2023-08-10 01:22:51
The Official Journal of the Generalitat of Catalonia (Dogc) has published this Wednesday the decree by which they declare in “state of emergency due to hydrological drought” to the aquifer exploitation units of Fluvià Muga and Riudecanyes, a measure that involves reductions in the use of water and that will affect a total of 24 municipalities in Girona and Tarragona.
The decree, collected by Europa Press, comes after the On August 4, the Catalan Water Agency (ACA) approved the emergency declarationand ACA sources consulted by Europa Press have affirmed that the measures come into force “once the resolution is published in the Dogc”, that is, from this same Wednesday.
Guarantee the supply of drinking water.
The emergency affects 22 municipalities in Alt Empordà (Girona) that are supplied by the Muga River aquifer and, on the other hand, two municipalities in Baix Camp (Tarragona) that depend on water from the Riudecanyes reservoir, for a total of about 26,000 inhabitants .
The 22 municipalities of Alt Empordà affected are Agullana, L’Armentera, Capmany, Espolla, Garriguella, La Jonquera, Masarac, Mollet de Peralada, Palau-savardera, Pau, Pedret i Marzà, Peralada, Sant Climent Sescebes, Sant Miquel de Fluvià, Sant Mori, Sant Pere Pescador , Torroella de Fluvià, Ventalló, Vilabertran, Viladamat, Vilajuïga and Vilamacolum; and those of Baix Camp are Riudecanyes and Duesaigües.
The ACA sources have assured that the measures are taken because the Fluvià Muga aquifer “is dropping to minimum levels, which, although it is not the historical minimum, is very similar to the volumes that existed in 2008 and 2009”.
In the case of the Riudecanyes reservoir, they have stated that “it is in a similar situation”, around 5%, and that these measures are taken to guarantee the supply of drinking water.
The emergency declaration also contemplates suppressing agricultural irrigation –only survival irrigation of woody crops may be authorized–, reducing water consumption by industrial users by 25%, prohibiting the use of water to irrigate gardens and green areas, among other uses.
With the entry into emergency, a global endowment of 200 liters per inhabitant per day on average –in the exceptional phase it stands at 230–, and at a press conference on Wednesday of last week the director of the ACA, Samuel Reyes, appealed to the “maximum savings”.
He also pointed out that in June in the Empordà the average stood at 243 liters per inhabitant per day, and that there has not been a significant reduction in the last year.
Of the 22 municipalities of the Alt Empordà that are located in the Fluvià Muga exploitation unit, 50% do not comply with the allocations established by the drought plan, 41% comply with them and 9% do not provide consumption data.
The emergency declaration also contemplates suppressing agricultural irrigation –only survival irrigation of woody crops may be authorized–, reducing water consumption by industrial users by 25%, prohibiting the use of water to irrigate gardens and green areas, among other uses.
In addition, this week the sanctioning regime contemplated by the drought decree comes into force, and Reyes recalled last Wednesday that the entity does not want to fine but rather that “everyone does their homework for the benefit of all.”
Status update
The Dogc has also published the exit from the state of extreme pluviometric drought and the entry into a state of severe pluviometric drought of the exploitation units of Anoia-Gaià and the Carme-Capellades aquifer.
It has been declared Exit from severe or extreme rainfall drought and the return to normality due to rainfall drought in the exploitation units of the head of the Llobregat, head of the Ter, the Llobregat reservoirs, the Banyoles pond (Girona) and in the Medio Llobregat.
In addition, the Dogc resolution has added that “the states of hydrological and pluviometric drought declared in the remaining exploitation units” are maintained.
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