Activists believe that electric vehicles would provide a cleaner, cheaper and more sustainable option
Several groups of animal rights activists have requested that the Córdoba City Council remove horse-drawn carriages from their streets in favour of more economical, environmentally-friendly and ethical electrical buggies.
According to the groups involved in the proposal, which include the Association of Lawyers of Córdoba for Animal Defence and the Environment ( Damac Juristas ), the Federation of Animal Protection Associations of Córdoba (Fapac) and the Andalucían Collective Against Animal Abuse of Córdoba (Cacma), removing the horse and buggy would save food and veterinary expenses as well as improving the state of the streets as horse faeces and urine would no longer be a problem.
Of course, a major priority of the activists is the safety and well-being of the equines that pull the carriages, who they say are no longer a tourist attraction but rather the subject of numerous videos on social media depicting the suffering of the horses in the sweltering summer months.
The solution put forward by the groups is a cash injection from the European Funds for Sustainable Development for a project involving electric buggies or rickshaws, which would also be attractive to tourists. The new scheme, the associations insist, would not only promote the welfare of animals but would offer an environmentally friendly vehicle that is sustainable and subsidised by the government, which doesn´t cause suffering for the horses forced to pull carriages in sweltering summer conditions.
Image: Archive
Source: Murcia Today