Territorial pimping

There are those who understand contempt for formalities as the ultimate exercise of power; doing something, not because it's necessary, but simply for the pleasure of it being so. This attitude is possibly the expression of an uncontrollable authoritarian drive that transcends the eroticism of power to become exhibitionism. There is much of that in the government's handling of the Sustainable Tourism Tax, of hidden pleasure in the desecration exercised by nonbelievers.

It is difficult to understand how to finance desalination plants with resources obtained through a tax with an environmental and sustainability focus. 'Desalination' and 'sustainability' are contradictory terms, even when the sources used are renewable. Desalination requires a huge amount of energy to pump water at high pressure through the membranes, and the cost of construction, operation, and maintenance of the facilities is also very high. Brine, the highly saline liquid waste produced during the process, poses an environmental risk to marine ecosystems. A desalination plant can be described as 'necessary,' however, never as sustainable.

Combining the Sustainable Tourism Tax and desalination is an oxymoron, not only because of the environmental impact, but also because of what it represents in terms of insistence on a model of unlimited growth and extractive greed as a driver of production, which is radically opposed to what might be considered reasonable in a society as internationally exposed as the Balearic Islands. In this sense, it cannot be overlooked that the initial debate on the so-called "ecotax" far exceeded the limits of our country to acquire a European dimension. Awareness of the tax remains high, and visitors (who are the largest taxpayers) expect positive environmental and cultural outcomes.

Not only is this playing with image, but it is going in the opposite direction to that indicated by economic indicators. For 2026, the annual BBVA Research report predicts a clear slowdown in growth, with GDP increasing by only 1.6%. The factors cited as causes include stagnant European demand, the depletion of capacity during the peak season, and global economic uncertainty. In summary, the study indicates that tourism in the Balearic Islands remains strong, but the sector shows signs of maturing and losing vitality in the coming years, with a risk of slowdown due to structural and resource limitations.

The Conservative government's solution to the depletion of resources and overcrowding is the construction of more infrastructure, denying the nature of the problem. This leads to collective suicide. Furthermore, in the consultations held with some of Europe's most powerful consumer associations regarding the implementation of the tax on tourist accommodation (commonly known as the ecotax), a total rejection of the idea of using new resources to finance infrastructure funded by European programs was evident.

The basic idea advocated by consumer associations was to be willing to help finance (through the tax) a new project aimed at promoting environmentally friendly tourism and shared cultural diversity, but not aggressive infrastructure. Funding desalination plants with ITS resources could potentially lead to unnecessary conflict with consumers. It's clear that, with this proposal, the government is prioritizing messages in the markets over dialogue with citizens, potential visitors, and customers. This is no coincidence.

In the midst of a stifling heat wave, it's discouraging to hear about the unrefreshing news of rising energy consumption and CO2 emissions. It would surely be more comforting to talk about strategies to reduce consumption and decrease supply, with the idea of calming the economy and promoting coexistence and, ultimately, offering a path of hope for building a better country. But that's not the way it works. Complacency prevails, a denial of hope, leading to repeating the same old story, as if there were no alternative. The idea is played with that the system doesn't fail and failure is individual.

Denialism thrives on this duality and gives rise to a pathological submission to the market as the only possibility for growth. A perfect narrative to cover up the authoritarian drive of the government and its extractive hyperactivity. The government's relationship with the market could be considered an shameless pimping of boundless territory. The desires of the market are placed above the needs of the people, even though they insist on claiming that economic prosperity causes wealth to trickle down, dripping onto the people. This is the milkmaid's tale of neoliberalism that has led to unprecedented levels of social inequality.