Marta Guerreiro reveals that 24 million Euros will be directed to sustainable development policies
The Regional Secretary for Energy, Environment and Tourism, announced in Horta that 24 million Euros will be allocated under the Regional Plan for 2017 to improve sustainability, use of resources and territorial networks in a concerted action with three areas under the administration of this Secretariat; the latter was created in the XII Government of the Azores.
Speaking at the Legislative Assembly, Marta Guerreiro stressed that this investment "is a demonstration that the respect for environmental issues, combined with energy as a key sector for an even sustainable development, is a priority for the Regional Government."
In the field of environment, highlighted the commitment to safeguarding biodiversity through conservation measures of the endemic species and combating invasive alien species and the preservation of water resources, with the River Basin Management Plan which runs until 2021 and the review, already underway, of Plans Planning of some of the river basins, among them, the Seven Cities and Furnas.
"We have not forgotten the importance of maintaining a proper waste management as a fundamental axis of the development strategy, along with the increase of effective environmental citizenship," said Marta Guerreiro. The government official highlighted the data released this week demonstrates that the recycling of packaging waste from selective collection reached 54.7 kilograms per capita in the Azores, well above the national average of 31 kilograms per capita in 2016.
Marta Guerreiro announced the conclusion of the Regional Plan for Climate Change by the end of this year, noting that, in the energy sector, the Regional Government will award priority status to the increase of energy efficiency, the promotion of electric mobility and the integration renewable energy.
"We intend to leverage the Azores, in the context of island spaces, as a true Living Lab full of innovative solutions in a national and European context," stressed the government official.
The Regional Secretary added that "the MOB(in)Azores project will developed in order to promote the adoption of electric mobility in land transport, with incentives to the purchase of electric vehicles and the installation of charging stations in public place with different tariffs over time to encourage users to charge their vehicles during off peak periods."
With regard to tourism, "the Plan and Budget for 2017 provides a public investment of 26 million Euros to foster economic growth and employment through this sector, which is already a driving force in wealth generation in the Region," said the government official.
According to Marta Guerreiro, the Government will focus on the improvement of the quality of the destination by consolidating a tourism offer based on the active nature, hydrotherapy and the promotion of an integrated vision on the trail use regarding the practice of several tourist entertainment activities on land.
"The training component will be a priority, particularly with regard with initial training, strengthening of skills of works in the sector and the retraining of workers," said Mara Guerreiro, who also announced the end of the revision of POTRAA (tourism plan) as a tool that allows to analyse the tourism offer in its various forms.
The largest share of investment will be directed to the promotion of regional products with the aim of enhancing the external projection of the Azores as a Nature destination of Excellence, highlighting the characteristics of sustainability, environmental and landscape of the archipelago.
"Therefore, we defend that the development of tourism in the Azores necessarily requires a unique offer in terms of nature-related activities in harmony with energy sustainability. It should be developed in a concerted strategy towards the safeguarding of natural resources and the promotion of tourism activity in the archipelago of the Azores as a nature destination," stressed the Regional Secretary.