The village of Mata da Rainha, in Fundão, has been supplied with water since August by a water tanker truck, confirmed the president of the Union of Parishes of Vale de Prazeres and Mata da Rainha.
Paulo Afonso Boavida said to the Lusa agency that the water supply to the village “was interrupted in August, following a rupture in the supply pipeline,” a problem he found when he took office.
Technicians from Águas do Vale do Tejo (AdVT), a company of the Águas de Portugal (AdP) group that also manages bulk water supply in this municipality in the district of Castelo Branco, identified that the rupture in the pipeline is at a point located in Pedrógão de São Pedro, in the municipality of Penamacor.
It was not repaired immediately because the landowners do not allow entry of the technicians, arguing that “it is private property” and that the pipeline was placed there “without their knowledge.”
It is this dispute, being settled between the owners and the company, that has left the population at the mercy of supplies via the tanker truck, a cost borne by AdP.
Paulo Afonso Boavida knows that this payment is correct, but wants to know who pays for the damages caused to the sidewalk of the access street to the reservoir, whether AdP or Aquafundalia – Águas do Fundão, which guarantees distribution at low pressure (up to the domestic meters), or even the municipality.
“The sidewalk, with the frequent passage of these heavy vehicles, is damaged, a damage that has also extended to a private wall,” he reiterates to Lusa.
Another issue the mayor points out is “the lack of maintenance of the reservoir itself. In addition to a thorough cleaning that is needed, the reservoir presents several cracks, which cause water losses.”
To Lusa, AdP explains that “AdVT has always guaranteed and will continue to guarantee the water supply service in quantity and quality to the population, with the formalization of an agreement with the landowners to allow conditions for repairing the pipeline.”
Regarding the reservoir, “the same does not belong to AdVT, so its maintenance is the responsibility of another entity,” but “with regard to the road, without prejudice to it being technically prepared for heavy vehicle traffic, AdVT will restore its conditions.”
Miguel Gavinhos, president of the Fundão City Hall, recalls that “the cut in public water supply to Mata da Rainha was detected when the municipality was being ravaged by the great Piódão fire, but the priority was to immediately contact AdVT to ensure that the population would not be left without water at the tap,” which, according to the mayor, “was fulfilled.”
As for the dispute, he stresses that “this litigation has brought many losses, not only the cost of transporting water to the reservoir, but also the amount of water that is lost with this situation,” hoping that the issue will be resolved soon, reiterating that “the owner will be seeking compensation to allow entry for the technicians and it is from that agreement that everything depends.”
The municipality awaits that everything returns to normal to “proceed with the sanitization of the reservoir and also repair the fissures,” this action being within its competence.
