Back at the end of February I blogged (here) on the news that, after a long-running legal battle, a Portuguese developer received a custodial sentence and a hefty fine for trashing a protected wetland. It was great news for the environment (and one of the most-read posts on the Saving Special Places blog!).
There's a sequel - in part two of the court case, the developer has now been made to restore the lost habitat.
I'll let A Rocha, the organisation that led the campaign, tell the story in its own words:
In a historic decision for Portuguese environmental law, the owners of Quinta da Rocha which lies at the heart of the Alvor estuary in the Algarve have been ordered to completely restore the habitats that were destroyed in a series of illegal actions between 2005 and 2010. The damage to the Ria de Alvor wetlands, which form part of a Natura 2000 site between Portimão and Lagos, continued despite repeated complaints and an official injunction. The Ria de Alvor is one of the most important wetlands in southern Portugal, noted for its threatened habitats and rare plants as well as significant populations of resident and migratory shorebirds.
Tiago Branco, National Director of A Rocha, the Christian conservation organization that led the coalition of six national NGO’s that brought the court action against the owners, Butwell Trading Associates and Investments, said:
“This was a case that looked as though it would end like so many others in Portugal when protected areas have been destroyed. After the habitats are ruined, and a nominal fine has been paid, the way is opened for multi-million euro developments on land that has been purchased very cheaply, precisely because it was not available previously for development. But an effective antidote exists and finally the law has applied it – the owners are obliged to restore the habitats to their original condition. In this case the owners are completely forbidden to undertake any work on the protected habitats for ten years, allowing the wetlands to recover.”