The Superior Court of Justice of Aragon has admitted for processing the contentious administrative appeal filed by GEPEC to force the Hydrographic Confederation of the Ebro to review the water concession from the Siurana River to the Riudecanyes reservoir. The procedure brings a conflict affecting El Priorat and Baix Camp back to the courts.
The environmental organization questions that a concession set under different hydrological conditions remains in force and asks that the Siurana be declared incapable of supporting the current flow of 4,000 liters per second. The tension of the case is there. The river maintains a historical cession while it is discussed whether its current state allows it to sustain it.
GEPEC asks to review a concession of 4,000 liters per second
In its lawsuit, GEPEC demands that the Confederació Hidrogràfica de l'Ebre review the private water concession granted to the Comunitat de Regants del Pantà de Riudecanyes. The entity maintains that the flow diverted from the Siurana no longer fits the river's real capacity.
The appeal also requests that the river basin authority guarantee the conservation status of the riverine habitats. The petition is not limited to the distribution of water for irrigation, but also incorporates the impact on the ecosystem linked to the course of the Siurana.
GEPEC took the matter to court after several previous requests went unanswered. The complaint was filed following the administrative silence of the Ebro Hydrographic Confederation.
The lawsuit claims the river can no longer withstand the conditions set a century ago
Andreu Escolà, representative of GEPEC, and Meritxell Cotrina, lawyer for the environmental defense fund, frame the lawsuit within a change of context that, in their opinion, forces a review of the authorization. Both link the challenge to initial conditions that they consider outdated.
"The conditions from 100 years ago are not adequate for right now" - Andreu Escolà, GEPEC, and Meritxell Cotrina, lawyer for the environmental defense fund
The admission for processing by the Superior Court of Justice of Aragon does not yet resolve the merits of the litigation, but it opens the judicial review of the action of the Hydrographic Confederation of the Ebro. The core of the appeal is to determine whether the concession that diverts water from the Siurana to Riudecanyes should be modified.
The lawsuit filed by GEPEC expressly asks that the concession of 4,000 liters per second be reviewed and that the Hydrographic Confederation of the Ebro guarantee the conservation of the habitats in the river's surroundings.