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6.. 5 ...4... 3... over the border!!!!
6.. 5 ...4... 3... over the border!!!!
this from SUR news website over the border in Spain
General News
Four of Malaga’s six reservoirs are down to less than one month’s supply
Manuel Becerra
The Guadalhorce and La Viñuela contain 80 per cent of the province’s water reserves
The Axarquía reservoir and the desalination plant will make sure the supply is maintained
Combine the driest year in the last decade with a summer of maximum water consumption due to the avalanche of tourists and agricultural irrigation. The result is not hard to imagine: the Costa del Sol is milking its water reserves dry. Altogether the six reservoirs in the province of Malaga are currently at just 30 per cent of their total capacity. And things are getting worse: in less than a month’s time four of them (El Limonero, La Concepción, Guadalteba and Conde del Guadalhorce) will be technically empty, with more mud than usable water.
In fact El Limonero is already in this situation. It still has 2.7 cubic hectometres of water which amounts to 11 per cent of its total capacity, but according to the Andalusian water board (the CMA), a reservoir is considered useless when levels fall below three cubic hectometres.
The Guadalteba reservoir, whose reserves have been fundamental this summer for supplying homes and farms, is also down to its last few drops. Currently at 5.4 per cent of its total capacity, the reservoir has just 8.4 cubic hectometres, when just three months ago it contained 34 hm3.
Among the Junta de Andalucía’s immediate plans to combat the drought, two measures affect the Guadalteba reservoir and the other two in the group that collects water from the rivers Turón and Guadalhorce. The first came into effect on Monday when agricultural irrigation with the mains water supply in the Guadalhorce Valley was banned.
The idea is to mix the remaining reserves in the group of three reservoirs (Guadalteba, Guadalhorce and Conde de Guadalhorce) and take the resulting supply to the plant in El Atabal, Malaga, for treatment. Without this the salinity levels of the water would be too high for consumption. Nevertheless the Conde de Guadalhorce reservoir will also be empty by the beginning of autumn.
In a similar situation is La Concepción reservoir between Marbella and Istán, now at less than 20 per cent of its total capacity with just 11.2 cubic hectometres.
One of the solutions to maintain the water supply in the area has been to finally bring the desalination plant in Marbella into action. The plant is now producing 450 litres of drinking water per second.
The Marbella plant, built amidst great controversy in 1995, and La Viñuela reservoir in the Axarquía have become the Costa del Sol’s water insurance policy. La Viñuela contains 122.3 of the total of 192.2 cubic hectometres still available in the province.
Shortages all over Spain
Agencies
The situation in Spain as a whole is not really much more optimistic, despite the recent storms in Cataluña which had little effect on water reserves. Reservoirs are at 40.7 per cent of their total capacity, when the figure this time last year was 59.3 per cent and the average over the last decade 51.8 per cent.
“It would take 15 consecutive days of torrential rain to relieve the drought situation”, said a spokesperson of the water authority in Cataluña, where reserves are down to below 30 per cent. Meanwhile further south in the Segura basin reserves are at only ten per cent.
General News
Four of Malaga’s six reservoirs are down to less than one month’s supply
Manuel Becerra
The Guadalhorce and La Viñuela contain 80 per cent of the province’s water reserves
The Axarquía reservoir and the desalination plant will make sure the supply is maintained
Combine the driest year in the last decade with a summer of maximum water consumption due to the avalanche of tourists and agricultural irrigation. The result is not hard to imagine: the Costa del Sol is milking its water reserves dry. Altogether the six reservoirs in the province of Malaga are currently at just 30 per cent of their total capacity. And things are getting worse: in less than a month’s time four of them (El Limonero, La Concepción, Guadalteba and Conde del Guadalhorce) will be technically empty, with more mud than usable water.
In fact El Limonero is already in this situation. It still has 2.7 cubic hectometres of water which amounts to 11 per cent of its total capacity, but according to the Andalusian water board (the CMA), a reservoir is considered useless when levels fall below three cubic hectometres.
The Guadalteba reservoir, whose reserves have been fundamental this summer for supplying homes and farms, is also down to its last few drops. Currently at 5.4 per cent of its total capacity, the reservoir has just 8.4 cubic hectometres, when just three months ago it contained 34 hm3.
Among the Junta de Andalucía’s immediate plans to combat the drought, two measures affect the Guadalteba reservoir and the other two in the group that collects water from the rivers Turón and Guadalhorce. The first came into effect on Monday when agricultural irrigation with the mains water supply in the Guadalhorce Valley was banned.
The idea is to mix the remaining reserves in the group of three reservoirs (Guadalteba, Guadalhorce and Conde de Guadalhorce) and take the resulting supply to the plant in El Atabal, Malaga, for treatment. Without this the salinity levels of the water would be too high for consumption. Nevertheless the Conde de Guadalhorce reservoir will also be empty by the beginning of autumn.
In a similar situation is La Concepción reservoir between Marbella and Istán, now at less than 20 per cent of its total capacity with just 11.2 cubic hectometres.
One of the solutions to maintain the water supply in the area has been to finally bring the desalination plant in Marbella into action. The plant is now producing 450 litres of drinking water per second.
The Marbella plant, built amidst great controversy in 1995, and La Viñuela reservoir in the Axarquía have become the Costa del Sol’s water insurance policy. La Viñuela contains 122.3 of the total of 192.2 cubic hectometres still available in the province.
Shortages all over Spain
Agencies
The situation in Spain as a whole is not really much more optimistic, despite the recent storms in Cataluña which had little effect on water reserves. Reservoirs are at 40.7 per cent of their total capacity, when the figure this time last year was 59.3 per cent and the average over the last decade 51.8 per cent.
“It would take 15 consecutive days of torrential rain to relieve the drought situation”, said a spokesperson of the water authority in Cataluña, where reserves are down to below 30 per cent. Meanwhile further south in the Segura basin reserves are at only ten per cent.