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Menorca’s aquifers are going through one of the most delicate moments in their recorded history. The municipalities of Ferreries and Es Migjorn Gran record the highest percentage of losses in their water distribution networks. GOB has requested information to find out how this problem is being managed.

The official position is that desalination plants will solve the island’s water problems. But this has long been the strategy followed in Mallorca and Ibiza. When the condition of the aquifers on the neighbouring islands is examined, it becomes clear that desalination plants have not been used to reduce groundwater extraction, but rather to support continued urban and tourism growth. That is the reality.

For this reason, it is argued that unless limits are agreed beforehand, desalination plants become a passport to a model that exploits the territory and promotes an extractive economy.

Water management in Menorca has long suffered from a lack of control. There are major consumers who systematically overuse water, and a lack of planning that has often benefited from official acquiescence.

One of the most significant problems is the water lost through leaks in the public distribution network. This issue can be addressed through consistent policies of leak detection and the replacement of ageing infrastructure.

In general, the municipalities in eastern Menorca have reduced these types of losses, but there are still local councils that have devoted insufficient effort to tackling water waste caused by leaks.

The municipalities with the highest percentage of losses in their urban water networks are Es Migjorn Gran (according to the latest published data, losing more than 50% of the water it distributes) and Ferreries (with losses close to 45%).

For these reasons, GOB has written to both local councils requesting:

• Details of the investments made over the last two years to reduce these losses.
• Information on the projects planned to reduce leaks in the municipal water distribution network.