Groundwater as emergency exits in the face of drought for municipalities, especially small municipalities, farmers, property owners and even companies. With dozens of towns already in the hands of tanker trucks and many farms unable to irrigate, prospecting and drilling of new wells proliferates in Catalonia.
The need, which when it comes to lack of water to drink or irrigate is almost despair, has given rise to the controversial figure of the dowser, linked in the rural world to the search for wells, in parallel with the scientifically based knowledge of hydrogeologists and companies engaged in the collection of groundwater.
“We suffer from dowsers, we are placed on the same level, but it is not scientific or verifiable; his is a subjective and arbitrary sensation. They have done many misfortunes, a lot of public money has been wasted, â€says the hydrogeology company that is advising the City Council of l’Espluga de FrancolÃ.
With supply cuts at night and dependence on tanker trucks since last summer, in l’Espluga, when a first diagnosis is finished, they will decide if new wells can be drilled. “There are groundwater investigation processes that can last three years.”
Meanwhile, the cell phone of Pere Sanromà , well-known zahorà from Vespella de Gaià (Tarragonès), keeps ringing. At 76 years old, he says that he has helped to locate “hundreds” of wells, more than 50 for municipalities, and quotes La Vanguardia in a vineyard estate near Sant Jaume dels Domenys (Baix Penedès).
“It’s a super well, it’s exciting,” says Magà Pallarès, smiling, the owner of some young vineyards that he feared he wouldn’t be able to irrigate. Next to him, Sanromà happily shows the generous stream of water that comes out of the ground thanks to a well 50 meters deep.
Right now they are carrying out the gauging and the first data shows a capacity of 18,000 liters per hour. The analyzes of the water are good and the owners of the farm are determined to carry out the investment, which will exceed 30,000 euros.
The perforation is carried out by a company from Castellón, Aquasond. “We are giving a date for the end of August. We have never experienced anything like itâ€, says Manel Sancho, its founder. Half a century making wells. “Hydrogeologists or dowsers? I am not going to answer, they would be angry with each otherâ€.
“With dowsers, it’s like with God, you either believe or you don’t,” repeats Sanromà , who says that he charges between 200 and 300 euros per well. Not far away, in Masllorenç (Baix Penedès), its mayor, Joan Miró, explains that with the help of a dowser, coincidentally Sanromà , they have located a vein of water located between 250 and 300 meters deep. “If there is enough water we will have a much better summer. The situation is dramaticâ€, explains the mayor of a town (570 residents) that has depended on tanker trucks since summer.
In Masllorenç, permits have already been processed by the Catalan Water Agency (ACA), with jurisdiction over a public resource such as groundwater, whether on public or private property. A company, with the support of a technician, will execute the well. “It’s scary, let’s see if we’re lucky and there’s water,” prays the mayor.
The proliferation of wells and the overexploitation of aquifers worries experts. “We cannot pull from the vein, it is a water that is also finiteâ€, warns Albert Soler, dean of the Faculty of Earth Sciences (UB). Many wells have dried up after more than two years without significant rain, so drilling is being done deeper.
Soler also warns of the importance of drilling the wells with hydrogeologists and accredited companies. “If you go looking for the deepest aquifer and cross other aquifers contaminated by nitrates, for example, you can contaminate everything,” warns the dean. Another danger is overexploiting aquifers on the coastline, which generates the intrusion of seawater and says goodbye to the resource.
“When I hear the word dowser, my hair stands on end; they find water because they know where to look. It has no scientific basis, zero, but experience. It is a contempt for a resource as precious as waterâ€, adds Soler.
