Every cruise ship that docks in Palma consumes an average of 628,000 litres of water per mooring, according to a new study by the University of the Balearics, or UIB.
University Researchers have suggested that water monitors be installed to help manage resources in light of the increasing number of cruise ships making stops in Palma.
The Balearic Islands have become one of the leading destinations in the Mediterranean for Cruise Ship Tourism and water consumption has increased substantially over the years.
The growth in the volume of water used in port infrastructures is directly related to the increasingly high number of cruise ships that base their operations in Palma.
A recent study by researchers from the UIB, Lleida and La Rioja, found that each cruise ship based in Palma Port consumes an average of 628,000 litres every time it moors.
The study, which was published in the Scientific Journal, Water, analyses the dynamics of water consumption in Palma Port between 2007 and 2018, and the effect of cruise tourism on water resources.
The data collected shows a seasonal trend in water consumption, with the highest level in high season from May until October when the maximum number of boats and passengers arrive and less consumption during the low season from November until April, but this seasonality is not the same in all Sectors of the port.
The Commercial Sector, which contains the transport of passengers and goods, basically concentrates on the Pelaires wharf and the West dock and is the one that consumes the most water with 380 million litres consumed in 2018.
It's also the one that has a stronger seasonal dependency, unlike the Naval and Recreational Sectors, which have much lower volumes of consumption with fewer differences between seasons.