The Government will make 30 million euros available to support investments that enable treated wastewater to be transformed into reusable water, with a co-financing rate that can reach up to 85%, as a response to the challenges posed by water scarcity, announced today.
The funding is part of the Sustainable 2030 program and is intended for municipalities and their associations, the state business sector, the local business sector, municipal, intermunicipal or partnership concessionary companies, from all regions of Mainland Portugal, the Ministries of the Environment and Energy and of the Economy and Territorial Cohesion announced in a press release.
The new Notice for Sustainable Water Management, launched by the thematic program Sustainable 2030, designed to help Portugal face the challenges of the energy and climate transition, aims to “support investments that enable the transformation of treated wastewater into Water for Reuse (ApR).”
According to the ministries, the Notice arose following the policies pursued by the Government “to accelerate investments that strengthen the resilience of territories in the face of water scarcity challenges and of adapting to climate change.”
“The investments necessary to adapt Wastewater Treatment Plants (ETAR) to this new reality, which promotes the circularity of water resources and responds to the scarcity of this resource, can benefit from a maximum co-financing rate of 85%,” they note in a press release.
For the Minister of Economy and Territorial Cohesion, Castro Almeida, “it is crucial to continue investing in the resilience of infrastructures and to ensure that the country becomes more prepared to face the effects of climate change in several domains.”
“[This is] an effort we are making to adapt to the climate changes that have already arrived,” adds the Minister of the Environment and Energy, Maria da Graça Carvalho.
The minister stresses that, once the time for prevention has passed, the decisions the Government is taking “are to protect the populations and the territory immediately.”
The 1st phase of the Notice runs until 20 May 2027, with a 2nd phase planned until 20 September 2027.
All information and application conditions can be consulted at sustentavel2030.gov.pt.
