Coimbra farmers press for repair of Mondego floodgates collapsed since 2019

The Coimbra farmers' association ADACO has again demanded that the Maria da Mata floodgates on the River Pranto, a Mondego tributary, be rebuilt. Built in 1944, they collapsed in 2019, letting salt water into rice fields. A tender worth about €2m was published in June, but farmers say no work has begun, and no award appears in the public contracts database. The environment agency had promised works this year, to finish in 2027. ADACO also complains that work on the Vale do Pranto supply canal has stopped after a rail-infrastructure injunction, freezing the consolidation of 1,400 hectares and threatening 2027 sowing.