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article_detailDate Published: 26/05/2020ARCHIVED ARTICLEARCHIVED - Cartagena council closes off beaches in Los Urrutias and Punta Brava
The council itself is preparing to launch legal suits against the central and regional governments for inaction
This week beaches throughout the Region of Murcia have re-opened for bathing, and although the majority of the beaches within the Cartagena municipality require little more than a final top-dressing to bring them to a sufficient level for use, the problems in the area of Punta Brava, El Carmolí, Los Urrutias, Estrella de Mar and Los Nietos have prompted the council to cordon off several bathing areas and prepare legal documentation in an effort to force both the regional and national governments to stop arguing about who is responsible for what and take action to do something about the disgraceful state of the beaches in this corner of the Mar Menor.On Tuesday municipal operatives cordoned off stretches of beach in Los Urrutias and Punta Brava which are considered to be “not suitable for bathing” due to the accumulation of mud, silt, algae, foam and the “insupportable odour” of rotting vegetation, according to the residents’ association who described the situation as “shameful”.The situation of who has competency for what in the Mar Menor is complicated; the regional government, CHS, local council and national government all have different responsibilities and for a long time have been passing the buck from one to another, attempting to avoid spending their own budgets and apportioning responsibility onto one another. Part of the long-term problems facing the Mar Menor is this inability to agree upon the allocation of responsibilities and enforce it, as the sums of money required run into many millions of euros. CLICK HERE for a detailed background document explaining the complex issues behind the current situationIn an attempt to gain some common consensus from the councils which surround the Mar Menor (San Pedro del Pinatar, San Javier, Los Alcázares and Cartagena) which come from a variety of political persuasions (PP, PSOE and the complicated situation of the Mayoress of Cartagena who was PSOE but was kicked out of the party for pacting with the PP after the last election) these councils have joined with the regional government and other bodies to create a Mar Menor Commission, which seeks to establish common ground and share responsibilities to try and resolve the long-term problems faced by the lagoon.Cartagena City Council itself has begun a legal process called “un requerimiento por inactividad” which translates loosely as “a request for inactivity” and is a document produced prior to seeking legal recourse to oblige an administrative body to comply with its obligations. In this case the council intends to try and force both the regional government and the national government via the costas department (Demarcación de Costas del Estado) to fulfil their obligations to the residents of the municipality and remove both the sludge and accumulated organic materials as well as the dried mud from the southern beaches of the Mar Menor, as currently bathing in these areas is impossible and unsanitary.The council maintains that both the wet and dry materials should have been removed during the winter months to minimize the impact on the environment and guarantee cleanliness of the waters during the forthcoming summer months.“These elements have been left in the water, aggravating the situation of the beaches, while a debate on the competencies between the regional and national administrations is ongoing. The council of Cartagena intends to end this by submitting a requirement to both parties which could conclude in a lawsuit against the person responsible and with a probable recourse to the Ombudsman,” said Noelia Arroyo, vice mayoress and head of the Mar Menor municipal commission."Although the Ley de Costas (the law governing coastal competences) gives responsibility to the national Government for the protection and regeneration of beaches, the debate on responsibilities has served only to justify inaction and this has to end because serious damage is being caused to Cartagena," she said. “Cartagena has opted to support a common initiative bringing together the municipalities and other administrations, with the appointment of a High Commissioner and the collaboration between all of us, sharing the work to look after the Mar Menor. The central national Government is reluctant to join in with this shared front and instead of cooperation we suffer conflicts of competence that lead to situations like this, "she stated.On Sunday associations representing the residents of Punta Brava, El Carmolí, Los Urrutias, Estrella de Mar and Los Nietos sent a letter to the highest representative of the Spanish national government in the Murcia Region, the Government Delegate, requesting an urgent meeting to discuss the problems facing their beaches.The representative of the regional government with responsibility for the Mar Menor is the director general of the Mar Menor of the Ministry of Water, Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and the Environment, Miriam Pérez, who reiterated on Sunday that the central government is "the only competent administration for the removal of dry and mud in the Mar Menor, and which can prevent the stagnation of water and the decomposition of algae ».This, she says, is defined in Title VI of Law 22/1988, of July 28, relating to coastal management, which clarifies the distribution of powers in matters of maritime-terrestrial public domain, and which highlights that the State must undertake any actions at sea and inland waters, as well as for the regeneration and recovery of beaches.She reiterated that the regional government has prepared a number of scientific studies and offered practical solutions to the national Ministry, but maintains that the regional government has done everything within its own competency to resolve the situation. The regional government participated in a meeting last Thursday with representatives from the associations of neighbours in the affected areas as well as scientific advisors which was not attended by the national Government.So for the moment, the council has closed the worst affected beaches from the public.Images: Ayto-CartagenaJoin the Mar Menor group on Facebook for info about Los Alcázares, San Javier, San Pedro del Pinatar, Torre Pacheco, La Unión and Cartagena and keep up to date with all the latest news and events in the Mar Menor: https://www.facebook.com/groups/MarMenorNewsAndEvents/
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