The Polis Litoral Ria Formosa company, in charge of the Ria Formosa islands and environs, has authorised the dredging of sand from Armona and dumped it on Cavacos beach on the mainland some 3 kilometres away.
This has had two effects. Firstly, the residents of Armona island that live near to the dredging works are now even more likely to be categorised as ‘at risk’ as the sea is even closer to their island homes. This ‘too close to the sea’ argument is one of the arsenal used by the government to try and get rid of properties and people to return the island to their natural state.