Close to six million people in Barcelona and its surrounding areas have been affected by water restrictions as Catalonia undergoes the worst drought in its history
Swimming pools have been left unfilled in a Spanish holiday hotspot thanks to a lengthy and brutal drought.
Signs that read “Drought alert. During your stay, save water” have been stuck up in Barcelona, where beach showers have also been switched off in a bid to save water. Catalonia, the region where the city is located, is in the midst of its worst drought on record, which has brought reservoir levels down to just 15%.
Close to six million people in Barcelona and its surrounding areas have been affected by water restrictions, as of February. Businesses have been ordered to cut water consumption by a quarter, while 80% of farmers have been told they must reduce their usage.
Residents have also been asked to stay within a limit of 200 litres per day. By way of comparison, ten minutes in a power shower uses 150 litres of water.
Given that tourism makes up close to 15% of Barcelona’s economy, officials are desperate not to put off holidaymakers by introducing too many restrictions which will impact them. Hotels were not covered by the water limit rules until recently. Now they are, the water levels in some swimming pools are beginning to get lower, while some are being filled up with salt water – a technique currently allowed by city officials.
Signs urging people to be careful with their water usage have appeared at the city’s airport and at the Sagrada Familia basilica.
“The message from Catalonia’s tourism agency and business department to campsites and hotels is one of calm: (People) can enjoy their holidays here as usual,” said David Mascort, the regional government’s environmental chief.
For those concerned about climate change, it may be difficult to heed Mr Mascort’s words when in Barcelona. The European Drought Observatory’s map of current droughts in Europe has large stretches of Spain blocked out in red. Parts of Andalucía in the south of the country have faced continuous drought since 2016. Last year, Spain’s droughts ranked among the 10 most costly climate disasters in the world.
The Andalusian government is considering adding water metres to hotel rooms, to keep track of how much H2O visitors are using. The government says the average guest uses 350 litres of water per day, more than double that of an average resident’s 112 litres. Another proposal on the table is the replacement of almost all bathtubs with showers in hotels and the filling of leisure pools with seawater rather than fresh stuff.
The Catalonia region has decided to invest almost €500 million from EU funds to make its capital city more resilient to droughts, Euractiv reported. By the end of the 2020s it will have two new desalination plants operating. Officials hope the move will mean Barcelona can withstand droughts lasting 40 months.
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