• Environment The Andalusian Government does not convince the European Commission on irrigation in the surroundings of Doñana

The draft Law on irrigation of Doñana proposed by the Government of Andalusia does not pass the cut in Brussels. The European Commission, usually restrained, and more so in politically sensitive times such as the eve of elections, is completely against what Juanma Moreno's team is considering and is not having any modesty when it comes to communicating it. If a few weeks ago the Director General of Environment of the European Commission did it by letter, in a letter sent to the Government of Spain, its direct interlocutor, this Monday it has been directly the responsible commissioner, Virginijus Sinkeviius, who has said it in person to the Minister of Sustainability, Environment and spokesman of the Junta de Andalucía, Ramón Fernández-Pacheco: The concern is maximum, the measures go in the opposite direction to what they should and the risk of degrading Doñana is high and inadmissible.

The Commissioner's message at the end of the meeting is very clear, very forceful, much more than usual in these cases. When a senior community official receives a regional leader, whether president or counselor, it is normal for his team to explain in a few lines, generic, the agenda that has been discussed and emphasize that it was a constructive meeting and in which both parties agreed to return to discuss the issues later. This time, however, only the counselor Fernández-Pacheco has stuck to that script. Upon leaving the meeting he has appeared before the media ensuring that the main concern of the Commission was the application of the judgment of the Court of Justice of the EU on Doñana, which "is 80% the responsibility of the Government" and that after exposing why there was no reason for concern about a bill that is also beginning to be processed, they had agreed to continue talking in the future when Brussels could calmly study the Board's proposals.

"We have come seriously and with the truth as the only weapon against this continuous attack, this barrage of hoaxes and lies that the Government of Spain has been promoting," said the counselor. "The commissioner is very concerned about the application of the CJEU ruling and we have explained to him that the plan in no way harms the Doñana aquifer. We are talking about the water that would always come through transfer that the Government promised by law in 2018 and whose infrastructure construction has not begun. Water has to be for our jewel of nature. This bill in absolute amnesty to any of the offenders, the sanctioning processes have multiplied by four since Juanma Moreno governs. The Commissioner has committed to evaluate the arguments that we have had the opportunity to offer him today to collaborate with compliance with directives, European regulations, state and regional laws. Most of the meeting has been about the concern he has for compliance with the sentence, which in 80% is the responsibility of the Government of Spain, regardless of the concern about the bill and the interested media stir that we live in our country, "he added thanking that in a few days they have received him, unlike the Government of Spain, with which, according to his version, he has been trying to see each other for months.

The Commissioner's reading, however, is different. His message is long, addresses all the issues on the table and does not spare qualifiers. "The meeting took place at the request of the Andalusian side," he emphasizes in his first sentence. "The Commissioner recalled that the Commission is deeply concerned that the proposed Andalusian legislation, if approved as proposed, could degrade the protected Doñana wetland, one of the largest in Europe and of paramount importance for the coherence of the Natura 2000 Network," he says.

That is to say, that the first point for Brussels is the legislation that is being considered and that, in its opinion, goes against Community directives. Only below, and in a related way, the Sinkeviius team addresses the legal process opened for years. "The full and timely implementation of the judgments of the Court of Justice is a priority for the Commission. The measures adopted so far by Spain to address the breaches declared by the Court of Justice in its judgment of June 24, 2021 in relation to Doñana are not sufficient, even without the likely negative impact of the proposed regulation, "he says, criticizing both Moncloa and the regional government.

"There is strong evidence that intensive agriculture and nearby resorts were linked to the desiccation/reduction of ponds throughout Doñana, demonstrating that current levels of groundwater exploitation are unsustainable and require urgent action to control withdrawals."

The problem is earlier, yes, but the measures that are contemplated would only worsen the situation, they warn entering fully into very specific and technical issues. These are not general comments, but point to the heart of the problem, making it clear that they see no scope with the current rules. There are no threats, there is no talk of sanctions or fines, but the message that Sinkeviius and its director general have given to the Government of Spain and Vice President Teresa Ribera in particular is evident: they will return to court to ask for fines if there is no turnaround.

"The bill creates a favourable legal framework for the recognition of stormwater use rights and surface water use rights that would add to the excessive pressure on already overexploited groundwater bodies. The Commissioner underlined that he is aware of the importance of irrigation for the local economy and that, at the same time, EU legislation requires sustainable water use and conservation of protected sites, for the benefit of all water users and all users of ecosystem services," says the Commission spokesperson.

"Further deterioration of the status of groundwater bodies is likely to have disastrous effects on the conservation of the fragile ecosystems of the Doñana wetlands, one of the EU's biodiversity hotspots," the Commission spokesperson said.

In the last paragraph of the note issued by the Commission, the Commissioner nevertheless undertakes to study in detail the clarifications that the Government of Andalusia has sent him with respect to his project.

  • Doñana
  • Government of Spain
  • European Commission
  • Add
  • Juan Manuel Moreno Bonilla
  • Europe
  • Justice

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