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Algarve natural and wetland areas to be protected from developers

salgados aerialGood news for conservationists and bird-lovers across the region as Almargem has announed it has received project funding from the Nature Conservation and Biodiversity programme of the Environmental Fund. 

This will pay for in-depth studies of specific aspects of several wetland areas in the Algarve, writes Almargem, namely the Alagoas Brancas area in Lagoa threatened by Continente, Sapais de Pêra and Lagoa dos Salgados (pictured) straddling Silves and Albufeira Council areas where Millennium Bank is keen to flog off the laughably named 'eco-Resort' at Praia Grande, the wetland of Trafal near Vilamoura and Foz do Almargem in Loulé.

In spite of the short execution time for this project, it will be possible to combine the work of several specialists (SPEA, University of Algarve, TAGIS, among others) who will produce technical reports on the values ​​in each of these areas.

The final objective is to prepare a well-founded proposal that will be presented to the respective local authorities in order to initiate a process of classification of these wetlands as Local Area Protected Areas.

In the case of Alagoas Brancas, this becomes particularly relevant due to the 'lack of adequate initiatives' by Lagoa Council and government departments - Almargem now has the funding to show the conservation importance of this small wetland that remains under threat by an inadmissible industrial plan in a space subject to periodic flooding.

As it is also public knowledge, Sapais de Pêra and Lagoa dos Salgados (the Praia Grande 'eco-Resort' (sic) development) are threatened by a municipal plan of urbanization that covers 148 hectares where a golf course, hotels and apartments would be installed, in a total of 4,000 beds.

The approval of the current study acknowledges that the areas in question have great potential in environmental and conservationist terms, so it is strange that they still want to move forward with the Praia Grande venture which is totally incompatible with the protection of existing patrimonial values, with European commitments and with the sustainable development of the region.

As for Trafal and Foz do Almargem, it is intended to consolidate the ideas that have been presented for at least three decades in order to protect this small part of the Algarve coast, which is constantly the target of inadequate interventions, undue use of the territory and real estate speculation, and it is hoped that, once and for all, the Municipality of Loulé will be able to fulfill its indispensable duty to preserve the natural heritage.


Almargem Association
R. de S. Domingos, 65 - 8100-536 Loulé
www.almargem.org

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Comments  

+3 #6 Poor Portugesa 2018-09-24 09:45
Thank you thank you Ed, Frank AND Natasha! :-) :-* BEIJINHOS!
Peter has a good point, too. As everywhere in the Algarve coastal area is so desirable, where CAN the extra hotels, if really needed, be built? (Apart from the most 'accommodating' camaras..)
Poor Denzil! He must have a very sad life living here. :sad:
+1 #5 Peter Booker 2018-09-24 09:09
And it is the ever increasing pressure of more and more tourism which creates the knock-on pressure on these priceless natural and wetland areas.

Forget about the principle of an additional tax - taxes are always unpopular - but create the environment where there is less pressure to develop the few remaining natural habitats. For me, that means supporting ideas which have the potential to limit the increase in numbers of tourists coming to the Algarve.
+3 #4 Ed 2018-09-23 16:40
Quoting Frank McC:
This is great news and I hope that it isn’t as bad as Denzil makes out. I heard many similar negative comments when I started the “Save Salgados” petition back in 2012, all along the lines of, “Why bother?”. At that time the whole area was just about to all be developed, but the publicity generated by the petition gained us time to challenge the original “Environmental Impact Assessment”, find the largest colony in the world of a red-listed plant on the site and subsequently hold up any development over the last six years in court hearings - and now we have this. Of course we’re not out of the woods yet, and there are still well-funded, greedy and unscrupulous interests against us, but any news is good news so let’s think positive and keep on fighting to preserve these areas for the wildlife and future generations that need them.


I agree. If you don't start, however impossible the odds look, you will never get anywhere.

I remember the first Salgados meeting when you, me and Natasha determined 'to do something.'

Look where we are now, six years of no development, your hugely successful 'Save Salgados' petition on Avaaz (34,169 signatures and rising) and thousands of words published in defence of our natural areas.

BTW, Millennium have gone into lock down so we need to be even more alert than usual.
+5 #3 Frank McC 2018-09-23 16:02
This is great news and I hope that it isn’t as bad as Denzil makes out. I heard many similar negative comments when I started the “Save Salgados” petition back in 2012, all along the lines of, “Why bother?”. At that time the whole area was just about to all be developed, but the publicity generated by the petition gained us time to challenge the original “Environmental Impact Assesment”, find the largest colony in the world of a red-listed plant on the site and subsequently hold up any development over the last six years in court hearings - and now we have this. Of course we’re not out of the woods yet, and there are still well-funded, greedy and unscrupulous interests against us, but any news is good news so let’s think positive and keep on fighting to preserve these areas for the wildlife and future generations that need them.
+5 #2 AB 2018-09-22 23:40
At last some very hopefull news for Alagoas Brancas and the other wet lands... =)

https://www.facebook.com/ablofeld/videos/10155937893293585/
-2 #1 Denzil 2018-09-22 20:46
As always the non-Europeans in Portuguese society tuck their agenda of concrete and tarmac in under the skirts of the few "European oriented" Portuguese pushing conservation and the environment. From the co-warriors it sounds quite modern ..."Hey guys, lets keep up this pretence that we Portuguese are (now) evolved. A superb laugh that can last for years on Brussels funding - then the area gets developed. So a win win !"

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