Costa Brava town limits water supply to company for filling 70 swimming pools during drought

Begur Town Council is to limit the water supply to a company that used 3.2m liters of water in three months to fill swimming pools amid the ongoing drought. 

The Costa Brava town will install a pressure regulator, which, according to mayor Maite Selva "will significantly reduce the flow" that comes out of the taps. 

The company took water from the public network and, as reported by El País, filled swimming pools in various municipalities in the area. It is estimated that it filled more than 70 pools in total. 

Local police in neighboring Palafrugell stopped one of the company's tanker trucks just after it had finished filling a swimming pool in Aiguablava. 

Begur Town Council previously sanctioned the business five times with fines for infringement of drought restrictions. 

This marks the first time that the council will install a pressure regulator. 

The company is, on paper, dedicated to cleaning sewers and septic tanks, but has used its tanker trucks to transport water to fill swimming pools in a flagrant breach of the regulations. 

Smart meters 

The council has made efforts in recent months to curb the high rate of water consumption in Begur, installing smart meters throughout the municipality, periodically monitoring water consumption in homes, and issuing more than 70 fines (many for watering gardens). 

Begur also decided to limit consumption to 138 liters per inhabitant per day, below the level set by the Catalan government for the worst drought scenario – emergency stage 3 – when it will be limited to 160 litres.  

Begur, like Barcelona and 200 other Catalan municipalities, are currently in emergency stage 1. 

Despite its efforts, Begur was fined more than €54,000 by the Catalan Water Agency, with consumption in December measured at 495 liters per inhabitant per day.