During a working session in Tarifa (Cádiz), Quintana criticized the Ministry of Ecological Transition's response as insufficient and called for greater governmental involvement.
The meeting included the mayor of Tarifa, José Antonio Santos, the territorial delegate for Agriculture, Fisheries, Water, and Rural Development, Francisco Moreno, the territorial delegate for Sustainability and Environment, Oscar Curtido, and national deputies Pedro Gallardo and Miguel Sastre.
Quintana stated that the Government has limited itself to declaring the algae an invasive species and transferring responsibilities to the autonomous communities, despite it being a national problem affecting several regions. She urged the Ministry to convene with the communities and present the issue to the European Union.
She emphasized the importance of adapting and balancing biodiversity with marine economic activity, taking into account proposals from the affected fishing sector and society.
The PP proposes utilizing the algae as an economic resource and has asked the Ministry to advance in this direction, allowing the Junta de Andalucía, through its biomass management plan, to find economic uses for the algae for companies and municipalities.
She advocated for necessary support for the fishing sector, which is primarily suffering from the algae invasion that destroys their gear and limits their activity.
Quintana recalled the PP's initiatives in Congress and the European Parliament, highlighting the work of MEP Carmen Crespo in seeking European funding for municipalities and projects that generate economic benefits.
The PP will present a new proposal in Congress to request greater government involvement in combating the Asian algae and to convey the seriousness of the problem to Brussels.
The objective is to secure funding for waste management by municipalities and aid for companies to develop projects that add value to the invasive algae.
For his part, José Antonio Santos highlighted the severity of the algae problem in Tarifa, lamenting the central government's lack of support and emphasizing the collaboration from the Junta de Andalucía and the Provincial Council.
