considers it necessary to drastically reduce fertilization in the entire Mar Menor basin in the short term, in order not only not to continue to increase the contamination of the Quaternary aquifer or the Mar Menor, but also to reduce it
A report by the Directorate General of the Mar Menor on the occasion of the Specific Action Program for the area vulnerable to nitrate contamination in Campo de Cartagena proposes to reduce fertilization in the Mar Menor basin.
The aforementioned General Management believes that “adequate compliance with the provisions of art
Article 48.2 of Law 3/2020″ in reference to the draft program of action for zones vulnerable to nitrate contamination in Campo de Cartagena.
According to the aforementioned article “the action program of the Zone Vulnerable to Nitrate Contamination in Campo de Cartagena will include, at least, the measures indicated in Annex 2 of Royal Decree 261/1996 of February 16.” , on the protection of water against contamination produced by nitrates of agricultural origin, as well as the measures that should be incorporated in the Code of Good Agricultural Practices of the Region of Murcia”, facts which in the opinion of the general management are not reflected in the rubber.
We recall that “we must not forget the urgent need to reduce the use of nitrogenous fertilizers and the storage of livestock manure in the Mar Menor basin”.
“Nor should we forget the urgency of lowering the level of the Quaternary aquifer by reducing the volumes of irrigation applied, so that its waters do not come into contact with any contaminants existing in the surface layers of the soil” , which clearly seems to indicate an interest in lower the water used for irrigation in the area.
Copy and paste the Code of Good Agricultural Practices
The directorate-general also criticizes that “the agricultural measures included in Annex I of the draft decree are practically a copy of the code of good agricultural practices of the Region of Murcia included in Annex V of Law 1/2018, of February 7, of measures urgent steps to ensure environmental sustainability around the Mar Menor”, which does not foresee any more ambitious alternative to combat nitrate pollution.
«Regarding what the Program of Action of the Zone Vulnerable to Nitrate Contamination of Campo de Cartagena should be (Annex II of the draft Order), what is included is an almost literal transcript of Chapter V and Section 1 of the Chapter VI of Law 3/202”, criticism.
In summary, the report highlights that «the Decree should be more ambitious and that both annexes should conform more to the form of a “programme”, including targets for the reduction of pollutants, specific concrete measures and deadlines for achieving these targets. Although it is called “Program”, it does not include any programming itself.
The General Management recognizes a manifest lack of real interest in solving the problem of nitrates
“Most of the measures contained in the Ordinance”, explains the report, “are measures that should be applied in a generic way at present for all agricultural and livestock farms, in order to avoid water pollution, not only in those affected by nitrate contamination”.
And he concludes by stating that “there are no truly demanding measures for those farms located in vulnerable areas, where the problems are already evident and need to be resolved urgently, especially in the Mar Menor basin. Nor are more specific measures being proposed for the Mar Menor environment than those already included in other previous provisions.
He proposes to reduce the amount of nitrogenous fertilizers per hectare and per year
For the environment of the Mar Menor, the Directorate General “proposes that, during the 4 years of validity of the Program for the Campo de Cartagena, specific objectives are set for the progressive and effective reduction”.
In particular, it is indicated that “the consumption of nitrogenous fertilizers on farms in the catchment area” must be reduced, currently at 170 kg per hectare and year, “by progressively reducing the application limits of nitrogenous fertilizers below this level throughout the hip bone”. .
He explains this proposal by indicating that “this limit should be further lowered in the area around the Mar Menor, since, despite the fact that this area has been declared a zone vulnerable to nitrate pollution since 2001, and despite compliance with the said regulation, the state of the mass water table and sea mass has not improved, quite the contrary, so it is very probable that this limit is currently insufficient.
Furthermore, he deems it appropriate to reduce “the volume of manure stored on farms in the catchment area” and to prohibit “the stacking/storage of manure and slurry in alluvial areas”.
Contamination of the groundwater closely linked to excess irrigation water supplies
“Since the leaching of nitrates into the subsoil is closely linked to excessive irrigation water supplies, it is necessary to include measures to reduce excess irrigation in the Mar Menor environment and also to change production systems towards dryland plantations or hydroponic crops , particularly in zone 1 of the Mar Menor basin, as well as in those areas where the water table is shallower,” he proposes.
Urges to promote “the implementation of cultivation techniques that favor the fixation of atmospheric nitrogen in the soil, in such a way that these techniques progressively replace the application of nitrogenous fertilizers (for example, rotation with leguminous crops or the use of plant varieties mycorrhizae).
The regional government has been aware of these proposals since at least 2021
The report detailed in this article is dated at the end of 2021, so the regional government had more than enough time to carry out initiatives to improve the state of the salt lagoon, contaminated by nitrates from farms surrounding the Mar Minor.
Despite the requests of the General Management, none of them have been taken into account in the draft Order which was published on December 19 in the BORM, and which is in the period of public display for 45 working days so that it can be modified.
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