World News | Andalusia considers increased irrigation near Spanish wetlands

BARCELONA, April 12 (AP) A plan to increase irrigation near one of Europe’s most prized wetlands was set to move forward Wednesday with the approval of lawmakers in the Andalusia region in southern Spain.

The proposal to rezon the land goes against the advice of ecologists and repeated warnings from Spain’s central government and EU officials.

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The vote is expected to move the bill closer to becoming law. It was launched by the ruling conservative People’s Party, which has an absolute majority in Seville’s regional parliament. It also has support from the far-right Vox party.

If the measure becomes law, about 1,500 hectares (3,700 acres) of land near Donana Nature Reserve will be declared irrigated. This would grant amnesty to many of the farms that already use illegal wells to tap the aquifers beneath the wetlands to grow strawberries for export across Europe.

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The BJP said its aim was to help marginalized farmers regulate their livelihoods, promising that the plan would not harm wetlands.

Andalusian government spokesman Ramon Fernandez-Pacheco said his government was committed to protecting Donana and that the proposed bill would analyze farmers claiming water rights on a case-by-case basis.

“I’m concerned that the EU is getting a distorted impression of what the bill is about,” he said.

However, ecologists and opposition parties have accused the BJP of trying to win votes ahead of regional elections on May 28. It is possible that the bill will pass before the election, although that is not guaranteed.

EU Environment Director-General Florika Fink-Hooijer told the Spanish government last month that the EU would not tolerate Andalusia’s plans.

In 2021, the European Court of Justice condemned Spain for neglecting the Donana wetlands. Further neglect of nature reserves could result in huge fines for Spain.

Spain’s central government, run by the leftist League, and scientists working in Donana agree the plan will only increase pressure on the aquifer, which is already under pressure from prolonged droughts caused by climate change.

“This kind of vote shouldn’t even take place,” Eloy Revilla, director of the Donana Biological Station at Spain’s National Research Council, told The Associated Press by phone.

Revilla said it would send the wrong message: Those using illegal wells can get away with it.

“It won’t solve Donana’s or the farmers’ problems. It will only further complicate an already complicated situation,” he said.

Revilla said the situation was “critical” for the lagoons and swamps that make Donana a UNESCO World Heritage Site and Biosphere Reserve.

“Donana’s groundwater-dependent ecosystem is in critical condition,” he said. “If we thought last year was very dry and this year is expected to be even drier, it will only get worse.”

Other farmers using legal wells on land that is already irrigable also oppose the move, fearing it will damage the reputation of the berries they sell grown near pristine conditions in Donana.

Last year, the BJP proposed a nearly identical bill, but it failed to reach a final vote due to snap elections in the region.

The Donana Reserve covers 74,000 hectares (182,000 acres) at the mouth of the Guadalquivir River where it meets the Atlantic Ocean on the southern coast of Spain. It is a wintering ground for half a million waterfowl and a stopover for millions of birds migrating from Africa to northern Europe. It’s also home to five threatened bird species, including the endangered Spanish emperor eagle. (Associated Press)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)