CSN News reports that a new water transfer pipeline has opened between Campo de Gibraltar, Costa del Sol and the Campo de Gibraltar just a few days after reservoirs had to release their overflow.

A new pipeline, which will provide vital relief to the normally drought-stricken region of the Costa del Sol, has been opened to connect Campo de Gibraltar water supply with that of the Costa del Sol.

The 17-kilometre pipeline, built by Junta president Juanma Moreno, connects San Enrique de Guadiaro, a reservoir located in San Roque, with Acosol’s western distribution branch, a public water company that serves the western Costa del Sol.

The €19.5 million infrastructure project, funded through water bill surcharges, will provide an emergency water supply to Malaga municipalities during periods of extreme drought.

During the Castellar de la Frontera inauguration ceremony, Moreno stated that “this is strategic infrastructure for not only the population, but also agriculture, livestock and industry.”

Just a few months after Malaga was hit by severe drought, reservoirs were forced to release their water on the weekend.

The Conde de Guadalhorce and La Concepcion reservoirs both had to open emergency valves as they became around 90% full and lacked the infrastructure to transfer the water to the Axarquía to the east.

The new system solves an old problem from the 1990s. The original system was inefficient, as it mixed different types of water.

Upgraded system optimises surface water use from Guadiaro River, and also incorporates water from Charco Redondo reservoir and Guadarranque Reservoir.

Water Minister Ramon Fernández-Pacheco hailed the new infrastructure, which will prove vital in the future despite the current downpours.

We will have less water in our reservoirs in 2024. Now we’re at 44.47% capacity compared to 27.84% last year—we’ve gained 20 percentage points,” he explained.

“Andalucía has already experienced what happens when we relax because it starts raining—projects were abandoned. It won’t be repeated. We’ll continue to work as though not a drop of rain fell.”

The pipeline is the first phase of an ambitious Junta project to eventually connect all Mediterranean Basins of Andalucía, extending next to Axarquía and ultimately to Almería.

Moreno has also announced that the environmental process for the Gibralmedina project will commence. The project is considered crucial for ensuring water supply in the future to Campo de Gibraltar as well as the western Costa del Sol.

While the dam is declared a project of general interest by the Spanish government, the Junta has agreed to draft and fund the project at a cost of €2.2 million.

Campo de Gibraltar continues to be under severe alert for water scarcity, and daily consumption is limited to 200 litres.

According to the regional government, Guadalquivir’s reservoirs currently collect five million litres of water per hour due to recent rains. However, they still require an additional 500 litres for them reach a comfortable level.