The Ministry decides a ‘Zero Transfer’ for irrigation this month

The irrigated lands of Levante will not have any allocation of water from the Transfer this month, as decided this Thursday morning by the Ministry for Ecological Transition. The necessary allocation for supplies will be sent to the population, but there will be ‘zero transfer’ for crops in the Segura basin, although the law allows up to a maximum of 20 hectometres per month to be transferred, of which 13.5 would go to irrigation. The Ministry points out that it is still transferred without consuming, and that the exceptional water situation due to drought will continue in the coming months.

In an official note, the Ministry explains that the members of the Central Commission for the Exploitation of the Tajo-Segura Aqueduct (ATS) met this morning electronically for the situation at the beginning of September. In the last session of this hydrological year, the Commission confirmed that, as of September 1, 2022, the situation of the system is that corresponding to level 3 of exceptional hydrological situation, which is expected to continue for the next semester due to the lack of contributions. For this reason, it concluded that a transfer could be authorized on a discretionary but motivated basis, of up to 20 cubic hectometers (hm3) for this month of September. However, only the endowment for the population will be sent.

The Ministry indicates that “in application of the principles of prevention and precaution that must govern the action of the Public Administrations, considering the reserves of volumes of transferred water available in the Segura basin and the authorized volumes pending transfer as of September 1 , the forecast of contributions for the coming months, the estimated future consumption of supply and irrigation and the application of the rule for the next 6 months, a transfer has been authorized from the Entrepeñas-Buendía reservoirs through the Tajo-Segura aqueduct of 7.5 hm3 for the month of September 2022, which will be used for urban supplies.

The Commission adds that as of September 1, there is a volume of transferred water available in the Segura basin for supplies and irrigation of 46.1 hm3 and a volume at the headwater authorized to be transferred to the Segura of 15.3 hm3.

Likewise, he became aware of the situation of the delivery of water through the aqueduct to the Guadiana basin, which began in mid-August and which will contribute 3 hm3 to the Tablas de Daimiel National Park “and will help alleviate the difficult water situation existing”. The status of the works for the repair of the “Tubería Manchega” infrastructure and the specific tests that are being carried out for its fine-tuning were also reviewed.