Palma water goes down the drain

Sources at Emaya said yesterday that another factor accounting for the waste - reported at a time when both national and regional governments in Spain are facing chronic shortages - is the fact that some supply lines don't have a water metre linked to them. The resulting estimated invoice fails to tally with the amount of water used and is reflected as a loss. The company also acknowledged that third party building works and reforms can affect plumbing and piping junctions with subsequent water loss. Similarly, deteriorating internal structures of pipes can lead to leaks, especially where one pipe locks into another. It is difficult, said Emaya, to calculate just how many litres are lost as a result of these defects and that it is impossible to patrol in detail the 1'000 kilometres of supply lines linking Palma's residents to fresh water. The company also commented that the process of bringing drinking water to the city from reservoirs and then redistributing it through deposit tanks provides much more leeway for loss than in other smaller municipalities. However, very old drainage and supply networks, such as the one in General Riera down Paseo Mallorca in central Palma, are being replaced.