As the Bulletin reported over the weekend, Deya council has suspended the water supply in some areas of the municipality from this Monday morning to deal with the persistent drought and increased demand linked to the rise in population and tourism during the summer months. The measure is temporary and will affect the La Residencia hotel and the urban areas of s’Empeltada, ses Coves de can Puigserver, la Cala, Llucalcari - including the Costa d’Or hotel - and scattered areas in the non-urban area of the road to Soller on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
According to a statement issued by the council, the suspension begins today and will last until sufficient water is available to guarantee service. At present, the council has indicated that the municipality’s total weekly consumption is 3,300 cubic metres, of which 37% is delivered by truck. The Llucalcari sector, for example, is consuming 200 cubic metres per day and its large consumers use around 30 cubic metres per day, which is why the decision to apply cuts has been taken.
The council has justified this decision on the basis of the municipal water supply and sanitation regulations and deeply regrets that this situation has arisen. Since 1 July, Deya has been cutting off the supply to anyone who uses water abusively. And Palma is getting concerned about its water supply.
The reservoirs that supply Palma have less water than a year ago, and in the last week alone there has been a drop of 1.73 percentage points. They are at 37.13% capacity, while a week ago they were at 38.86%. The situation was slightly better than in the last week of July 2024, as on 29 July last year the combined capacity was 38.1%. In the case of the Gorg Blau reservoir, on 28 July it was at 31.6% of its capacity, while a week earlier it was at 33.51%; a year earlier, the fill rate was 34.94%.
Cúber is slightly better than a year ago. On 28 July, it was at 45.88% of its capacity and on 29 July 2024 at 43.09%. However, it has fallen by 1.46 points in the last week, as on 21 July it was at 47.34% of its capacity. Will there be restrictions? Given this situation, it is worth asking whether there will be water restrictions in Palma. The president of the water board Emaya, Llorenç Bauzá, says that ‘the records updated this week show that the data are similar to those of other summers, so there is absolutely no cause for alarm regarding the level of water resources in Palma.’
However, he admits that ‘it is true that, as happens every year, the data for the summer months are worse than those for the winter, given that rainfall is lower and the population increases as it coincides with the time of year when Palma receives the most visitors. However, this is a recurring pattern, with little variation compared to other summer periods’.
Bauzá said that ‘on behalf of Emaya, the message we want to convey to the population is that there is no reason to raise the alarm regarding the water resources situation, which, as is usual every year, will tend to improve as we move into the autumn months.’ Despite this message of reassurance, he calls for prudence in water consumption and urges residents and tourists to practise ‘responsible water consumption, taking care not to waste such a precious and valuable resource.’