Justice resolves a preventive measure for Lake San Roque

Yesterday, March 30, 2023, the Court admitted the precautionary measure requested within the framework of the environmental protection presented last November. The Chamber resolves to partially grant the measure and orders the province of Córdoba to “Plan for Sanitation of Lake San Roque and Sustainable Development” within a period of 60 business days.

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Background of the case:

In the month of November, Fundeps presented a collective environmental protection action before the Córdoba justice system requesting urgent and definitive measures to be taken regarding the serious situation that the Lake San Roque basin is going through.

The Administrative Litigation Chamber 3A Nomination, on 12/12/2022, summoned all the defendants (the municipalities and communes that make up the basin and the Province of Córdoba), and stated:

“That it is public knowledge of the delicate situation in which the San Roque Lake basin finds itself, whose degradation has been going on for a long time; worsening year after year, with pollution peaks in the summer periods (effect of high temperatures and lack of precipitation, among other causes); all of which is periodically made visible by the different provincial or local journalistic media that graphically portray the state of the water mirror that supplies a large part of the provincial population.

Given this, it summoned the province of Córdoba – through the competent areas or agencies – so that within a period of 15 judicial business days they report, among other issues, whether the Sustainable Development Committee of the Basin is current and operational. of Lake San Roque, if there is a sanitation plan, a Strategic Plan for Sewage Sanitation Works in the area and also requested the Legislative Branch of the Province to inform if there are bills related to the sanitation of the Lake San Roque Basin .

Among the responses provided by the Province, the Chamber highlights that the “Sustainable Development Committee of the San Roque Lake Basin” is not in operation, created by Law 7773, and that there is effectively no Sanitation Plan, but rather isolated measures are adopted from the different departments.

Resolution of the Chamber on the requested precautionary measure:

In this context, the Court, through Order Number 33, in its resolution yesterday considers that, as we had stated in the lawsuit, the remediation of the basin is not possible without a plan that, based on the diagnosis of the current situation, define means and mechanisms to achieve sanitation and sustainable management.

Thus the Chamber resolves, making use of the broad faculties and powers it has in this type of process where collective interests are at stake, to partially grant the requested precautionary measure and order within a period of sixty (60) business days. to the Province of Córdoba the preparation of the project of a “Sanitation Plan for Lake San Roque and Sustainable Development”.

Its main objective will be the sanitation of Lake San Roque associated with the sustainable development of its basin, and must contain, among various requirements:

A. Actions aimed at achieving the objective, with express mention of fire prevention, and the impact of anthropogenic activities in the basin, the territorial planning of the Basin as appropriate to each municipality or commune;

B. goals;

C. methodology;

D. deadlines with milestones with partial stages with times and measures;

E. proposal of different alternatives for the solution of the identified problems and their possible causes, in addition the Chamber requires that these alternatives must be considered in terms of their acceptability, effectiveness, efficiency and quality; The selection of the alternatives taken to solve the different aspects of the problem must be adequately justified;

F. definition of mitigation and remediation measures;

G. Audit systems;

H. among others.

The Plan must be prepared jointly by the Secretariat of Water Resources, the Secretariat of Public Services, the Secretariat of the Environment, the Provincial Administration of Water Resources, with the special participation in said task of the INA-CIRSA.

At Fundeps, we feel very optimistic about this resolution, appropriate and timely regarding the serious water crisis that we are experiencing and particularly the critical situation of the San Roque Lake basin. We consider that this is also an important precedent in environmental judicial matters, and a hopeful resolution for the group of people who defend the environment in the province of Córdoba.

More information

Presentamos un amparo ambiental por la contaminación del lago San Roque

Diagnóstico Situacional de los Recursos Hídricos de Córdoba: Río Suquía 

Diagnóstico Situacional de los Recursos Hídricos de Córdoba: Lago Los Molinos y Dique San Roque 

 

Autors

María Laura Carrizo Morales

Ananda Lavayen

Contacto

lauracarrizo@fundeps.org

 

*Photo taken from the digital newspaper El Independiente