“We are very pleased that, within the scope of this cross-border agreement, the 30 hectometres for water intake in Pomarão have been validated, as foreseen in the Water Efficiency Plan”, António Miguel Pina told Lusa agency.

The agreements for water management of flows in the Guadiana and Tagus between the governments of Portugal and Spain were formalised during the 35th Luso-Spanish Summit, which took place in Faro.

Asked whether the minimum monthly flow for the Guadiana River in the Pomarão section will be sufficient to reinforce and maintain part of the water resources in the Algarve, António Miguel Pina claimed to have no technical knowledge that would allow him to make an assessment.

“This is an important measure that allows for a significant reinforcement of our water sources, as we had already foreseen in the Water Efficiency Plan for the Algarve within the scope of the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR)”, he highlighted.

According to the president of the association of municipalities in the district of Faro, which makes up the 16 municipalities in the Algarve, “it is another project that is almost ready to come to fruition”.

“We just need to launch the work, as well as the desalination plant and, with these two, we have a significant reinforcement of our water sources”, pointed out the mayor of Olhão.

For the mayor, even so, “it is necessary to assess whether these new sources associated with the reduction of losses and reuse are sufficient, in a very unknown scenario, due to climate change”.

The understanding between the two countries provides for a commitment to a daily flow in the Tagus and a monthly flow regime in the Guadiana River, in the Pomarão section, to guarantee the good condition of the estuary and the equitable distribution of flows available for use by both States.

The Joint Declaration of the 35th Portuguese-Spanish Summit says that the agreement “concerning the guiding principles for the establishment of a daily flow rate on the Tagus River, from the [Spanish] Cedilho dam” aims to “maintain circulating flows”.

The joint statement also confirms the agreements already announced to regularize abstractions in Alqueva by farmers from both countries, under which Spanish users will start paying Portugal for the water withdrawn, with the same conditions imposed on the Portuguese side.