Private desalination plants are blessed. Any new resources are welcome. The Catalan Government will allow the private sectors to install private mobile desalination plants, an option that has been studied for some time. The Administration agrees to facilitate the installation of private desalination plants on the condition that the measure serves its promoters to maintain jobs and economic activity.
Desalination plants can be water in May in the current phase of emergency in which it is forbidden to fill swimming pools and even refill them. The initial intention is that these water factories will be used to fill the swimming pools of hotels that can do so, although it is not ruled out that other sectors could also promote the construction of these desalination plants.
They are private installations, but the Government opens the door so that, if there are surpluses of water, they can be shared with the local supply network. “If they want to share the desalination plants with the councils, they can certainly do it”, summarized Josep Vidal, secretary general of the Department of Climate Action, Food and Rural Agenda.
The great presentation letter of the private desalination plants is that this solution does not take resources from the public network, but is an extra contribution, highlighted Vidal. There would also be the option of projects promoted by several companies. The promoters must present, in any case, in their projects, the details on how they plan to manage the saline waste (brine).
The Catalan Government admits that the authorization of desalination plants will entail a certain (“logical”) disadvantage for hotels and sectors that are far from the coast. The ability to install these plants will depend on the economic potential of the promoters.
“We will allow desalination facilities for the different economic and social sectors to supply their activities as long as they meet all the legal requirements set by the Catalan Water Agency and the councils,” said spokeswoman Patrícia Plaja.
Even so, the Government has not received any official request with formal projects, but there are companies and municipalities that have shown interest. “We have heard in meetings live proposals that are being worked on”, says Vidal. These projects have not been officially presented, but there are companies and municipalities that are working on them. “And they have told us that they will present them”, says Vidal.
On the other hand, the Government has decreed the second degree of emergency for twelve municipalities of the Alt Empordà, supplied by the waters of the Darnius-Boadella, after verifying that the level of this reservoir is at 11% . With this change, Figueres, Cabanes, Cadaqués, Castelló d’Empúries, Fortià, Figueres, Llers, Riumors, Roses, Santa Llogaia d’Àlguema, Vilamalla, Vila-sacra and El Far d’Emergency move to emergency scenario 2 Emporda Meanwhile, a total of 227 will remain in emergency (the 202 from the Ter Llobregat system, 22 from the Fluvià Muga aquifer, 2 from Riudecanyes and Vallirana).
Emergency scenario 2 establishes that the total volumes of water that enter the municipal reservoir for the supply of the population cannot exceed 180 liters per inhabitant per day (including economic and commercial activities), as also other restrictions (see attached information).
The Catalan Government has relaxed the restrictions for the use of water implemented for the agricultural sector. In this way, the farmers achieve their objectives, made explicit in the recent mobilizations. They have obtained their “private amnesty”.
“They will have to save as much as they can to guarantee the survival [of the trees], but since each farm has made different investments, in this case it is difficult for us to make a linear reduction. Each operation will have to reduce water consumption as much as it can”, repeated the general secretary of the department. Farmers were obliged to reduce their agricultural irrigation by 80%, while the livestock sector had to cut it by 50%.
With this (“surgical”) flexibility, the 80% reduction in water use in farms where the activity is based on woody crops (vines, fruit…) or permanent ones will be without effect. The reduction percentage will be what allows to guarantee its survival.
In addition, agricultural holdings will also be able to submit savings plans through a form on the ACA drought portal. And in a complementary way, the Department of Climate Action has designed a shock plan to guarantee the viability of livestock farms without access to water.
For the livestock sector, the requirements are also softened, to avoid the sacrifice of animals, among other impacts that are prevented, and to comply with the Animal Welfare law. The 50% reduction in water use will not apply to farms where the activity is based on reproductive females (pigs, cattle, sheep and goats for milk and meat, and poultry) and therefore are long-lived animals. “This 50% reduction is not feasible because the animal’s life must be guaranteed”, says Josep Vidal. In the case of fattening operations; that is to say, in which animals are slaughtered for human consumption (pigs, cattle and poultry), farmers will have to reduce water consumption by 50%, or whatever percentage is approved in the savings plan, but through the measures that he himself considers appropriate. “The farmers have already made a part of the water savings with investments from 2020 until now” and therefore these contributions will be valued by the ACA when presenting the savings plans. Therefore, the reduction will be lower than the previous requirement of 50%.
Farms will be able to submit savings plans through a form on the ACA drought portal with criteria that can be verified by the department itself, without the farmer having to justify them with a subsequent procedure.
Patrícia Plaja recalled that Catalonia is going through an “extreme” drought and that the situation, “far from improving, is getting worse every day”. Despite this, he has affirmed that the Government continues to work so that citizens and the economic sectors “are affected to a minimum”.
