The state of water resources in major Mediterranean islands

Vis Island is situated in southern Croatia. The island is mostly composed of karstified carbonate rocks and belongs to the Dinaric karst region, which is a locus typicus of karst landforms. Located far from the mainland, Vis island has maintained a successful water supply from its own karst aquifer for decades. Hydrogeological research has been undertaken to protect this excellent karst aquifer by establishing sanitary protection zones and to explore the possibility of increasing the pumping yield. New groundwater velocity data obtained via a tracer test were in accordance with the rock mass hydraulic conductivity calculated from previous pumping tests. The hydrochemical interpretation indicated several different phenomena, from carbonate and sulfate rock dissolution to seawater mixing with groundwater. A conceptual model of the island’s aquifer was improved, and two main catchments were delineated according to tracer test results, and connected with the geological setting, hydrochemical data, and new climatological insights. Such an approach is applicable for similar karst aquifers, in which topographic and hydrogeological divides usually do not coincide.

supporting

confidence: 69%

Hydrogeological Assessment and Modified Conceptual Model of a Dinaric Karst Island Aquifer

Terzić

Frangen

Borović

et al. 2022

“…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

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.

“…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. Of the total water consumed, 74.95% is from groundwater bodies and only 2.95% from water reservoirs [9].…”

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

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.