Yellow drought alert leads to request for swimming pool restrictions and Camposol complaint goes viral

Consumer association request to ban the filling of swimming pools coincides with a complaint about the proliferation of pools in Camposol going viral

In response to the yellow level alert for drought in the Segura Basin issue by the water authority (CHS), CONSUMUR, The Association of Consumers and Network Users has asked for Town Halls to take restrictive measures in respect of the filling and reuse of water in swimming pools.

According to official data presented by the association, 38% of the 1.3 million swimming pools in Spain are in drought alert or emergency zones. The Region of Murcia has the third highest concentration of swimming pools in proportion to the number of inhabitants. Specifically, it has more than 50,000, one pool per 30 inhabitants, when the average is one pool for every 37 inhabitants. A recent European study forecast a reduction in tourism to Murcia due to rising temperature caused by global warming.

For this reason, CONSUMUR say urgent consideration should be given to regulating their use, especially in the months of greatest water scarcity. This would include banning filling of pools and forcing owners to maintain the water, in order for it to be reused.

This is a measure that the association considers cannot be a voluntary decision for citizens, but rather, as in other regions such as Catalonia or Andalusia, must be a mandatory restriction.

Roberto Barceló Vivancos, President of CONSUMUR stated “Water is a scarce commodity and fundamental for life. Based on this indisputable premise, authorities (each according to their powers) must regulate its proper use penalizing any waste that is made of it. But also regulating the use of private swimming pools (and of any swimming pool of whatever nature it may have) in times of extreme drought, such as the one we are currently experiencing and which, unfortunately, worsens as the years go by, it must be done in such a way that even the use of them if they were not full is eliminated in these circumstances.

In our society, on many occasions, both public administrations and citizens confuse the right to private property with the use of certain assets of a communal nature, and that the use of these assets must be in a caring, sustainable and responsible way”.

He continued "There are thousands of litres of water whose use and maintenance pose an additional burden, especially in the context of drought in which we find ourselves. Therefore, it is not only social awareness that must influence us to proper use, but also enforcable laws that end the lack of commitment to the common good.”

Social media posting goes viral

This CONSUMUR statement coincides with a complaint that has gone viral on social media about the proliferation of swimming pools in the Camposol urbanization in Mazarrón made by Juan Antonio Ortega, Head of the Environmental Health Unit at Virgen de la Arrixaca Hospital and doctor of Environment and Pediatric Cancer at the University of Valencia.

In a post on Twitter/X Sr Ortega included a Google Maps image of a residential area in Camposol’s Sector D accompanied by the text: "Do you know the Region of Murcia? Dystopia (Apocalyse) on August 17. The Google photo is only of a neighbourhood in one of the most arid areas (you can count in the image 264 swimming pools). What is the name of the locality? The posting has since generated 807 “Likes” and 151 comments.

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