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Date Published: 28/02/2022
ARCHIVED - Segura basin prepares for pre-alert due to drought in Murcia
If the drought continues in the Murcian Region, restrictions may be implemented on irrigation
The Segura Hydrographic Confederation (CHS) has warned that irrigation to Murcian farmland may have to be cut by between 20 and 25% if the drought situation continues and the Region remains without rain throughout March.
With just 385 cubic hectometres of water stored in its reservoirs, reserves have been reduced to 33%, prompting authorities to enter the Segura into a ‘pre-alert’ phase.
The basin of the River Segura is most commonly associated with the Region of Murcia, but the 19,025 square kilometres also occupy parts of Alicante, Castilla-La Mancha and Andalucía. South-eastern Spain has experienced intense rain and more than one DANA in the last five years, but this has done little to refill the reservoirs since the greatest rainfall was registered along the coast. The result is that water reserves in the basin are 86 cubic hectometres lower than this time last year, and 122 lower than the average of the last decade.
If the situation doesn’t improve next month, the Segura will go into pre-alert and a full-out alert could be issued for the summer months. With little rainfall on the horizon, the CHS could even consider opening the wells in the Calasparra Syncline, as was done in 2019 to provide water for irrigation.
The wells are only ever touched as a very last resort, however, and experts have indicated that at the moment, the urban water supply shouldn’t be affected by the drought.
The water reserve in Spain is at 44.3% of its total capacity; this is 29.61% less water than the average of the last decade and a worrying 30.13% less than the same week last year.
Further reading: Understanding water and the drought in Murcia and the Segura basin
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