21 - 27 December 2017
A rally to demand the Spanish government step in to save Almeria from drought took place in Murcia. T h e Ta b l e f o r t h e D e fence of Water in Almeria is travelling around the Costa de Almeria and Costa Blanca to raise awareness about the threat in the Spanish south-east. The Platform is a loose coalition of farmers, engineers, business leaders and politicians. It argues that the province is in dire need for water for irrigation and that some 60 million fruit trees from Almeria to Alicante are at risk of dying of thirst. Of major concern is the fate of the 12 municipalities in Almeria that depend on the endangered Segura basin. These include Mojacar, Garrucha, Los Gallardos and Carboneras. The loss of t h e Ta j o - S e g u r a a n d N e gratin-Almanzora transfers due to a scarcity of rainfall and funding could ruin more than 24,000 hectares
COSTA DE ALMERÍA
YOUR PAPER, YOUR VOICE, YOUR OPINION Photo credit RosRodaNews/Twitter
ISSUE NO. 1694
WATER FIGHT: Defenders demand solution in Murcia.
Drought crisis Water fight heats up of crops, the Platform says. Adding to the threat is the closure since 2012 of the Villaricos desalination
Andalucia to back new LGBTQ+ laws ANDALUCIA’S parliament is set to unanimously back new laws for the LGBQT+ community, according to Spanish media. In its final session of the year, the body is expected to support proposals for harsher punishments against those who discriminate against LGBTQ+ people. The new legislation - jointly proposed by a coalition of leftist parties - is also the first from a Spanish regional parliament to guarantee the rights and outlaw discrimination against the children of LGBQT+ parents. Conservative parties have also agreed to support the initiative. The region reportedly has one of the worst records in Spain for discrimination and homophobic hate crime.
plant, which the Platform wants to reopen with its own funds. During the protest a series of requests were issued to the Spanish government. These included construction of a new dam in Jaen which could provide water t o t h e A l m a n z o r a Va l l e y and the expansion of the Carboneras desalination
plant. The latter would allow the Nijar aquifer to recover and begin supplying the Levante and Tabernas regions. Urgent repair of the Villaricos plant was also requested. It has been closed since flooding in 2012 and is at the centre of a corruption investigation linked to state company Acuamed.
WWW.EUROWEEKLYNEWS.COM
No white Christmas A MILD Christmas is forecast for the majority of Spain. An official from national weather office, AEMET said that while temperatures will be cool at night, there is almost no chance of heavy rainfall before the festive period. Scattered showers are expected in central and northern Spain plus the Canary Islands, but Mediterranean parts of the country - including Alicante, Malaga and Almeria - will bask in daytime highs of 1721°C. The dry conditions are being driven by the return of an anticyclonic weather system off Portugal, which is blocking the entry of Atlantic fronts.