Vannmangel er som nevnt før et økende problem i Søreuropa, særlig på den
iberiske halvøya. Hovedårsaken, som ikke nevnes nedenfor, er
klimaforandringene, som har medført at vinterregnen er forsvunnet og har
blitt erstattet av et konstant høytrykk hver vinter. Dette er det
subtropiske høytrykksbeltet som om vinteren før lå lenger sør (Sahara)
og ute over Atlanteren (her kalles det normalt Acorer-høytrykket). I
sommerhalvåret er fordampningen så stor at nedbøren intet betyr for
grunnvannstanden, den synker uansett. Men å vente at en "moderne"
journalist (eller forsåvidt selv en gjennomsnittlig TV-meteorolog) skal
gidde sette seg inn i slikt er alt for mye. Det "moderne" ligger i å
være obskurantist når det gjelder naturforholdene. DET er obligatorisk.
"Naturen" skal bli en golfbane.
Karsten Johansen
Illegal irrigation schemes threaten to cause water crisis
By Elizabeth Nash in Madrid
06 May 2002
Spanish environmentalists have condemned the expansion of irrigated land
in the parched Mediterranean south, a practice they say depletes further
the region's sparse water supply.
"New agricultural land is constantly being reclaimed from wild scrubland
or forest, while golf courses and urban developments are proliferating
wildly, despite a ban on these activities because of the lack of water,"
Ruben Vives, a spokesman for Environmentalists in Action, said.
More than 2,400 acres of irrigated plots were being created every year
in the south-east coastal region of Murcia, where plans were afoot to
build 34 golf courses, campaigners said in a letter of complaint to
regional authorities.
The new areas of cultivation are watered from wells driven into already
depleted aquifers, or by illegally siphoning water from reserves
transferred from the river Ebro in the north-west, the ecologists say.
Overexploiting underground water increases its salt content, reducing
the fertility of the soil. "The authorities expect extra water to be
transferred to Murcia and Andalucia from the Ebro under the National
Hydrological Plan, so they are irrigating new zones in anticipation of
water to come," Mr Vives said. "This worsens existing shortages and
means that even if water is eventually transferred there'll still be a
deficit. If the transfer isn't agreed, great shortages could produce a
situation of crisis."
There have been several large-scale protests against the plan, under
which water will be transferred from the Ebro system to the south.
Orange and lemon trees were grown on some illegal plots, Mr Vives said.
"But these plots are not owned by farmers. They are business operations
by industrialists or individuals who buy land cheapand exploit the fact
that citrus is not labour- intensive."
Then there are the huge expanses of "invernaderos", polythene
greenhouses, which have transformed southern Spain's sandy wastes into
the country's most profitable region. Tended overwhelmingly by immigrant
labour, they supply Europe's supermarkets with salads, tomatoes,
cucumbers and aubergines all year round.
"In one case we condemn, promoters for 'invernaderos' illegally took
over land classified as open space and obtained a subsidy to irrigate
it," Mr Vives said. "We sued them and they were fined. But then the land
was reclassified and they now plan to build houses on it."
Half the land classified as natural open space along Murcia's coast
between Mazarron and Aguilas was declassified last year, he said,
freeing 5,000 hectares for agriculture or construction.
Murcia's regional authorities say water for irrigation is recycled and
insist tourist developments and golf courses create jobs and prosperity.
But Mr Vives said the schemes were having the opposite effect.
"Overdevelopment is happening, and British and German tourists complain
to us about the exploitation of green spaces."
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