3% of the current water requirements on the island could be assumed by "the natural water balance and the possibilities offered by the use of traditional techniques for collection and storage (cisterns, wells, maretas, etc.)". This is stated in the recent documents prepared by the Island Water Consortium for island hydrological planning. However, in each episode of rain, which in Lanzarote occurs, in general, punctually and torrentially, almost all of the flow is wasted.
For this reason, Somos Lanzarote has presented a motion to the Plenary of the Cabildo proposing a comprehensive plan for the use of these waters for agricultural purposes, returning to the traditional culture of water. In the opinion of the island's transforming organization, in addition to environmental benefits, derived from savings and for agricultural soils, it would have positive effects for a cultural heritage that has been forgotten during the last decades.
Thus, the Somos Lanzarote initiative proposes that the Cabildo "prepare an exhaustive study on the island's hydrographic reality, the channels through which rainwater flows, the material heritage that would allow its conduction or deposit, its state of conservation, together with the alternatives and necessary actions that allow optimizing the agricultural use of rainwater".
The objective of this first phase would be the design of "a comprehensive plan for the recovery of heritage linked to the culture of water, as well as the creation of the collection, storage and distribution infrastructure that is needed, with the aim of giving agricultural use to the largest possible amount of rainwater". For the implementation of this plan, Somos Lanzarote points to the need for joint work by the different areas and administrations involved, as well as with professionals from the island's primary sector.
The proposal highlights that the island's climate, with a hydrological regime typical of desert areas, has promoted a historical "island culture of water", through which different hydraulic works have been carried out aimed at storing or transporting rainwater, "such as cisterns and maretas, alcogidas, the drilling of wells and galleries, gavias, as well as other uses in the rural environment, such as nateros or drinking troughs". However, the arrival of desalinated water and the lack of interest in heritage has led to the deterioration of many of the assets that the island had, and that this motion intends to recover.
Clean water
On the other hand, the motion highlights the environmental benefits of prioritizing rainwater over desalinated and purified water to irrigate the island's crops. And, as the motion points out, the production and use of desalinated water is not harmless to the island's environment.
On the contrary, the generation of desalinated water is associated with a high energy expenditure, coming from the combustion of fossil materials that generate harmful gases for the atmosphere. For its part, the excretion of brine has negative effects on the environmental quality of marine water.
Somos Lanzarote also points to the fragility of traditional agricultural ecosystems and their soils, highlighting that the use of purified water for crop irrigation injects salinity into the soils, as well as other harmful agents, such as the bacteria E. coli and high concentrations of boron. "The cleanest, safest and healthiest thing is to bet on the greatest possible use of rainwater; it would be the best bet for sustainable, quality and future agriculture, committed to the ecological and cultural values of the island", concludes Tomás López, spokesperson for Somos Lanzarote in the Cabildo.