Spanish mayor goes on hunger strike after town's water supply dries up

The mayor of Valle de Abdalajís, Victor Castillo, went on a hunger strike after the town's water supply dried up for the 8th year in a row.

Castillo is furious that damage to the town's aquifers by the train company, Adif, has not not been repaired and overcome.

The water supply was damaged in 2005 when the construction of a tunnel for the AVE train from Cordoba to Malaga hit the town’s main aquifer.  But while Adif agreed to promised to repair the damage and compensate the town, some clauses have been ignored.

Castillo's protest only lasted one day, however, after the infrastructure group stepped in promising to at least pay to have water brought to the town through the summer months. 

Every year since the damage was done, the small town of  2,800 people has to pay hundreds of thousands of euros to bring water in by truck.  In 2012 alone, it cost €380,000 to bring in enough potable water for the residents.

“We are a small town and our reserves simply cannot support these costs,” insisted the mayor.

“This year, I was not prepared to let it happen again.”

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Spanish mayor volunteers for second job as music school caretaker

Rafael García Guerrero is the socialist mayor of Noia in the A Coruña province of Galicia. The caretaker of the local music school resigned, so Guerrero is giving up his evenings to do the man's job, with no pay.

Due to the latest government rules and austerity measures, Guerrero is unable to replace the caretaker at the music school. 

 

The previous incumbent resigned at the end of the 2011-2012 school year, and Guerrero felt he had to do something about the problem.

 

"The situation came about because we are forbidden from hiring anyone else," the mayor of Noia explained to the media.

 

The ban on replacing staff is part of the recent austerity cuts which have seen budgets of local authorities across Spain slashed.

 

"Now, whenever a municipal worker resigns, or someone goes on leave, we have to fill the post any way we can," said Guerrero. "The thing is, we have the money. We just can't spend it." he added.This in a country with a 25 percent unemployment rate.

And so, to give the children's parents some peace of mind, he spends a few hours at the school daily.

 

"I spend three hours a day at the school," Guerrero told The Local on Thursday, explaining that he works from 5pm to 8pm each evening. 

 

"My main role is just to be there and supervise the children between classes," he added. "I don't mind doing it," he said. "The kids play their instruments well and it's quite pleasant." 

 

But the PSOE mayor did add that the situation in Noia shows that "the current system isn't working."

 

He did tell ABC.es that he will have a short vacation soon. "Now I have a vacation because the school year ends."

 

"But it's all a bit contradictory," lamented the mayor, reiterating the fact that his local government could easily afford the caretaker, if only he was allowed to employ one.

 

Noia is a historic, coastal town, located around 40 kilometers from the city of Santiago de Compostela.

 

 

To the source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/352155