Almería, (EFE).- The Minister of Water, Carmen Crespo, announced this Monday that the Junta de Andalucía is going to send a letter to the Ministry of Agriculture today to request the convening this April of the National Drought Table.
“It is the ideal moment to convene a table that is absolutely fundamental for all of Spain and especially for the driest Spain. We cannot alone at this time ”, he told the media in El Ejido (Almería).
It has influenced that the Junta de Andalucía and its president, Juanma Moreno, articulate all the measures at their disposal to fight against the drought. “We need the other administrations. The city councils are also pulling each other (…) But we need the Government of Spain ”, she insists.
Third drought decree in Andalusia
For this reason, it has considered it necessary to convene the National Table on Drought in order to identify the situation in which the country is, especially “dry Spain”.
He recalled that this month the third drought decree will be presented to the Governing Council of the Junta de Andalucía.
“We are at 29.4% of our capacity in the Andalusian reservoirs. We are at 3,251 hectometres (…) Last year there was already a persistent drought and we were at 4,207 cubic hectometres, having a capacity of more than 11,000”, he remarked.
Faced with this situation, he recalled that the Andalusian Government has articulated two drought decrees that are already at “72% of their performance and practically all put into operation.”
For its part, the third decree that will be approved this month comes to “round off” and “complete” the actions that “at this time can be done”, although it has insisted that it is necessary to “bring your shoulder together”.
Along these lines, he stressed that Andalusia is responsible for 33% of the community’s basins, while the remaining 67% belong to the State, which “has only made a drought decree with 9.7 million euros.”
Common line with Murcia and Valencia
“We ask you to go deeper into the capacity of your actions with respect to the drought,” he claimed.
In the case of Almería, he points out that there are two “very complicated” reservoirs, that of Beninar and that of Cuevas del Almanzora, and given the lack of rain forecasts, he has stated that he will ask the Government about the progress in the works of the desalination plant del Almanzora and whether it is planned to expand the one in Carboneras (Almería).
Regarding the use of cuts from the Tagus-Segura transfer, the counselor pointed out that during Holy Week she has contacted the governments of the Valencian Community and Murcia, since they have a “common line” and “going together we have more possibilities ”.
He has indicated that the appeal will be presented this Monday and has explained that it has already been requested through the Governing Council that the Supreme Court give a hearing to be able to present it and all the precautionary measures that the three autonomous communities have decided to request. EFE