ARCHIVED - Central government delegate defends the response to flooding in Los Alcázares and problems of the Mar Menor

José Vélez asks for patience on the part of the residents of Los Alcázares and other Mar Menor towns

José Vélez, the new central government delegate to the Region of Murcia, visited Los Alcázares on the inland coast of the Mar Menor this Wednesday and defended the government’s action and policies relating to both the damage suffered during the “gota fría” storms of September and December last year and the need to restore the marine environment of the Mar Menor.

In one way Sr Vélez was not stepping into hostile territory, in that he and the Mayor of Los Alcázares, Mario Pérez Cervera, are political allies within the PSOE party, but at the same time he is of course well aware of the sense of frustration among the residents at what they perceive as the lengthy delays in funding the repairs needed after the episodes of severe flooding, and in creating infrastructures to reduce the risk of similar disasters in the future and to protect the marine environment of the Mar Menor.

For this reason, he was at pains to stress that “the government of Spain is working conscientiously”, explaining that although the aim is to proceed as quickly as possible it is important to ensure that the job is done properly. He also reiterated the view that the effects of Storm Gloria were not severe enough to warrant further subsidies apart from those already announced following the major storm last September.

In the meantime, he underlined that in Los Alcázares various infrastructures such as seafront walks and beach accesses have already been repaired along with the electricity supply lines on the Paseo de la Concha, while in the municipality of Cartagena similar work has been completed in Punta Brava, Los Urrutias, Los Nietos, Playa Paraíso, Playa Honda, Camping Caravaning, Lengua de Vaca and Cabo de Palos. Repairs have also been effected, he added, in the Paseo del Atalayón in San Javier, in La Manga del Mar Menor and in San Pedro del Pinatar, and he insisted that the national government is the only administration to have supplied financial aid to the area immediately after what has been described as the heaviest storm in Murcia for 50 years, providing over 4 million euros for work on beaches, seafronts and other infrastructure.

In relation to the Mar Menor, the central government delegate maintains that delays in implementing measures to protect and regenerate the marine environment are due not only to procedures in Madrid taking time to complete but also to continuing inaction on the part of the regional government in Murcia – specifically, he says that in order for action to be taken to prevent runoff water reaching the sea via the Rambla del Albujón authorization has to be granted by the Murcia government.

Sr Vélez also promised that authorization will be given to install the long-awaited bathing stations along the inland shore of the lagoon as soon as possible, although on this issue the residents are already planning another protest as completion of the jetties was first promised in late 2018.

The regional government, meanwhile, continues to blame the national government for much of the delay in resolving the problems faced by the lagoon.

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