Residents Committee Minutes 18 March 2009

There were over 40 people at Casa Brito in Porto Carvalhoso at 7.30 pm when the meeting commenced – a mix of Portuguese and non-Portuguese who were threatened with a devaluation of their properties, and possible but unproven health risks as a result of government-backed REN proposal to site high-tension cables close to, and even over, their homes.

The meeting opened with a presentation in Portuguese and English of the REN proposal, using maps to show exactly where the cables would be sited. This was the first time many people had been told exactly where the cables would be. It was then explained that the government had chosen to completely ignore the residents public petition with 853 signatures, 165 individual formal environmental objections and even the submission made by Sta. Catarina Junta. There was not even an acknowledgment in the official “public consultation “report, and the reason why the government had decided to back the lines had not been disclosed to residents. The report did state that the chosen route affected the least people, when census data backed by the president of the local Junta showed this to be untrue. It was however the shortest and the cheapest route. The public consultation had been a sham, and the lack of communication by Sta. Catarina Junta, Tavira Câmera and the Government had been shameful.

There followed a lively discussion about what should be the next steps. Despite the belated invitation to a meeting with a Tavira Councilor next week, it was decided to press on with arrangements for protests in Lisbon, with the support of other, national protest groups. Some of the Portuguese residents in attendance said that many local Portuguese home-owners were still in the dark about REN’s proposals and the government’s decision and it was therefore decided that a 2nd information meeting should be planned for next week.

Plans for a wind-farm close to houses in Água de Tábuas were not as advanced as the plans for the high tension cables and it was decided to leave discussion to another occasion. Background briefing documents about the accelerating and unregulated growth in wind-farm installations in Portugal in general, and the Algarve in particular, were distributed to those directly affected.