News, October, 2005

Hurricane Vince may be just in time to save cuts in domestic water supplies

What happened to the swimming pool? /EFE

18th October The hydrological year, ending 30th September, saw the lowest rainfall since records began but hurricane Vince has changed the scenario. Average rainfall this past week was 44.1 Litres per sqm (18 inches), which is 3 times th average for this time of year. But highest rainfall came on the coast itself, where the water rushes straight off into the sea. So, will it's effects last? This week saw a rise of 0.3% in water reserves. (c.f. More News for data from the 25th.)

Even with average rainfall through the coming months, caution will need to be maintained to build up reserves for next summer. Let us hope that Vince is the start of a better than average rainy season.

Earlier this year, the environment minister, Cristina Narbona has called on all to conserve water, after winter rainfall (November to March) was at its lowest since 1947. Levels in the reservoirs, at the end of the hydrological year (end September), could only guarantee supplies to homes in some parts for a few weeks. And she fears that this may be the first in a series of dry years. One significant storm will be insufficient to change the overall panorama.

Water supplies in the Tagus valley, July 2005 (MMA)

In some regions, such as dry Murcia and the Costa Blanca, water levels remain very depressed. Water reserves in the Segura basin are just 10.7%, those in the Jucar even worse at 9.1% Malaga has 13.6% and Zaragoza just 13.7% October. 60,000 jobs in agriculture are threatened in Murcia alone, while Andalucia, Murcia and Madrid have introduced bans on the use of water for gardens, pools and even agriculture. Catalonia's imminent ban may have been halted by Vince. For more information Go More News.

Madrid's Water supply! (EFE)

The 1947 drought and several dry years at the start of the 1950s brought severe famine to much of Spain, in part relieved by the Marshall Plan. How Spain has changed in these 58 years! Few have yet had taps dry, although that may well change in the coming months and reservoirs have allowed Spain's top money earner, agriculture, to continue production. Again, in the coming weeks, agriculture will have the taps turned off: reservoir water will be piped only for domestic use in many areas.

Water Highway ditched

14th June. The governments of Valencia and Murcia, regions most affected by the drought and beloved of British and European tourists, have declared today that they are willing to pay the full amount needed to build a 'water highway' to bring Pyrenean water from the Ebro basin to the south east coast. A national plan approved by the previous government was shelved last year as uneconomic and unlikely to bring the desired results: when drought hits the south east, the north east is equally hit, even if it still has more water.

Sources: El Mundo, TVE, etc..