“Partial satisfaction”: this is the comment from Agrinsieme Sicily, the coordination that unites Confagricoltura, Cia and Copagriafter the meeting yesterday with the president of the Sicilian Region, Renato Schifani and the dgeneral manager, Dario Cartabellottaat Palazzo d’Orleans in Palermo, to discuss measures to manage the drought emergency in agriculture.
The main news was the announcement of the allocation of 10 million euros for fodder, which will be paid out via vouchers starting from the farmers who operate in the areas most affected by the drought.
“Agrinsieme had proposed that these sums be paid directly to the companies, but notes that the choice of the voucher by the government is dictated by reasons of speed. An allocation, in any case, which is believed to represent only a first down payment, absolutely insufficient for the livestock companies that are fighting for survival, for which a further financial allocation has been requested”.
Agrinsieme Sicilia believes that a broader and more structured plan is needed to address the water emergency, starting from the adoption of all those measures that have been proposed by Confagricoltura, Cia, and Copagri in all the institutional tables on the crisis.
Agrinsieme Sicilia urged president Schifani on expensive fuel and on the issuing of the various decrees that have been announced on the drought emergency, in particular the one on the construction of wells, lakes and desalination plants. Furthermore, he requested the deletion of the files of Reclamation consortia of the latest years, the delimitation of damage for arable crops, the exemption from the conditionality criteria for CAP premiums.
“There is no time to lose. Sicilian agriculture is in danger of certain death if action is not taken with the utmost speed and across the board. And it is clear that more needs to be done”added Agrinsieme.
