Ourense, January 15, 2021 The Board of Directors of the Project of Transboundary Cooperation (POCTEP) Raia Termal has celebrated its 5th meeting. During the meeting it has been approached the current situation of the Raia Termal that takes executed more than 60% of the performances so much material (works) as immaterial (management, communication, promotion, marketing and similar) and which has a budget of over 2.6 million euros.

The Spanish partners, José Antonio Quiroga, president of the Miño-Sil Hydrographic Confederation (CHMS), and Plácido Alvarez, vice-president of the Provincial Council of Ourense, were present at the meeting, held by videoconference, and the Portuguese partners, presidents of the municipal chambers of Melgaço and Terras de Bouro, apologized for attending due to urgent issues of management of the pandemic in their municipalities; the members of the project’s Management Committee also attended telematically.

Among the works already completed, it is worth mentioning, in the Bande Council, the rehabilitation of the Casa do Baño and the fitting out of a motorhome area; in Cortegada, the improvement and signalling of the Terras de Cortegada Thermal Route; In Lobios, the construction of a dismountable dam in the Caldo River, necessary works for the solution of the problems of spillage in the area, or the construction of the Thermal Cycle Shop of A Devesa; and in Muiños, the construction of the access to the Beach of O Corgo from O Rañadoiro, the adaptation of the path to the Central de Salas, or the execution of the path to the Illa de Pazos.

In the lusa area, Municipality of Melgaço, the cleaning of the water lines and the rehabilitation of the floodgates of the Termas do Peso river space, the tree recovery of the Parque do Peso, the placement of subway containers for waste, the creation of a fitness park or the rehabilitation of the parking area of the thermal baths; and in Terras de Bouro, the recovery, improvement and conditioning of the bank of the Gerés river as it passes through Vila do Gerés or the demonstration area of aromatic and medicinal plants. Soon to be completed is the construction of a connection footbridge on the river Caldo (Lobios) and the EDAR in the area of O Corgo (Muiños).

Among the immaterial investments it is necessary to highlight the web of the project, the maintenance of the social networks of the same one, the realization of a study in which more interesting tourist products have been defined for the area, and a promotion campaign that is being designed and it will be able to be seen in the next months, that includes a bus English style-office Raia Termal; besides the realization of spots, billboards, the writing of a comic, postcards, etc. We are also working on the purchase of screen-type equipment (some already purchased and others pending), and the design of a marketing platform joint.

As the last point on the agenda, we began to assess a formula for the partners, once the project is completed in September of this year 2021, to commit to monitor the actions implemented, at least for 3 years, although in this case without European funding.