Lleida’s Urgell Canal irrigation community says the canal’s full modernisation cannot be completed unless funding is found for equipment on individual farms.
The group says asking each farmer to pay for that equipment would be too costly for many holdings, and could leave some farmers unable to take part in the upgrade.
Officials say modernising the Urgell Canal is both necessary and a chance to improve irrigation in the area, but they stress that the work must be done in a way that does not exclude farmers because of the price of on-farm infrastructure.
The community argues that a viable modernisation plan has to deal with these financial barriers as part of the project, not after it. Without that support, it says, the wider scheme faces major obstacles.
Discussions are expected to continue on how to secure the funding needed. The outcome will affect the future of irrigation for many agricultural businesses in the region. For more local coverage, see our news page.
