A sobering little list published at Planet2025 that details China’s consumption budget and the effect it’s having on the country’s ecosystem.
Archive for December, 2007
Bad news for the Río Segura
The Río Segura dump and no one’s responsible. This is the conclusion of the 7th section of the Alicante high court in the trial of 14 businesses and individuals accused of dumping organic waste into the river section between Orihuela and Guardamar de Segura.
Two ecological groups, Ecologistes en Acción and Amigos de los Humedales del Sur de Alicante and the Crown Prosecutor brought the action against 11 heads of local businesses and 3 functionaries of the Confederación Hidrográfica del Segura. However, the judge expressed surprise that the local town councils had not been indicted as they ultimately control drains and dumping into the river. In addition, they judged that the rights of the defendants were systematically prejudiced in the pre-trial period.
The accusing parties were further ordered to pay 6/14 of the cost of the court proceedings. They reacted angrily to this, releasing a written statement that called the result shameful and scandalous which sends a message of intimidation to any groups who seek to protect the environment through legal channels.
I am certain that the companies dumping organic waste in the Segura did it with full intent, secure that no one would be able to stop them, least of all the government. After all the judge said:
“En ningún caso estaba en manos de la CHS la posibilidad de paralizar los vertidos de las poblaciones a través del alcantarillado”
Welll, if it’s not in the hands of the Ministry then who has the responsibility to ensure that companies obey the law and don’t dump with impunity their waste in public resources such as rivers? The CHS describes itself thus:
La Confederación Hidrográfica del Segura, es un organismo autónomo de la Administración General del Estado, adscrito, a efectos administrativos, al Ministerio de Medio Ambiente.
Es una entidad de derecho público con personalidad jurídica propia y que dispone de autonomía para regir y administrar por sí los intereses que les sean confiados; para adquirir y enajenar los bienes y derechos que puedan constituir su propio patrimonio; para contratar y obligarse y para ejercer, ante los Tribunales, todo género de acciones, sin más limitaciones que las impuestas por las leyes. Sus actos y resoluciones ponen fin a la vía administrativa.
Which says it’s an autonomous organism inscribed in administration of the Ministry of the Environment whose main role is public law and administration. Well, I guess they should have told the local councils to sort the problem out, don’t you think? And of course the councils should have been included in the action, but ultimately it comes down the companies obeying or not obeying the law…not whether the law was properly applied by the council.
Some fun eco-links
Here are a few good links to occupy your surfing hours:
Still dreaming of an open shoreline
The Ministry of the Environment’s Strategy for a Sustainable Coastline has been favorably received by the mayors of the towns along the Alicante coastline. Four main areas have been targeted, including protection of the Rio Algar in Altea, protection of the Agua Amarga in Elche, and the demolition of houses already on protected areas in El Pinet and Els Sorts in Teulada.
The environmental group Ecologistes en Acción have been campaigning hard to prevent the construction of 5000 houses along the Rio Algar. The construction group Ballester have already been granted permission to build by the previous Partido Popular mayoralty. This despite the zone being recognised as an area of special environmental interest as wetland and feeding place for migratory birds.
As I have said before, it makes no sense to build more houses on the Rio Algar as there is no need. The National Statistics Office (INE) reports 160.000 empty properties in the province of Alicante. But still they build: 40,000 new residences per year in this province. This is a perfect illustration of economy before sustainability (or rationality!) Cement, roads, electrical equipment, water pipes, building materials such as wood – all this takes energy and resources. If there is no need, why do we go ahead with building plans? Are jobs more important that clean air? Is money more important than fresh water?
