The freguesia of Serra d'El-Rei, in Peniche, is against a project for the extraction of kaolins, known as "China clay", which could occupy almost 60 hectares of land over the next 20 years. Kaolins are the raw material used in the production of ceramics and are obtained through sand washing.
Local authorities, residents and landowners in the region protested against the environmental impact study, making the last days of the public consultation a period of great contestation and agitation in the area.
The project represents a significant change in the local landscape, with the creation of enormous sandpits that will be necessary for the extractive activity over the next two decades.
The current mobilization recalls the contestation that occurred in Ferrel about 50 years ago, when the population also opposed a project of great environmental impact, in this case related to nuclear energy.
