The ‘people’s fight’ to save the Beira Baixa region from massive solar parks plastering large swathes of various municipalities with a sea of photovoltaic panels – serviced by very high-voltage power lines – has been confused recently by various posts over social media suggesting plans for the Sophia Photovoltaic Park have been vetoed.
There has, in fact, been no announcement to this effect by Portuguese Environment Agency, APA.
There have been ‘revelations in parliament’, however – in which prime minister Luís Montenegro admitted that APA was on track to ‘fail’ the project (for a second time) – but that this will not be an end to it.
Answering a query from PAN’s MP Inês Sousa Real, the prime minister said the latest veto would simply require the project to be “resubmitted with a different wording”.
Indeed, the project promoter Lightsource BP is reportedly already working on ‘a reformulation of the project’ – even before APA’s announcement: thus opponents see the need to maintain momentum could not be more relevant. Yet, social media feeds keep delivering clips from ‘happy young women’ praising the fact that civic opposition to Sophia has won through – when it clearly hasn’t …
Fortunately, civic groups involved in this battle appear to have seen through the tactics.
In a message directed at the prime minister last week, one of these (the Platform for the Defence of Tejo Natural Park) has said: “We want to make it clear—to Your Excellency, to the Lightsource BP officials, and to all political decision-makers— the populations of Beira Baixa, supported by broad sectors of the country, will not be satisfied with a simple “reformulation” of the project.
“We demand a general halt to harmful energy infrastructure projects, such as the Sophia and Beira projects, as well as a profound reorientation of the policy on so-called renewable energies, placing the territory, the people, and nature at the center of decisions.
“The population of Sertão is united, firm, and determined.
“And in case these “leaks” of information — not yet officially published by the APA — aim to demobilise the extraordinary turnout for the Great Demonstration on January 31 in Lisbon, we leave a clear message: Conscious, courageous people mobilised to defend the soul of their territory will not be deceived.”
Thus the ‘major’ protest, scheduled for this weekend (in what will undoubtedly still be a very soggy capital), is still very much on.
It is scheduled for 2.30pm, starting in Rossio – and promises to bring together ‘citizens, artists, musicians in one voice’ to declare passionate opposition to projects that they see their government still extremely focused on ushering through.
Says a statement from the groups ‘Citizens of Beira Baixa’, the Movements Gardunha Sul, Cova da Beira and Quercus Castelo Branco: “Citizens of the Beira Baixa are not against the energetic transition but repudiate the current model which threatens to transform the interior of the country into a social and environmental sacrifice zone.”
The transition “has to be done sustainably (…) involving populations and their decision-making institutions; guaranteeing territories, patrimonial heritage, communities and landscapes”.
