping off at GALP fuel station “where the image of a crab will be left” as a way of showing campaigners’ disgust that the oil company could adopt the name for one of its concessions, 46kms of the coast of Aljezur.
“Keep it Blue” is the surfers’ side of this fight, and it has recently uploaded a new protest video to Youtube (click here).
But as preparations get underway for the march marking the beginning of Spring on Wednesday March 21 at 4pm, there are multiple issues in the air.
PALP, the platform of environmental NGOs has issued a statement questioning whether the Ministry of the Sea has been trying to help oil company ENI illegally.
Much like Climaximo last month, it has discovered from documents in the public domain that ENI says it was given the go-ahead last summer for depth-sounding work despite the fact that PALP’s ‘providência cautelar’ was in place, and should have precluded any kind of work connected to the contract (click here).
This can mean two things, says the platform, either ENI is not telling the truth or the government ministries did indeed wave the work through, “hiding this fact” from judges at Loulé’s fiscal and administrative court which are in the throes of making a decision on PALP’s attempt at an embargo.
Both scenarios are “of extreme gravity”, says the platform, demanding answers.
And meantime civic group ASMAA has highlighted another “inconvenient truth” in this titanic battle to save the coast from hydrocarbon exploration.
Even if public consultation ongoing until April 16 forces through the need for an environmental impact study, it will be the Portuguese Environment Agency that has the final word – and no-one appears in any doubt as to which way the government is swinging.
Ironically, prime minister António Costa was upbraided yesterday in the European Parliament for his government’s verve for oil exploration. Philippe Lamberts, co-president of the Greens/ EFA – in a speech which began praising the country for turning its back on austerity – and moving towards investments, said those investments have to be the right sort. “In our opinion, all investments should be focused on allowing citizens to have a dignified life without natural limits”.
In this regard, Lamberts said: “At this point we cannot say that Portugal is a leader in ecological transition. As examples we have the oil exploration and intensive sardine fishing…”
Nonetheless, all the words against, the exhortations from groups for people to make their voices heard on the participa.pt site (click here), and the online appeals to raise funds for legal actions that could be the last chace for stopping exploration have become commonplace.
The clock is ticking towards the ‘witching hour’: GALP has reiterated that its plans remain to drill, and drill this year. It is looking ominously like only a matter of when.
natasha.donn@algarveresident.com
