Barcelona runs out of water for swimming pools amid ‘worst drought ever’


James Badcock
Thu, 1 February 2024 


Reservoirs across southern Spain are at extremely low levels thanks to a continued spell of warm, dry weather - Jon Nazca/Reuters

Tourists face swimming pool closures in Barcelona in the coming weeks as Catalonia confronts its “worst drought ever”.

The region’s government has imposed emergency measures over the crisis, caused by a lack of rainfall, which outlaw the refilling of pools or topping them up unless recycled water is used.

“It’s the worst drought ever recorded,” said Pere Aragonès, Catalonia’s president, on Thursday.

The emergency measures, set to take effect from Friday, will impact six million people in Barcelona and hundreds of other coastal communities in Catalonia.

The first phase of restrictions includes a ban on washing cars and watering public gardens unless using water sourced from an approved recycling system.

Private pools at hotels and elsewhere cannot be emptied and refilled, and are only permitted to be topped up if facilities have water regeneration systems.

The only exceptions will be made for swimming pools used for therapeutic purposes in hospitals, nursing homes and facilities for the disabled.

Catalonia’s campsite association has said it is exploring ways to use seawater in pools because of the restrictions.

Outdoor pools used by swimming clubs will be able to dodge the restrictions but cannot use their showers. Showers on beaches used by bathers to wash away sand must remain closed.

The measures aim to lower the daily amount of water permitted for residential and municipal purposes from 210 to 200 litres (55 to 52 gallons) per person.

Most households in Barcelona already fall well below that limit. Hotels, however, register a much higher average consumption, with a 2016 survey showing that five-star establishments with Jacuzzis and multiple pools exceed 540 litres per guest per day.
Irrigation systems next in line

Measures will be ramped up in two more phases if winter and spring do not bring abundant rains, with limits lowered to 180 litres, and then 160 litres, if required.

Across the board, agricultural irrigation must be reduced by 80 per cent, water use in livestock farming by half, and in the industry and leisure sector by 25 per cent.

If triggered, a second phase of restrictions would see showers at gyms switched off.

Businesses in the sector have criticised that proposal and instead plan to introduce time-limited showers of just three minutes instead.

Tourism sector representatives are also in discussions with the regional government on how to reduce their water use without pulling the plug on attractions.

The measures come after several heatwaves were recorded in Spain and wider Europe last summer, lowering reservoir levels as water evaporation and consumption increased.


The Cuencas Internas water board, which supplies more than 90 per cent of Catalonia’s population with water, says the region has regularly received less than half of its anticipated rainfall since the autumn of 2020.

As a result, its reservoirs are currently at just 16 per cent of their capacity.

Teresa Ribera, Spain’s ecological transition minister, said “the government of Spain will not leave the Barcelona metropolitan area without support.”

Last summer’s unusually warm weather has continued into 2024, with the mercury rising to nearly 30C (86F) in some regions in January – temperatures usually seen in June.

The region of Andalusia, whose reservoirs are at just 22 per cent of capacity, is also expected to impose emergency measures. Juan Manuel Moreno, Andalusia’s president, has said that the region’s major cities and resorts should expect restrictions this spring and summer, adding that the region lost 2.1 per cent of GDP in 2023 because of the drought.

Experts say climate change driven by human activity is boosting the intensity and frequency of extreme weather events, such as heatwaves, droughts and wildfires.