Adif will have to repair the damage done to various aquifers in León during the construction of the Pajares ring road, but there will be no delays and the AVE will arrive in Asturias in November, as promised by the Ministry of Transport. At least that’s the message of the Principality Head yesterday, Adrian Barbon: “They told us from the Ministry that it will not be postponed in any way. If there is even the slightest doubt that there will be a delay, I will be the first to object.”
Thus, the launch of the Variant, which has already accumulated 13 years behind the original estimate (it should have opened in 2010), came out of fear of a new delay. Fear is caused by The order of the Ministry of Ecological Transition published yesterday in the “Official State Gazette” (BOE)Forcing Adif to repair all the damage caused by the destruction of various underground aquifers that supply water to various towns, farms and protected areas of great environmental importance.
The problem arose in 2007, during excavation missions of the Pajares tunnels, when leaks and runoff channels appeared in them much higher than originally planned. Specifically, “unpredictable random drainage” from the Duero river basin (sub-basin of the Bernesga river) to the Cantabrian river basin (sub-basin of the Huerna river) was estimated as follows: An average of 319 liters per second, which is the equivalent of about 10 cubic meters per year.10% more than the maximum capacity of the Alfilorios reservoir, which supplies drinking water to various towns in central Asturias, including Oviedo.
The consequences of these seepages were the lack of resources and streams, some of which are used for human resources, and serious damage to soil, peat bogs, crops, vegetation and protected fauna. The Ministry responded to most of the complainants’ requests, the Lacerta Association and the Leonese Small Local Entities Federation. Therefore, he orders him to conduct extensive research on the damage done to Adif; complete sealing of existing cracks and leaks; Minimize water transfer between Leon and Asturias; and ensuring water supply and compensating those affected.
Complainants estimate that Adif will need to invest 30 million to meet all these demands.plus another 2 million per year to maintain the pumps and rafts that need to be built.