Local government slams illegal wells in the Balearics

PALMA
THERE are 55'000 wells which tap directly into the underground water supply in the Balearics, but 10'000 of them are illegal, Water Resources Director, Antoni Rodriguez, said yesterday.

Rodriguez was speaking at a Water Resources and Territory Control meeting organised by Central Government.
He emphasized the impact of the illegal wells, bearing in mind that 95 percent of the water supply in the Balearics comes from the underground natural rivers known as aquifers.

He pointed to the importance of taking measures to save water because putting sea water through a desalination plant and making it drinkable costs one euro per cubic metre. Purifying recycled water also costs a euro per cubic metre. Water from underground wells, on the other hand costs only between 10 and 15 cents for the same volume.

Rodriguez also made reference to the level of rainfall in the region saying that it has been on the wane in the last few years with a tendency for torrential downpours increasing.