Local farmers and small holders will have yet another opportunity to vote for or against the 11 million euro project to modernize the archaic irrigation system in Calasparra.
Despìte the fact that majority of the members of the “Comunidad de Regantes” have voted three times in favour of of the project there will be another meeting on Monday March 18 to seek definitive approval for the second phase of modernization.
The Extraordinary General Meeting will be in the Municipal Auditorium at 8pm.
The plan affects 1,000 hectares of agriculture land and 1,100 farmers and smallholders. The modernization will replace the current network of irrigation canals with a drop irrigation system with connections and water meters sited on the perimeter of individual properities.
Some 70% of the 11 million euro project will be subsidised by the European FEDER funds but landowners here in Calasparra will pay for 15% of the scheme in the form of a mortgage, through the State Financial Company SEIASA, which will be paid via the water bill.
The project must be completed and paid by by December 31, 2015 in order to qualify for the European funds.
The opposition group, Ardevas, has launched a campaign against the modernization plans and the system of finance.
However, the Director General of Irrigation and Rural Development, Julio Bernal, has answered the opposition’s criticism saying: “the agriculture land in Calasparra is losing its value due to the abandonment of traditional crops, the low market price of agricultural produce, the elevated age of the majority of smallholders and the current low productivity of the land.”
He continues: “More than 80% of the irrigation areas in the region of Murcia are considering modernizations which will permit them to optimize the water resources, raise the level of production and increase the value of their land.”
He urges members to vote in favor of the project and a better future for agriculture in Calasparra.
All three political parties in Calasparra back the modernization plans which have been approved at regional and national government levels.
For more information on the modernization go to:-http://www.murcia.com/region/noticias/2013/02/07-agricultura-informa-a-la-comunidad-de-regantes-embalse-del-argos-de-las-ventajas-de-modernizar-esta-zona-regable.asp
