The Minister of Environment, Water, Infrastructure and Territory, Salomé Pradas, and the mayor of València, María José Catalá, met this morning to monitor the state of l’Albufera and announce that the City Council and the Generalitat are going to request to the Central Government an Emergency Protocol in the event of critical situations that provides stability to the management of the park.
The mayor of Cap i Casal has demanded the involvement of the Government of Spain in the conservation of the lake, through a minimum protected water contribution of 34.5 hm3/year, in compliance with the provisions of the Júcar Hydrological Plan.
“What we demand is treatment similar to that of the Government towards Doñana, to guarantee the water needs of the lake and protect its ecological and environmental value. We need a clear protocol and a serious and sincere commitment,” added the mayor.
Furthermore, Catalá recalled that last December he “personally” sent a letter to the Minister of Ecological Transition requesting a meeting and expressing his concern about the flow, “to which not only have I not received a response, but he directly “has been sent to the Hydrographic Confederation, with which we are already in contact.”
For her part, Councilor Pradas has announced that she will meet this Wednesday with the Secretary of State for the Environment, Hugo Morán, to discuss the situation of the natural park and begin the procedures for the declaration of a Biosphere Reserve.
Thus, he has assured that the Consell’s will “is to work hand in hand with the City Council to claim the necessary funds for our Albufera.” The councilor recalled that in recent weeks “we have gone through an extraordinary episode in which we did not have enough water due to the lack of rain and the high temperatures this autumn, in addition to the appearance of algae that has caused a different coloration.”
This episode – added the councilor – “led the Consell and the City Council to demand extraordinary funds and we have to be sure that if these situations occur, there is a protocol to act immediately when these extraordinary solutions are given.”
