Figueres has implemented a system to reduce water pressure in the Firal area and in just one week it has managed to reduce consumption in this sector by 7.4%.
The measure affects the neighborhoods of Marca de l’Ham, Vilatenim and Palol, which concentrate approximately 15% of the city’s population around an industrial and commercial area.
The manager of Fisersa, Lluís Martínez, says that the desire is to extend it to other parts of the city. “In the situation we are in, there are no longer neutral measures,” highlights Martínez. The next step will be a pilot test of active pressure control that will allow patterns to be established in different time sections. The aim is to increase the reduction during the night when consumption is lower.
Last week, the City Council implemented the measure announced at the end of the year. The valve, located in the Clos de Fires, allows the water pressure to be reduced in this area of ??the city, which brings together 15% of the population and allows data to be obtained to later extend the measure to other points. The system has allowed the pressure to be reduced by 38% and has gone from 6 kg/cm2 to 3.7 kg/cm2
In just a few days of application, consumption has been reduced by 7.4%, going from 946 cubic meters/day to 875. Martínez says that the data is positive and that now they want to take another step to “further refine ” “.
For this reason, they will launch a pilot test with active pressure control. To do this, a piloted actuator will be installed on the valve that will allow deciding at what times the reduction is intensified. The intention is to do it from 12 at night until 6 in the morning, when consumption tends to be lower and, if it is recorded, it is usually attributed to leaks.
The system will also serve to regulate pressures in the event that restrictions must be tightened later. In this sense, Martínez highlights that citizens will “notice” the reduction in pressure and remembers that the city is in phase 2 of emergency. “From now on, all the actions we do will no longer be neutral, people will notice them,” he insists.
On the other hand, the Councilor for the Environment and advisor of Fisersa, Núria Bartrolich, called for the “responsibility” of citizens.
Within the framework of World Water Day, he asked that “in an act of generosity, we try to reduce consumption as much as possible.” “Whether at home, in professional activities or in leisure time,” she said.
During the event, Martínez also explained that the delivery of water from the Figueres Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) to the Vilanova de la Muga lock is already underway.
In this section, a pipeline is being built that will allow the use of the healthy water discharged into the natural environment from the Figueres stream to the lock. This will increase the flow of the Muga River and generate water to supply the Castelló d’Empúries water treatment plant.
At the same time, the 8.5 kilometer pipeline is being built from Figueres to Pont de Molins that will transport healthy water from the treatment plant to improve the flow of the river and supply wells and mines. These resources will allow Figueres to be supplied as an alternative to the water that comes from the Darnius-Boadella reservoir, currently at only 11% of its capacity.
