The new regulation for the rational and efficient use of water will contemplate its integral cycle, penalise excessive use and establish a socially fair pricing structure.

In line with the current climatic emergency and the present and future prospects for water resources in Menorca, the Department of the Environment and Biosphere Reserve has begun the process of commissioning the drafting of a proposal for an ordinance/regulation that will enable progress to be made in the sustainable and socially fair use of this resource.

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Consell Insular de Menorca

The drafting of this ordinance will cover the entire water cycle and will have a harmonised structure for all the municipalities of Menorca. It will therefore include the supply and uses of drinking water; the use of the sewage network, both in terms of wastewater and rainwater and their treatment; and the uses and exploitation of alternative resources such as rainwater and the regeneration and reuse of wastewater.

This instrument, which will be a model adaptable to each municipality, will also take into account compliance with the different instruments related to sustainable water management in Menorca, such as the Action Plan for the Menorca Biosphere Reserve and the revision of the Balearic Islands Hydrological Plan, which is about to be definitively approved.

“Water management is a priority, as evidenced by the commitment to 2023 to continue supporting the implementation of municipal sustainable management plans, the implementation of integrated water cycle projects with its own funding and the sustainable tourism tax or the creation of a specific line within the Island Cooperation Plan,” said the Minister for the Environment and Biosphere Reserve, Josep Juaneda.

Esteve Barceló, the island’s director of the Environment, added: “We want to make progress in the island’s vision of water management, with initiatives such as this one that provides tools for local councils to incorporate criteria of sustainability and social justice in the management of this resource, or the development of an island strategy in conjunction with the Institut Menorquí d’Estudis and other sectors involved”.

For the drafting of these regulations, prior analytical work has been planned, which will include the following actions:

Compilation of existing municipal ordinances and regulations in the different municipalities of Menorca, both in relation to the supply of drinking water and the use of the sewage network and the treatment of wastewater and rainwater, as well as the use of regenerated water.

Analysis and comparison of ordinances and regulations of the integral water cycle in the surrounding area (the Balearic Islands, Levante peninsular or others that can serve as a reference).

Analysis of the different existing regulatory conditions, such as the Hydrological Plan of the Balearic Islands (PHIB) or the Island Territorial Plan of Menorca (PTI), as well as the agreements in force between the different municipalities and the Balearic Water and Environmental Quality Agency (ABAQUA).

Preparation of communication, dissemination and awareness-raising material aimed at local councils and the general public.

Design of the regulation that takes into account the complete water cycle (supply, sanitation, treatment and reuse) with a structure easily adaptable to all municipalities of Menorca. This ordinance regulation will include two blocks:

The regulatory ordinance, with prescriptions and sanctioning regime, incorporates sustainability criteria contemplated in current regulations, such as the PHIB and the Action Plan of the Menorca Biosphere Reserve.

The tax ordinance, the whose harmonised structure incorporates environmental sustainability criteria, subsidising basic uses and penalising excessive uses, as well as social and proportionality criteria, and the distinction between domestic and commercial-industrial uses.

The deadline for submitting proposals for this service is open until 2 February. More information at: http://menorcabiosfera.org/Contenido.aspx?idpub=8333