Plan to ‘ turn catastrophe into an opportunity’
Investment will prepare area for future storms
THE PLAN Vega Renhace to regenerate the Vega Baja area in the wake of last year’s flooding disaster will be allocated € 100 million in next year’s regional budget.
This was announced in Almoradí by Valencia government president Ximo Puig, who also revealed they will apply for € 400 million of EU reconstruction funding for projects in the area.
The plan was drawn up from a process of ‘ reflection and participation’, he said, to establish 28 specific areas of intervention and set out strategies and roadmaps to tackle short, medium and longterm needs.
This is in addition to the € 100 million the regional government has invested so far and to repair flood damage and help affected people, ‘ 93% of whose claims have been resolved’, as well as aid to councils and restoring schools and medical centres.
The overall strategy of the plan will be coordinated from the Vega Renhace office to be set up in the area.
There will also be a conference for mayors, institutions and civil society to analyse and evaluate the plan, ‘ which will be updated continually’.
Before the presentation, Sr Puig and seven of his councillors visited the ‘ ground zero’ of the floods, where the River Segura burst its banks.
The plan is designed to turn this catastrophe into an opportunity for economic and social regeneration, while at the same time promoting environmentally respectful development of land, preparing for future storms and improving communications with the rest of the region.
It has been designed taking public opinion into account and will involve ‘ the necessary publicprivate collaboration’, he said.
A principal objective is to make the area a centre for research and to promote sustainability, particularly regarding water resources, by setting up a consortium for the European centre of excellence for sustainable water technology ( Wetsus).
Modernisation of infrastructure will be carried out according to the reconsidered relationship with the land established in the recent territorial action plan ( PAT) for the Vega Baja, and how the area becomes connected to the Mediterranean Corridor goods and passenger network.
The president also emphasised his determination to find a solution for the CV95 OrihuelaTorrevieja road, which has needed widening for decades. A study to find an alternative route that would not cause environmental problems is being put out to tender, he noted.
The plan to invigorate and govern tourism in the Vega Baja is intended to consolidate attractive and sustainable offers that are evenly distributed, competitive and targeted, ‘ without forgetting residential tourism’.
Furthermore, setting up a ‘ digital district’ hub in the area for tech companies will drive innovation, he assured.
“Sustainability, growth, digitalisation and technological innovation are terms that will come to define the Vega Baja,” concluded Sr Puig.
Orihuela chamber of commerce president Mario Martínez said: “We think it is a very complete project and could be very beneficial to advance and develop our area in all aspects.”