The Government will subsidize water to towns that demonstrate supply problems.

The government will not modify the aquifer situation parameters of the demand units, in this case the Plan, to declare a state of emergency by municipality rather than by demand unit. In this way, the regional government could justify paying the Mancomunidad for the truckloads of water that cost more than €500,000 each year. On the contrary, the Ministry of the Sea and the Water Cycle committed to launching a line of subsidies before the end of the year so that the towns of the Mancomunidad can meet the additional costs of having to purchase water to supply Porreres, Algaida, and especially Montuïri.

In this regard, it is worth remembering that in a meeting held at the end of July, the Plan Mancomunidad tabled the option of declaring a state of emergency by municipality, since the situation in the region does not affect all the towns in the Demand Unit (UD) Pla equally, where the problems are greatest.

The other towns in the Plan's UD are: Ariany, Maria, Petra, Sant Joan, and Vilafranca. There is also Santa Margalida, but it is not part of the Pla Community. The entire demand unit is the only one in the Balearic Islands that is on drought alert.

On the other hand, Llubí, Lloret, Sineu, Sencelles, Santa Eugenia, and Costitx, that is, the towns located further northeast, belong to other demand units, which are on pre-alert for drought.

The president of the Community, Joana Maria Pascual, explained this Monday upon leaving a meeting with the Government that the commitment has been to "issue a line of subsidies to alleviate the extra costs of water supply, as would be the case in Montuïri and Porreres."

Likewise, the Government will also "study the possibility of the regional ministry taking charge of drafting the interconnection project from the Sineu reservoir to the other municipalities."

The Pla de Mallorca Community (Mancomunidad Pla de Mallorca) has announced that in today's meeting with the regional government they shared "strategies and proposals to address the water supply challenges faced by some municipalities in the region."

In the meeting with political and technical leaders from the Regional Ministry of the Sea and the Water Cycle, "the willingness to work in a coordinated manner to find short- and long-term solutions was demonstrated."

A protocol

Pascual points out that"What we want is to work together to ensure that all the towns in the Plan have guaranteed water, today and in the future" and for that reason, "we propose to the Government of the Balearic Islands the signing of an agreement or a protocol that specifies the government's commitments to implement the interconnection in the next legislative periods."

Restrictions

Since the drought alert was declared, the Mancomunidad (Community of Man) has launched a regional awareness campaign to promote water conservation under the slogan "Every drop counts in El Pla."

Likewise, the municipalities of Porreres, Algaida, and Ariany have published BANS establishing a series of prohibitions on non-essential consumption, such as filling swimming pools, watering gardens or terraces, or cleaning cars.

Other municipalities have not yet decided whether to publish the BAN and were awaiting today's meeting. Most have, however, issued communications via social media urging responsible consumption.