The president of the Provincial Council of Ciudad Real, Miguel Ángel Valverde, has called for the implementation of a broad state and regional agreement on water with the aim of safeguarding the future of agricultural activity in the province.
He delivered this message during his remarks at the Forum on Agriculture, Economy and Culture to transform the territory, held at the Cooperativa Virgen de las Viñas de Tomelloso and organized by El Español de Castilla-La Mancha.
Valverde emphasized that, as highlighted during the event, without agriculture the province would lose its viability. He explained that the countryside contributes around 20 percent of the province’s GDP and supports other economic sectors such as trade, hospitality, or professional services.
"In the end everything is connected, and we are not really aware of the importance that agriculture has," he said. In this regard, he recalled that the mechanization of the countryside in the 1950s and 1960s led to the exodus of tens of thousands of residents from the municipalities of Ciudad Real, and he referred to a "historic debt" that the country has with the rural environment. He argued that in towns "you can live well" and that agriculture can be the main source of income to make that possible.
The provincial president highlighted the transformation of the agricultural sector in recent decades, with much more efficient use of water thanks to technology, mechanization, and new computer tools. However, he warned that agricultural income does not grow at the same rate as production costs and he stressed that it is not reasonable to keep demanding more sacrifices from countryside professionals: "The moment has come for others also to make efforts."
Valverde pointed out clearly the scarcity of water resources as the main obstacle: "If we don’t have water, we don’t have agriculture, or livestock farming, or agro-food industry." He added that the province cannot plan to live on something other than what has always supported its economy and that, while this problem is not addressed, the rest of the demands will be relegated.
In relation to the Water Framework Directive, he has recalled the risk that, starting in 2027, immediate cuts in water availability will come into force derived from the hydrological planning of the river basins. In his view, this scenario is due to the fact that "the work has not been done before." He has admitted that the allegations presented by town councils, administrations and farmers are essential, but he has pointed out that, on their own, they are not enough if they are not resolved favorably.
For this reason, he has raised the need to reach a major national and regional agreement on water, which is to be concretized in a letter of commitments in which the State, the autonomous community and the river basin authorities undertake to recover water resources and to guarantee their sustainability, both environmental and economic.
Valverde has regretted that it seems that the only focus of the water conflict in the region is the Tajo-Segura transfer, when Castilla-La Mancha has seven hydrographic basins and "there are many problems in many basins, particularly in the Guadiana basin". In response, he has called for allocating resources to the recharge of aquifers, to the reuse of water, to its retention whenever possible while respecting ecological flows, and to the interconnection of resources between territories. "I am convinced that there is water for everyone," he has assured, and he has asked for a plan agreed by a large majority of territories in Spain, according to what the Provincial Council has reported in a press release.
A single position toward the European Union
The president of the Provincial Council has pointed out that it is for the European Union and the river basin authorities to decide on a possible extension of the directive, and he has called for Spanish institutions to act with a single criterion. "Let’s not be swayed, let’s not request the extension from one place and from another not," he has demanded, considering that the lack of unity confuses the main affected parties, the farmers of the province.
He has also insisted on the need to convey to Brussels that the agriculture of Spain, Italy and the rest of the Mediterranean countries is very different from that of the states in Northern Europe, so that water availability and limitations cannot be identical. All of this, he added, must be accompanied by technology, infrastructure and investment to deal with an “undeniable” climate change. The Provincial Council, he has assured, will continue to demand solutions and the financial resources necessary to carry them out.
Finally, Valverde has highlighted the role of wine as an emblematic product of the countryside of Ciudad Real. He has indicated that the wine-making sector accounts for between 5 and 10% of the provincial GDP and has reiterated the institution’s support for the wine fair held in the province, with the goal of ensuring that it continues to be the most relevant event for Spanish wine.
The president has stressed that, thanks to the joint work with the sector, Ciudad Real has consolidated itself as the most exporting province in Spain in terms of business volume. “This is the path: unity, but also investment,” he pointed out, both in resources for producers and in promotional actions. He concluded that the province is culture, closely linked to the agricultural sector, and that its future must continue to be founded on this activity.