The central government disclaims responsibility for water supply in the event of a spill

"The Government has no competence in the conservation, maintenance and operation of the desalination plants of Fuerteventura and Lanzarote nor in the planning of the supply to the population of the Canary Islands." This has been the response of the Board of the Congress of Deputies to a question from Izquierda Unida about the alternatives to obtain drinking water in case the oil drilling that Repsol is carrying out near the coasts of these two islands causes an oil spill.

The political formation asked the Congress "how will fresh water be provided to the population of Fuerteventura in the event that an oil spill paralyzes its desalination plants?" and added as a second question "what plans have been foreseen in the event of a shutdown of the desalination plants of Fuerteventura and Lanzarote?". For IU Canarias, the Government's response implies that it "has implicitly acknowledged that it lacks plans to guarantee the supply of drinking water" to both islands, "in the event that the explorations cause a major spill."

In the response sent to IU, the Executive limits itself to stating that "the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Environment has signed Collaboration Agreements with the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands for the financing of hydraulic works." These agreements include the desalination plants of Fuerteventura and Lanzarote, of whose "operation, maintenance and conservation", says the Government in its reply, "the Government of the Canary Islands will be responsible".

Thus, the central government does not speak of possible alternative plans for the supply of drinking water to Fuerteventura and Lanzarote, which are entirely supplied with desalinated water, in the event of a spill. Izquierda Unida Canarias, for its part, considers that "this question is not answered" "simply because there is no answer and no action has been foreseen in the event that the desalination plants are damaged or rendered unusable".