Nadia McDonald
The European Commission has sent another letter to Spain expressing serious concern for plans by Juanma Moreno (PP) and Vox to expand irrigation systems within the National Park of Doñana.
The director general of the European Commission for the Environment, Florika Fink-Hooijer, stated in the letter that the irrigation plans proposed by the Andalucian government are a ‘flagrant violation’ of a ruling by European courts which condemned Spain for not taking adequate care of the aquifers of the National Park in July of 2021.
Fink-Hooijer, has warned the Spanish ambassador to the EU that the European Commission is prepared to take ‘all the necessary measures’ including a filing a renewed appeal before the European Court of Justice that would request financial penalties been imposed on the Andalucian Government if plans for the expansion of irrigation go ahead.
In the letter to Ambassador Alonso, Fink-Hooijer urges that the letter be transferred to ‘his authorities with due urgency’.
This follows a letter sent by the conservation NGO WWF to the European Commision, in which the charity expressed its ‘deep concerns’ about the second attempt by Moreno (PP) and Vox to expand irrigation around the Doñana National Park, whose aquifer has already been exploited.
The WWF labeled the irrigation plans as a ‘direct attack on the conservation of Doñana’ and that it could lead to ‘strong sanctions and the freezing of community funds for agriculture that Andalucia receives’.
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