The water issue will be what paralyzes Altri

Dear readers,

We write on this occasion to tell you how the sessions of November 12 and 14, which we dedicated to the second element that we address in Os contos do leite, water, were developed and what fruits they yielded.

The relevance of this element in the current context in the Ulloa is enormous, because the macrocellulose that Altri intends to install in the heart of Galicia would consume 46 million liters of water per day, equivalent to the consumption of the entire province of Lugo. In addition, 30 million liters of water would be poured into the Ulla, with all the implications this would have for the health of the ecosystems, the inhabitants of the Ulla basin and the food production projects linked to the territory. With all this in mind we carried out the mediation sessions in November.

STORIES OUT LOUD. WATER

We held the Tales aloud session on the element of water in the fishermen's shelter located next to the ruins of the Frádegas spa. We wanted to think about the types of uses that were and are being made of rivers and water.

For this session, Luis, one of the participants, had suggested that everyone bring water from the source closest to their home or from a source they liked, so we all arrived with our own water to do a kind of tasting at the end of the session.

In the dark, lit by candles, we were talking about the river as an element that unites diverse territories and in relation to this we shared a story, Bridge/Puente, Francis Alÿs, 2006, with which the artist uses a performance in the sea to talk about the geopolitical issues that mark the relations between Cuba and the U.S. This piece seemed very powerful and planted a first seed to start thinking about how to work with the Ulla River.

We also share the piece Under Discussion, Allora & Calzadilla, 2005, with which the artists talk about Vieques, an island in Puerto Rico that was a training camp for the U.S. Army and thus became a sacrifice zone. The images inevitably make us think of an undesirable future for Ulloa.

We then move on to an exercise to reflect on the elements that we linked in the past to the river and water: we talk about a mill that belonged to Natalia's grandfather and she recovered it; about the collective water management carried out on Mount Cumbraos, where there are three water taps that can only be opened at the same time, to ensure that no one person collects too much water for himself; we remember the thermal baths and how in the past the washing places were spaces for socializing... Coming to the present day, we bring to the table the issue of pressure on aquifers in areas suffering from drought, in different places where water is privatized or, on the contrary, understood as a common good, we talk about the movements of climate migrants and those that will occur more and more frequently. We thus arrive at the time of the future: we speak of the possibility of a future where bioregions are very important for the management of life.

We return to the idea of the Ulla as an affective territory to claim. Could we use this idea for the mini party on December 15? Vanesa shares with us an application that allows us to see which streams and rivers a drop of water falling in a specific place would run through. We thought about the option of making an action that highlights the entire route that the river takes. We imagine, laughing, a trout with a camera that makes eyes for all of them.

The time comes to end the session, but not before toasting with each of the waters we have brought:

Water from the spring of the Frádegas spa, with an aftertaste of sulfur, from Adri and Alex,

clink, clink!

Water from the source of O Picho, of which it is said that there is a geolocated story in the project “Arquitecturas de la Memoria”, brought by the Anas,

clink, clink!

Water from the fountain of Cumbraos, of Marta, which is from the same stream as that of do Picho, but when it arrives at Cumbraos,

clink, clink!

Water from the Albá spring, brought by Luis, who says that on one occasion 6 or 7 young women from the village died and there was some doubt as to whether they had died because of the water. Now, yes,

Cheers!

DOING OUT LOUD. WATER

For this session, we decided to get to know the source of the Ulla river. We will do it with Horacio García, the geographer who located it and also in charge of elaborating the evaluation of the hydrological impact that Altri's macrocellulose would have in the report published by the Consello da Cultura Galega (Galician Culture Council). We were also accompanied by Omar Arellano, a biologist colleague of Horacio's who has worked a lot on the contamination of several rivers in Mexico.

We met up in Olveda, after traveling along some very beautiful roads. We talked about all the legends about where the Ulla river began. One of them said that it started right there, in Chousa da Poteira. It is right there, but it is not exactly there. Horacio is surprised that now, some years after the publication of his study, the source of the Ulla is already known.

We walk through the area with our borders on, the sun is about to set.

On the sign that indicates the source of the river there is a sticker that says Altri Non. We are in friendly territory. When we arrive, Horacio tells us how he did the study and tells us where the river is born: right under a canoe. Immediately there is a line to put a hand in the water source. Natalia puts her whole arm in. “Keep going lower!”, she says. Marta feels like screaming when she feels the cold water gushing.

With a blackboard that he always carries up, Horacio explains the impact that the implementation of macrocellulose would have on the river. He tells us how Altri's data are based on the best averages that can be collected, without taking into account, for example, critical summer months to talk about the river flow. According to him, the issue of water is what will stop Altri's project because they can't get the figures. “Calquera pode contrastar os datos en aberto do informe do Consello da Cultura Galega e no saen as contas. If I were the official who has to make the evaluation I would not dare to sign Altri's proposal”, he assures.

We finish the session thinking about how to take the river to the demonstration in Santiago. How can we make present the water, its importance and its way of connecting territories? We thought about taking milk jugs full of water from different stretches of the river; about taking a long blue tea, about dressing up as a river and as a mountain, about taking blue streams... We will keep on working on it.