A breakdown of Lanzarote IV, one of the island’s desalination plants, left 17 towns without domestic water supply on Saturday, September 28. The incident affected several locations on the island, including Ye, Orzola, Mala and San Bartolome as well as popular tourist hotspots such as Teguise.
The water service Canal Gestion reminded residents and businesses that they are required to have water reserves to last at least 48 hours in case of such emergencies.
Frequent water shortages have caused frustrations, particularly in the north of the island, where lack of water is a recurring issue.
The problems are exacerbated by a longstanding challenge of ageing infrastructure that results in over 55 percent of water being lost through leaks in the network.
The latest incident highlights the ongoing difficulties Lanzarote faces with water distribution and the urgent need for system upgrades.
The issue is also compounded by the fact that the Canary Islands have been experiencing a prolonged drought lasting over a decade. This is coupled with over 24 months of unusually high temperatures, sometimes exceeding the average by 3C. The drought has not been alleviated by the meagre winter rainfall.
According to Spain’s AEMET weather forecaster, May was the driest period ever since records began.
Spain’s tourist regions, including the Canaries, the Balearics and Andalusia have been the hardest hit, but there have been calls for the holidaymaking industry to reduce its consumption.
Dante Maschio, a spokesperson for Catalan citizens’ association Aigua es Vida, said the tourist sector should drastically cut back on its water use. He told DW: “Measures taken so far to reduce water consumption in the tourist industry have been very limited. The sector enjoys a great deal of freedom.”
In Malaga, reservoir levels have dropped below 100 cubic hectometres, with restrictions on refilling swimming pools and fountains as well as on watering gardens and golf courses being implemented.
The Junta de Andalucia’s drought committee is said to be considering lowering the current allocation of 200 litres per inhabitant per day, according to SUR.The provision is not the daily consumption of a typical family – this is much lower, normally 130 litres.
In times of an emergency such as this, Maschio said, water hungry industries should be forced to shut down.
He said: “We don’t just face a lack of rainfall.”
