Support to the municipality of Avis to rebuild a bridge destroyed by floods

Subject: Support to the municipality of Avis to rebuild a bridge destroyed by floods

During a recent visit to Avis, in the district of Portalegre, I observed how the bridge linking Figueira e Barros to National Highway No 243 and Sousel had been destroyed following the damage to access roads near the bridge deck on both banks of the river during the floods that took place in mid- December.

Restoring this road link of importance for various localities is costly, thus necessitating the rapid mobilisation of financial resources that the municipality does not have. This operation is complicated from a technical perspective yet necessary for the region.

It has not yet been confirmed that any funds have been mobilised to rebuild this transport link, of importance not only for the mobility of the population but also for the economy and public health, since as long as it is unusable vehicles must make a detour of several dozen kilometres.

In view of the above:

1. What EU aid has been mobilised to date for the purposes of swiftly restoring this bridge?

2. What resources can be mobilised for this purpose?

Submitted: 10.2.2023

Answer given by Ms Ferreira on behalf of the European Commission

(22 March 2023)

1. When it comes to Cohesion policy funds, which work under shared management, Member States select the projects to be financed. According to information received from the Portuguese authorities, traffic and safety on national roads and railway routes will be financed through the national budget.

2. The EU Solidarity Fund (EUSF) is the Union’s emergency instrument for natural disasters. However, the EUSF can only be activated within 12 weeks of the first damage occurred, demonstrating that the total direct damage is, in case of a major natural disaster, either at over EUR 3 billion, in 2011 prices, or it exceeds either 0.6% of the gross national income or, in case of a regional natural disaster, 1.5% of the gross domestic product of the affected regions.

EUSF may cover a part of the costs for emergency and recovery operations incurred by public authorities (1). Private damage is not eligible. The amount of the EUSF support depends on the total direct damage and the limits of the financial resources available for the EUSF. So far, Portugal has not requested the EUSF assistance.

1 ∙ ⸱ Resolução do Conselho de Ministros n.° 12-B/2023, de 6 de fevereiro | DRE : https://dre.pt/dre/detalhe/resolucao-conselho-ministros/12-b-2023-207114479 | | ( | | )