First Council of Mayors at the Mancomunidad de Municipios de la Costa del Sol Occidental, with an urgent issue on the table: the drought. La Concepción, the reservoir between Marbella and Istán, holds barely 32 cubic hectometres. That is water for around four or five months across the 11 municipalities of the Costa del Sol. Water scarcity is at red level, which has led the mayors to agree a joint order to save 20% of water. Non-essential uses are banned.
The meeting was chaired by the head of the supra-municipal body, Manuel Cardeña, and allowed the managing director of Acosol, Matilde Mancha, to give a detailed explanation of the supply situation. Supply could become very difficult around March if rainfall patterns do not change, even though the Marbella desalination plant is giving all it can, as it is in the middle of a process to recover the 15 cubic hectometres it was designed for (it now produces about 8 a year and, in future, technicians are planning works to reach 30). At present, desalinated water accounts for 21% of total supply.
The mayors have agreed to issue a joint order prohibiting the use of drinking water for irrigating golf courses, gardens and parks, both public and private, for street washing, for filling and refilling swimming pools, for washing vehicles (except at authorised establishments), for ornamental fountains and lakes, and for public showers and drinking fountains.
«This is the first time we have convened this Council of Mayors, and we are doing so to address a subject as important and as necessary as the drinking water on which we all depend,» said Manuel Cardeña.
The meeting was attended by the mayors of Benalmádena, Juan Antonio Lara; Casares, Juan Luis Villalón; Fuengirola, Ana Mula; Mijas, Ana Mata; Torremolinos, Margarita del Cid; Ojén, Juan Merino; and Manilva, José Manuel Fernández. Also present were the first deputy mayors of Estepona, Ana Velasco, and Marbella, Félix Romero.
«Our main objective is for us to work together to reduce the use of drinking water by 20%, so that we preserve the volume stored in the La Concepción reservoir for as long as possible until the rains arrive, and to ensure supply to the various municipalities in the region served by Acosol,» explained Matilde Mancha. «In addition, Acosol continues working with the Junta de Andalucía to promote improvements and renewal of the bulk supply, treatment, regulation and distribution infrastructure included in the hydrological planning,» she added.
Major works are currently under way, such as those that will double the capacity of the Verde water treatment plant, and some 50 golf courses are being irrigated with recycled wastewater (a saving of about 9 cubic hectometres a year). Tertiary treatment is one of the areas Acosol is working on most. It is very valuable water for irrigation and street washing.
