Municipalities ‘displeased’ with lithium mining process

The Côa Regional Development Association expressed “total solidarity” on Monday with the municipalities that have risen up against the lithium exploration and prospection process and was “displeased” with the way it has been conducted.

The association said in a statement sent to Lusa that the meeting of the board of directors held on Friday in Vilar Formoso “decided to publicly express total solidarity with the municipalities in the region that have protested against the current model and the way it has been adopted in the process of exploration and prospection of lithium” in the region.

“As the tender for granting rights to companies to move forward with work on the ground is about to begin, it is the understanding of the association’s management bodies and members that confronting the real risks and measures to combat them is urgent, as is strengthening dialogue and cooperation between the agents of the territory and the ministry of environment,” the statement said.

The association considered that the moment “calls for urgent clarifications and unity in defence” of the territories and is therefore “absolutely bound to defend the interests and environmental protection of its region of influence.

The association was also “clearly unhappy with the way this whole process has been conducted, which, if it maintains its current contours, will economically harm the landowners where the exploration can be confirmed as profitable, will also make public and private investment unviable and may incur real risks in the well-being and quality of life of local populations.

The association “reinforces the appeal for dialogue to be resumed, positions and interventions in the territory to be clarified, ensuring the safeguard of the interests of local populations and the very economic activity that it may generate.

The municipalities of Almeida, Mêda, Pinhel, Sabugal, Trancoso (district of Guarda) and Penamacor (Castelo Branco) are associated with Territórios do Côa.

The councils of Almeida (António José Machado), Pinhel (Rui Ventura) and Mêda (João Mourato) are part of the Board of Directors of the association – which recently moved its headquarters from the town of Almeida to Vilar Formoso.

The ministry of environment announced on February 2 that the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) in areas with potential for the existence of lithium allowed for research and prospection in six zones, proposing in these places a reduction of the initial area by half.

Municipalities and environmental associations have contested the decision to proceed with the prospection.