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Council scraps Mar Menor rainwater project over land access row
Cartagena forced to give back nearly €1.8 million in EU funding after being blocked from using private land
A rainwater collection project planned by Cartagena City Council for the Mar Menor area has been abandoned after officials were unable to gain access to privately owned land.The initiative, which had secured almost €1.8 million in European Union funding through the Biodiversity Foundation, was intended to improve drainage in Mar de Cristal, Islas Menores and Los Nietos. It was meant to complement work already underway on the Carrasquilla ravine. However, speaking on Tuesday April 16, Councillor for Infrastructure Diego Ortega confirmed the scheme would not go ahead.
“The owners have refused to grant access, and the land is not expropriable under urban planning regulations,” he explained. Without the necessary land, the council has no choice but to return the full €1,799,907 subsidy.
The council had already received a 70 percent advance payment, which had been deposited in the municipal coffers. An additional €619,968 had been set aside in the 2025 budget as the council’s own contribution, but this money will now be released and returned to the local treasury. The decision to cancel the project and approve the refund is expected to be formalised by the Local Government Board today.
Despite the setback, Ortega insisted the council remains committed to environmental restoration around the Mar Menor. He said the technical groundwork already completed would be used for future projects.
However, the move has drawn criticism from opposition party MC. Their spokesperson Jesús Giménez Gallo commented, “In just a few months, Arroyo was boasting about millions in subsidies to save the Mar Menor, for green corridors and nature-based solutions. Now the Governing Council has been called to force PP and Vox to scrap their flagship project and lose the state aid that funded it.”
Image: Ayuntamiento de Cartagena
