Los Alcázares Mayor speaks out against the proposed reform of the Mar Menor Protection Law

Mario Pérez Cervera says stricter rewards and incentives for good practice should be in place for farmers

Mario Pérez Cervera, the Mayor of Los Alcázares, has added his voice to the many criticizing the plans to reform the Mar Menor Protection Law which are currently under debate in the regional parliament, stating that “if the intention was to help a sector of the economy, the solution would be to simplify procedures and reward those who implement good practice: that would help agriculture”.

At the same time, Sr Pérez Cervera maintained that it is necessary to maintain strict legislation to protect the lagoon, and that this should be the first consideration when contemplating modification to Law 3/2020, which concerns the recovery and protection of the Mar Menor. For this reason, he says, fines and sanctions should not be reduced while work is still being done to aid the recovery of the marine environment: the situation, he believes (along with many others) has not improved enough to relax the restrictions and make punishments for those who break the law more lenient.

At the root of his argument is that support should be shown to farmers who do their job well and respect the environmental regulations (regarding the use of fertilizers and the like), and that these agriculturalists should be rewarded and incentivized.

The proposed reform of the law

One of the most controversial changes proposed concerns farmers and other businesses that have been sanctioned for breaking environmental rules.

Under the current system, certain sanctions can prevent those affected from receiving public subsidies. The proposed reform would allow individual circumstances to be taken into account rather than automatically excluding a sanctioned business from receiving aid. PP spokesperson Joaquín Segado described the change as essentially altering just one word in the legislation.

That may sound like a small technical change, but it’s one of the main reasons environmental groups and many others are so worried.

Critics argue that if businesses can continue receiving public money after being sanctioned, the penalties lose some of their power to deter people from breaking the rules. University of Murcia law professor Eduardo Salazar has also warned that moving sanctions into the general national system could remove some of the specific protections currently provided by the Mar Menor law.

Unfortunately, apart from PP party spokesmen, it is hard to find anyone speaking out in public in support of the proposals.

For more local information in English, including news, what’s on and visiting advice, contact the tourist offices in Los Alcázares (main telephone number 968 575756) or go to the home page of Los Alcázares Today.