Spatio-temporal patterns of meteorological droughts in the Balearic Islands (Spain)

Lorenzo‐Lacruz, Jorge; Morán-Tejéda, Enrique

doi:10.18172/cig.2948

Cited by 12 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 54 publications

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“…In continental Spain, Vicente-Serrano et al (2014b) showed a general decrease in relative humidity from the decade of 1960, mainly associated with a general decrease in the moisture transport to the Iberian Peninsula as well as a certain precipitation decrease. Similarly, Espadafor et al (2011) and Vicente-Serrano et al (2014b) showed that the strong increase in ET o in the last decades is associated with the relative humidity decrease due to air temperature rise, which caused more severe drought events (Coll et al, 2016;Lorenzo-Lacruz and Morán-Tejeda, 2016; Peña- Gallardo et al, 2016). In the Canary Islands, no precipitation changes have been identified during the analysed period (Sánchez-Benitez et al, 2016).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recent changes and drivers of the atmospheric evaporative demand in the Canary Islands

Vicente‐Serrano

Azorín-Molina

Sánchez-Lorenzo

et al. 2016

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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Abstract. We analysed recent evolution and meteorological drivers of the atmospheric evaporative demand (AED) in the Canary Islands for the period 1961-2013. We employed long and high-quality time series of meteorological variables to analyse current AED changes in this region and found that AED has increased during the investigated period. Overall, the annual ET o , which was estimated by means of the FAO-56 Penman-Monteith equation, increased significantly by 18.2 mm decade −1 on average, with a stronger trend in summer (6.7 mm decade −1 ). In this study we analysed the contribution of (i) the aerodynamic (related to the water vapour that a parcel of air can store) and (ii) radiative (related to the available energy to evaporate a quantity of water) components to the decadal variability and trends of ET o . More than 90 % of the observed ET o variability at the seasonal and annual scales can be associated with the variability in the aerodynamic component. The variable that recorded more significant changes in the Canary Islands was relative humidity, and among the different meteorological factors used to calculate ET o , relative humidity was the main driver of the observed ET o trends. The observed trend could have negative consequences in a number of water-depending sectors if it continues in the future.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recent changes and drivers of the atmospheric evaporative demand in the Canary Islands

Vicente‐Serrano

Azorín-Molina

Sánchez-Lorenzo

et al. 2016

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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“…AENA, the airport operator in Spain, recognized total water withdrawals of 484,000 m 3 in the airport in 2018. It is evident that the increasing cruise activity in the western Mediterranean ports has an impact on freshwater resources and especially on islands where water is scarce and intense droughts occur [20][21][22]39]. The threat of climate change, with longer and more intense dry periods, emphasizes the rational use of water for activities such as cruise ship tourism that has a growing social context in the Balearic Islands (e.g., more than 10,000 Majorcan residents signed a petition calling for a limit of one cruise ship a day docking in Palma, and there have been several anti-cruise ship protests).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of Cruise Activity on Freshwater Use in the Port of Palma (Mallorca, Spain)

García

Mestre-Runge

Morán-Tejéda

et al. 2020

Water

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Lack of knowledge about freshwater use in ports of tourist destinations hinders accurate assessment of water availability and water planning. In this study, freshwater use in the Port of Palma (Spain) is analyzed by sector (commercial, mixed, navy and recreational) for the period 2007–2018. This study shows the dynamics of consumption and evaluates the effects of increased cruise tourism from 2007 to 2018 in the port. Water data supplied by the Port Authority of the Balearic Islands for each sector, together with water volumes recharged by ships, allow a detailed analysis of the water used by merchants and cruise lines. Results reveal a significant increase in freshwater withdrawals by cruise ships in the Port of Palma in the last ten years, closely related to the boom of cruise activity. Water use and recharge by cruise ships increased in both the high and low tourist seasons. Homeport cruises have a significant effect on the increase of freshwater withdrawals, as each homeport cruise ship recharged a mean volume of 628 m3 per mooring. This paper proposes a water withdrawal indicator of liters loaded per passenger at the port. Given the current lack of restriction on the number of cruise ships per day docking in the Port of Palma, cruise activity may well become a threat to water availability during drought episodes and another environmental cost to add to the already questioned cruise tourism activity of the island.

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“…In 2015, 12.5 million tourist arrivals were recorded (IBESTAT 2017b) in this top touristic destination, which has a temperate climate and attractive beaches, good accessibility and massive touristic infrastructure, including hotels and a large airport. Unfortunately, the tourist activity clashes with one of the most important socio-environmental issues of the territory: water scarcity [2][3][4]. The Balearic Islands face a severe water supply problem, mainly during summer months.…”

Section: Study Area and Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The Balearic Islands face a severe water supply problem, mainly during summer months. As a Mediterranean archipelago, climate drives natural variability in both seasonal and inter-annual precipitation, and this leads to frequent drought episodes [3] that may compromise water supply. The overexploitation and salinization of groundwater resources and the increasing dependence on desalinated water is well documented [5][6][7][8].The current mix of water sources on the islands reflects the technological and managerial approach to anthropogenic pressures on scarce water resources.…”

Section: Study Area and Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

Swimming Pool Evaporative Water Loss and Water Use in the Balearic Islands (Spain)

Hof

Morán-Tejéda

Lorenzo‐Lacruz

et al. 2018

Water

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The Balearic Islands are a major Mediterranean tourist destination that features one of the greatest swimming pool densities within Europe. In this paper, standard meteorological data were combined with a diachronic swimming pool inventory to estimate water evaporation from swimming pools over the Balearic archipelago. Evaporation was estimated using an empirical equation designed for open-water surfaces. Results revealed a 32% increase in swimming pools’ water use by 2015. Evaporation from swimming pools added 9.6 L of water to touristic consumption per guest night and person, and represented 4.9% of the total urban water consumption. In 2015, almost 5 hm3 (5 billion L) were lost from pools across the Balearic Islands. In several densely urbanized areas, evaporative water loss from pools exceeded four million litres per square kilometre and year. The water needed to refill the total of 62,599 swimming pools and to counteract evaporative water loss is equivalent to 1.2 pools per year. Swimming pools have rapidly proliferated across the islands. We have expounded on this development in view of much-needed responsible water management across the islands.

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Spatio-temporal patterns of meteorological droughts in the Balearic Islands (Spain)

Abstract: ABSTRACT. The Balearic Islands is a region highly prone to suffer meteorological and hydrological droughts, mainly due to the high intra-and inter-annual variability of precipitation, and the high water consumption associated to

Cited by 12 publications

References 54 publications

Recent changes and drivers of the atmospheric evaporative demand in the Canary Islands

Recent changes and drivers of the atmospheric evaporative demand in the Canary Islands

Impact of Cruise Activity on Freshwater Use in the Port of Palma (Mallorca, Spain)

Swimming Pool Evaporative Water Loss and Water Use in the Balearic Islands (Spain)

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