Desalination plants halved

THE Balearic government has called on the Environment ministry of the central government in Madrid, to press ahead and award contracts for the construction of four new desalination plants, already mapped out for the Balearics during the term of office of the previous Madrid Administration. The Socialist minister in Madrid, Cristina Narbona, has meanwhile offered the ruling government team in the Balearics under Jaume Matas, the control and management of only two plants. Speaking at a Press conference yesterday, her counterpart in the Balearics, Jaume Font, stressed how crucial the desalination plants are for providing enough water to residents and tourists on the Islands without excessively exploiting the underground aquifers. Font made it clear that the objective of not making too many demands on the limited underground water tables is part of regional government political strategy. The previous conservative central government had agreed to the construction of desalination plants in the Majorcan municipalities of Alcudia (budgetted at 62 million eurs) and Andratx (52.6 million); Santa Eulalia in Ibiza (43 million) and Ciudadela on Minorca (41 million). The present Administration is, however, only offering Alcudia and Santa Eulalia and is asking the Balearic government to furthermore participate in the financing of the two projects. Font said he remained convinced that the senior staff at the central government Environment ministry were completely in tune with the views of the Balearic Administration in terms of the urgent need for the desalination plants. However, he explained, “they (central government) have economic problems in being able to fund all of the major changes in the National Water Plan”, together with the new investments they will be making on the Mediterranean coastline. Font reported that since July, he had held various meetings with senior staff in Narbona's ministry to ask them to proceed with the award of contract for the desalination plants agreed to by the previous central government. The final offer, however, remained at only two desalination plants instead of the original four. Not satisfied, the Balearic government have called on central government to fulfil their commitments. Font said he doubted that the Madrid Administration had even yet applied for 170 million euros of European funding which was to have been put towards the total cost of the four desalination plants, 200 million euros.