British tourists with travel plans to the Balearic Islands may be in for a nasty suprise when they arrive at their holiday destination, with several areas experiencing significant water supply issues.
The municipalities of Arta and es Pla in Majorca have been put on pre-drought alert, meanwhile the island of Formentera off of Ibiza is also under special measures.
The local Balearic authorities claim the situation is so desperate that it requires “rigorous monitoring”. They also warned locals and visitors to use water resources responsibility.
The new data shows that water reserves in the Balearic Islands actually went up by three percent from August to 46 percent in September. However, water reserves are still six percent lower than they were last year.
In Arta and es Pla, the new restrictions mean limitations placed on watering gardens, street cleaning, use in fountains and beach showers unless they are connected to desalination plants.
Spanish national officials said that water reservoir levels in the country are due to rise over the next few weeks.
That said, reservoirs in some areas are becoming less full not more. Majorca Daily Bulletin reported on 16 October that the two reservoirs in the Tramuntana Mountains were down to 31.7 percent capacity and 23.8 percent capacity respectively.
Water shortages has been an issue in mainland Spain this year too. In August, Express.co.uk visited Alicante and spoke to environmental campaigners who explained the Amadorio reservoir, found just outside Benidorm, was only 12 percent full.
The Marina Alta region, which is served by the reservoir, saw its residents lose access to running water in some places.
One environmental this website spoke to called for tourism restrictions to be brought in, to reduce the pressure on the water supply.
Jaime Vaello from Xoriguer Ecogical blamed the tourist industry for “the excessive increase in its [water] consumption”. He said the increased consumption was “due to greater population and its use in swimming pools [and] gardens in the countless residential developments in the area.”
