Alcala-Alcossebre Council plans to open the Las Fuentes beach with an emergency solution which will purify the freshwater spring waters
The council continues to carry out inspections in a very localised area to find out the origin of the spillage which only affects the spring water and not the sea
Experts from the Alcala-Alcossebre Council and FACSA, the water and waste service operator, have proposed an emergency solution to the Dirección General del Agua which will enable bathing to reopen on the Las Fuentes beach, which has been closed since the 21st July because levels of Escherichia coli had been recorded which were higher than the established limits and which were found in the fresh water springs which emanate on the beach and flow into the sea.
The solution consisted of collecting the water in a dike, chlorinating is and pumping it away from the beach after it has been purified. Thus, the water will not come into contact with the bathing area. In fact, the last analyses carried out show that the sea is not contaminated but only the springs. From the time the decree stopped bathing, the springs have been fenced in and a pump stops the water going into the sea.
The experts have totally ruled out that there is any contamination in the aquifer as the spillage shows itself superficially and, because of its characteristics, it is maintained that it is “focussed on a very localised base and that it is causing a small leak, which is difficult to locate, and which could be due to some connection to the sewage network which has not been properly carried out or to damage”.
Meanwhile, the Alcala-Alcossebre Council is concentrating its efforts on finding the point from which the spillage has arisen and to do this has invested 300 hours of work by operators and machinery, inspecting the municipal sewage network and repairing possibly damaged installation – above all in private networks which were ceded to the Council and which date from the 60s – pipes in hotel buildings, apartments and facilities in the area around the space in which the leak could be located have all been inspected. The Council has already been in contact with the finca administrators in the area to find out whether any work of this sort has been carried out and to ask them to check their installations in the search for a possible leak. Another hypothesis, which has not been ruled out, is of a spillage from a private irrigation well, so that the relevant inspections can be carried out. The Entitat de Sanejament d’Aigües-EPSAR has also inspected and repaired installations in the sewage network.
Experts from the Dirección General del Agua have pointed out that “the Las Fuentes beach is particularly sensitive to this type of problem, as it is a very enclosed beach, with water from fresh water springs”. Also, the water quality analyses carried out since 2006 had been classified as “excellent” as there had never been a similar problem.
On 27th July there was a meeting in the Municipal Offices attended by experts from the Dirección General del Agua, EPSAR, municipal experts and experts from the FACSA company, business people from the tourism sector and members of the municipal corporation. In view of the negative impact, at a financial and tourism level which the situation has had, the Mayor, Francisco Juan urged that “the point from which the contamination is coming must be found and a solution implemented so that it cannot happen again, and therefore we are making an important emergency financial effort to undertake all the actions which have been taken since the moment the problem appeared”. The Mayor Francisco Juan said that “it is already planned that in September the Integral Plan will be put in motion for the improvement of the sewage network and, if it is necessary, priority action will be taken on the affected area first”.
In the meantime, the Council has made available to beach goers a tourist train to take them from the Las Fuentes area to the nearby el Cargador beach, free of charge. “We apologise to residents and visitors who are suffering from this problem but, for the Council, we are doing everything in our power to resolve it. Alcossebre has four other beaches with blue flags which are in perfect condition, so you can enjoy them”, the mayor concluded.
Experts from the Alcala-Alcossebre Council and FACSA, the water and waste service operator, have proposed an emergency solution to the Dirección General del Agua which will enable bathing to reopen on the Las Fuentes beach, which has been closed since the 21st July because levels of Escherichia coli had been recorded which were higher than the established limits and which were found in the fresh water springs which emanate on the beach and flow into the sea.
The solution consisted of collecting the water in a dike, chlorinating is and pumping it away from the beach after it has been purified. Thus, the water will not come into contact with the bathing area. In fact, the last analyses carried out show that the sea is not contaminated but only the springs. From the time the decree stopped bathing, the springs have been fenced in and a pump stops the water going into the sea.
The experts have totally ruled out that there is any contamination in the aquifer as the spillage shows itself superficially and, because of its characteristics, it is maintained that it is “focussed on a very localised base and that it is causing a small leak, which is difficult to locate, and which could be due to some connection to the sewage network which has not been properly carried out or to damage”.
Meanwhile, the Alcala-Alcossebre Council is concentrating its efforts on finding the point from which the spillage has arisen and to do this has invested 300 hours of work by operators and machinery, inspecting the municipal sewage network and repairing possibly damaged installation – above all in private networks which were ceded to the Council and which date from the 60s – pipes in hotel buildings, apartments and facilities in the area around the space in which the leak could be located have all been inspected. The Council has already been in contact with the finca administrators in the area to find out whether any work of this sort has been carried out and to ask them to check their installations in the search for a possible leak. Another hypothesis, which has not been ruled out, is of a spillage from a private irrigation well, so that the relevant inspections can be carried out. The Entitat de Sanejament d’Aigües-EPSAR has also inspected and repaired installations in the sewage network.
Experts from the Dirección General del Agua have pointed out that “the Las Fuentes beach is particularly sensitive to this type of problem, as it is a very enclosed beach, with water from fresh water springs”. Also, the water quality analyses carried out since 2006 had been classified as “excellent” as there had never been a similar problem.
On 27th July there was a meeting in the Municipal Offices attended by experts from the Dirección General del Agua, EPSAR, municipal experts and experts from the FACSA company, business people from the tourism sector and members of the municipal corporation. In view of the negative impact, at a financial and tourism level which the situation has had, the Mayor, Francisco Juan urged that “the point from which the contamination is coming must be found and a solution implemented so that it cannot happen again, and therefore we are making an important emergency financial effort to undertake all the actions which have been taken since the moment the problem appeared”. The Mayor Francisco Juan said that “it is already planned that in September the Integral Plan will be put in motion for the improvement of the sewage network and, if it is necessary, priority action will be taken on the affected area first”.
In the meantime, the Council has made available to beach goers a tourist train to take them from the Las Fuentes area to the nearby el Cargador beach, free of charge. “We apologise to residents and visitors who are suffering from this problem but, for the Council, we are doing everything in our power to resolve it. Alcossebre has four other beaches with blue flags which are in perfect condition, so you can enjoy them”, the mayor concluded.
