تعليق الأعمال في الأراضي الرطبة في الغارف

In a statement, the PAN party states that the decision of the Administrative and Tax Court of Loulé, in the district of Faro, “implies the immediate notification of all parties, in order to proceed with the immediate suspension of work on the site”, identified as a wetland.

"It was with emotion that we received the notification of the court's approval of the request to file an injunction", said Inês de Sousa Real, a spokesperson for PAN, quoted in the note.

Sousa Real adds that “it has been with deep sadness” that she has observed the progressive destruction of the area that serves as a refuge for hundreds of birds, many with protected status under the Habitats Directive “without the Council [of Lagoa] or the other government entities, mobilising to stop” what it she considers to be “an environmental crime”.

The party says that there are also “species in a vulnerable situation, such as the striated-shelled tortoise classified as endangered and the Turkish gecko, which are being buried alive as a result of the ongoing earthworks” at the site.

According to the PAN, at stake “is the preservation of what is one of the only wetlands in the Algarve, whose destruction began two weeks ago”, with the start of construction work.

“It is not enough to proclaim to the international community that we are concerned, it is necessary to show that this is a real concern”, says the PAN spokeswoman, adding that the party “will do everything in the name of the conservation of Alagoas Brancas”.

PAN also informed that, in addition to the injunction filed with the Administrative and Tax Court of Loulé, it also formalized a complaint with the Public Ministry, “requiring the latter to act in defense of diffuse interests, as provided for in the legislation in force”.

For the area in question, a wetland of about eight hectares, the construction of 11 lots for commerce and services is planned, a project that dates back to 2007 and has since been contested by environmental movements and associations.

The project was approved in 2009 and went through all the licensing phases provided for by law to allow for the granting of the permit and the subdivision, according to the Lagoa Chamber.