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GOB has once again submitted objections to the Partial Plan for Cap d’en Font and Binisafúller platja, which provides for the construction of 115 new villas in an area where there is no water. The organisation warns of the serious problems that the infiltration wells for brine now proposed by the developers could cause, as well as other significant inconsistencies.
The planned growth in the western part of the Sant Lluís coast has been under consideration for some time. In 2023, Sant Lluís Town Council initially approved the Partial Plan, but there were significant errors in the calculations of water needs and other shortcomings, which were highlighted in objections. The Plan has now been redesigned, and last August the Town Council approved the processing of the amendment, which has been put on public display.
To solve the problem of the lack of available water in the aquifer, the developers propose drawing water from a well near the sea and injecting the brine into another well somewhat closer to the coast.
Risks to the aquifer
In the objections submitted, GOB warns that this system does not make disappear the serious problem of the continuous discharge of highly saline water involved in operating a desalination plant.
On the contrary, opting for an infiltration well may result in fractures in the subsoil that could carry the brine in unwanted directions. The aquifer could become contaminated, and seawater intrusion into the inland subsoil could also be facilitated.
If the brine reaches the sea, there is a serious problem because this coastline has a considerable Posidonia seagrass meadow.
GOB has once again detected errors in the calculations of the estimated water needs required to supply all the planned growth.
In any case, the planned desalination plant would not be sufficient to supply the new population envisaged.
Likewise, the Partial Plan seeks to opt for a type of grouped construction that is not provided for either in the municipal planning regulations or in the Island Territorial Plan. The area also has no sewage system, because the wastewater collection pipes would have to be connected to the Binidalí wastewater treatment plant, which is not operating because it has no outfall.
Call to political groups and organised citizens
GOB calls on all political groups to work to prevent new coastal developments such as this one. Adding villas to the Sant Lluís coastline is an option that is no longer of interest to Menorca and, as can be seen, generates a series of problems that affect the general interest.
The serious water situation should serve to reconsider tourist developments such as Cap d’en Font and Binisafúller in Sant Lluís, but also those at Platges de Fornells and other locations in Mercadal, Repòs del Rei in Es Castell, Torre-solí in Alaior or Canutells in Maó.
Menorca does not need more coastal growth or more tourist places. The island requires a reduction in human pressure during the summer, the rationalisation of water use, a housing policy that curbs speculation, and a commitment to progressively diversify the economy.
The fact that in 2026 there are still town councils processing partial plans to build more than 100 new villas on the coast, or that the Island Council avoids eliminating tourist places that are becoming inoperative due to the market itself, shows that there is still a great deal of work to be done to move from words to action.
GOB encourages citizens’ associations to use the tools provided by legislation to curb the negative dynamics that still operate on the island and to participate in debates in the search for solutions.
