Ecologists warn that the drought in Catalonia has not ended and demand “transparency” from the Government

The 5th Social Water Summit warned this Sunday that the drought has not ended in Catalonia and has criticized the Government’s plans to confront it. According to Aigua és Vida spokesperson, Dante Maschio, the Catalan Executive “focuses only on finding ways to have more water, instead of promoting savings and reducing consumption.”

The Social Water Summit of Catalonia is an initiative that brings together social and environmental movements from all over Catalonia in defense of water and which serves to debate and draw up joint strategies.

Maschio has demanded “more transparency” from the Government to know how the infrastructure will be financed to face the drought and what environmental impacts they will have.

The entities gathered this Sunday in El Prat de Llobregat (Barcelona) have regretted that works are being accelerated “outside the emergency phase” and sanctions are being removed for non-compliance with restrictions. Maschio has also criticized the “conflict of interest” of the new senior Government officials who manage water.

“The water shortage is becoming chronic and is not being addressed correctly by the Government,” said the spokesperson for Aigua és Vida, who has called for “reformulating” the management model and policies on water. “The Government’s plan talks about 270 new hm3 between now and 2031, but it does not specify anything about how the infrastructure will be financed or its impact,” Maschio pointed out.

Environmentalists have asked that the processing of the projects be done following current hydrological planning. “We cannot continue planning as if we were in an emergency,” said the spokesperson for Aigua és Vida, who has shown “concern” about the fact that some infrastructure such as desalination plants, which should be used only in emergency contexts, are being used in an emergency. permanently.

“Climate change forces us to fundamentally change the water management model in Catalonia. The water cycle has changed and we must prepare for what is to come,” emphasized the Aigua és Vida spokesperson.

The meeting comes in a context in which the Government is developing a package of public works to strengthen the water supply in times of drought in Catalonia. The Illa Executive has incorporated a new desalination plant for the northern area of ​​the Costa Brava, along with the acceleration of improvements in water treatment plants and other water infrastructure. All this with an investment of 2,000 million euros, half of which correspond to projects designed during the previous mandate.

In parallel, the Barcelona Metropolitan Area (AMB) will put to a vote next Tuesday the update of the water supply service rates for the Catalan capital and 22 other municipalities. Barring last-minute surprises, the increase will be 6% compared to 2024, which would represent the third consecutive year of increases.