This winter’s rains brought significant relief to the Odeleite and Beliche dams, which had been registered water levels far below normal due to prolonged drought. The increase in accumulated volume reached values that led to the need to perform temporary controlled discharges, which took place this Tuesday, March 18.
Prior to the opening of the floodgates, a warning siren was triggered for four minutes, signaling the beginning of the process. The discharges were closely monitored by the Executive, the Civil Protection, the company Águas do Algarve and the Portuguese Environment Agency, ensuring that the operation was safe.
These discharges play a key role at the environmental and sustainability level, contributing to the cleaning of the streams and the control of the flow. In addition, they are part of strategic planning that aims to increase water retention capacity, preventing any excesses due to rains that can still occur in the coming weeks.
While in Ribeira de Odeleite the containment of discharges is easier to manage, in the river of Beliche there is a natural widening of the flow, requiring extra attention.
For the village of Odeleite, this phenomenon has a doubly positive impact: not only returns life to the landscape, filling the water stream, but also ensures the renewal of water quality, eliminating accumulated sediments and allowing a cleaner and healthier flow.
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