On October 16, Porto district animal welfare commissioner of PAN, Manuela Carneiro, reported the “illegal felling of a palm tree” that housed a stork nest, allegedly to facilitate the construction of a luxury condominium in Valbom, Gondomar.
The case was also reported to the Environmental Protection Brigade (BRIPA) of the PSP, which, in a communication dated October 13, stated that the case has been forwarded to the Gondomar Court.
When questioned by Lusa if the Public Prosecutor’s Office was investigating the matter, the court confirmed that “the facts are under investigation.”
The complaint was filed on October 3, with the party acknowledging that the “alleged environmental crime occurred at Rua Dr. Joaquim Manuel Costa, no. 1330, in Valbom, Gondomar (…), involving a stork nest in use.”
Carneiro explained to Lusa that storks nest in Portugal from March to October, suggesting that when the palm tree at Fonte Pedrinha was felled, the birds might still have been occupying it.
In the report submitted to BRIPA, Carneiro stated that “the intervention seems aimed at building a condominium, without public consultation or appropriate authorization for cutting vegetation with protected species or in wildlife habitats,” invoking Article 278 of the Penal Code (damage against nature and environment) to emphasize that “felling a tree with an active nest of a protected species could constitute a crime.”
In the same communication, Carneiro also noted that the “Birds Directive (2009/147/EC) mandates the protection of wild bird nests, prohibiting their deliberate destruction.”
In response to Lusa’s request for clarification on October 16, the Gondomar City Council stated that “no application for the felling of the palm tree in question was submitted to the City Council,” clarifying that “the felling of palm trees on private property does not require prior authorization from the Gondomar City Council, as it is not a protected species.”
The municipality also mentioned they are “unaware of the specific circumstances of the mentioned intervention.”
On the same day, Lusa sought a response from the Nature and Forest Conservation Institute but received no reply.
