Zero opposes two new Guadiana tributary dams near Alqueva

Environmental association ZERO has called on the Portuguese government to formally commit to building no new dams on tributaries of the Guadiana river, opposing two projects planned by EDIA, the company that manages the Alqueva multi-purpose scheme, near Mértola and Beja. ZERO wants the public tenders for studies on the Terges e Cobres and Carreiras dams suspended immediately, and an independent post-evaluation of Alqueva carried out before any new hydraulic works are approved. EDIA argues the dams would secure ecological flows downstream by storing winter floodwater, but ZERO says this logic is flawed given intermittent flows and worsening drought projections, and blames intensive irrigated agriculture for draining the system.