Mallorca is fighting drought: drinking water for pools and gardens is prohibited!

Mallorca is fighting drought: drinking water for pools and gardens is prohibited!

Estellencs, Spanien - The Balearic Island of Mallorca is once again faced with a serious lack of water that is reinforced by drought and overuse. Current measures to regulate water consumption have been decided after the water reservoirs have not been sufficiently filled despite a few rainy days in the past few months. The island's water reserves have dropped compared to the previous year, which makes measures urgently necessary. The mayor of Estellecs has prohibited the use of drinking water for filling pools, the irrigation of gardens and the supply of stable animals until the end of summer to protect the existing resources, such as OE24 reported.

Particularly affected by the water shortage are rural areas such as Esporles, Banyalbufar and Bunyola, where around 10,000 inhabitants have already been parked the water. The water supply in Deià and Estellecs suffers significantly during the high season, and Mayor Joan Vives from Banyalbufar has to carry out 17 hours of water shutdowns a day in order to maintain the pressure in the lines. Since May, tankers with water from Palma have been delivered to the affected areas to relieve the worst need. Despite these measures, many criticize that the unequal water supply for locals and tourists leads to social tensions, since hotels and tourist facilities are still prioritized, while the local population suffers from the requirements, such as Costa Nachrichten

causes and challenges

The water shortage in Mallorca is not new. The last big drought was recorded in 2016, and since then the situation has not improved significantly. Tourism has recovered according to the Corona pandemic, but this is often at the expense of water supply, since luxurious tourist offers such as spas and pools are water-intensive. In many areas in the Balearic Islands, over 50% of groundwater deposits are in poor condition, which is due to overuse and contamination. The Balearic Water Management Office has optimistically explained the drinking water supply for the summer as guaranteed, but the burden of record tourism and heat waves remains a major problem, so Mallorca Zeitung .

In Bunyola, there are also many pipe breaks in the line network, which further complicates water supply. Solution approaches include the construction of desalination systems and the repair of brass water pipes, but the necessary investments are high, and the implementation often runs over for many years. Another challenge remains the high water loss in the existing lines, which is up to 26% and can even achieve over 50% in some areas. The enormous costs for the maintenance of the infrastructure pace the local governments with great difficulties.

The administration is put under pressure to ensure a fair and sustainable water supply, while at the same time the tourist interests must be preserved. Measures to promote sustainable tourism and to raise awareness of the population for the water saving should help to get the growing problems under control.