Bathing at Playa Jardín, in the north of Tenerife, is once again recommended after being closed for almost a year due to faecal bacteria in the water. Public Health has confirmed that the water meets optimal conditions for bathing, and the Puerto de la Cruz Town Hall celebrates its ”reopening just before the summer season”. Meanwhile, the Stop Sea Discharges platform insists that ”comprehensive, transparent, and long-lasting” management of the municipality’s sanitation and treatment is still necessary.
In this regard, residents of the Punta Brava neighbourhood are demanding the cleaning of Playa Jardín’s sand, ”essential to guarantee appropriate hygienic and sanitary conditions for users and public health”. ”We are concerned about the health risk that the sand may pose as a reservoir of pathogens, even after the apparent improvement in water quality,” they noted. Residents stress that this decision should not be understood as the end of the problem. ”From our platform, we will remain vigilant, proactive, and committed to working for transparency,” they add.
From March to June last year, as can be read in the Public Health report, ”uninterrupted” values of E.coli and Enterococci were detected, ”compatible” with ”insufficient” water quality. This document also warned that exposure of the population to high levels of faecal contamination increases the risk of contracting diseases transmitted by bathing waters, including respiratory diseases, diarrhoea, vomiting, or meningitis.
Despite the recommendation against bathing during these months, it was not prohibited, so it has been commonplace to see bathers at Playa Jardín. Meanwhile, analyses showed values of up to 1,000 bacterial units of E.coli per millilitre of sample, far above the 250 required for the water quality to be considered ”excellent” and the 500 required for it to be rated as ”sufficient or good”. This data comes from the results of samples taken on 23 September at the three points established by Public Health.
The spills at Playa Jardín have led the Prosecutor’s Office to open an investigation to determine whether the events constitute an environmental crime, as outlined in Article 325 of the Penal Code.
Executed Actions
This Monday, in a symbolic act, Mayor Leopoldo Afonso, First Deputy Mayor David Hernández, and Second Deputy Mayor Alonso Acevedo removed the buoys and signs restricting access to the beach. Puerto de la Cruz authorities have assured that, to solve the issue, they have carried out works on the sewage and rainwater networks and have promoted the new concession of the integral water cycle.
To mitigate the economic impact that water pollution has caused in the area, the Finance Department has reduced the waste tax for hoteliers, shopkeepers, and restaurateurs by 50% and has launched a subsidy line of 100,000, the Town Hall assures.
Pending Tasks
The submarine outfall responsible for discharging the waters from the Valle de La Orotava treatment plant has had a fissure since 2020 about ten metres from the coast. According to the report prepared by the environmental consultancy Elittoral, the treated water from the WWTP ”is not being discharged at a sufficient distance to ensure the dispersion of the plume before reaching the coastline”. The repair works have not yet begun.
This document, prepared in January 2025, contains the results of analyses carried out at 13 stations around the Punta Brava submarine outfall. At one point, values of up to 68,000 bacterial units of E.coli and 19,000 of intestinal Enterococci were detected on 15 October.
The Island Water Board of Tenerife (CIAT), responsible for the service, put out a tender on 25 March for the rehabilitation of the submarine outfall of the Valle de La Orotava for 2.7 million euros. According to the document published on the State contracting platform, the maximum execution period was 16 months. No company applied, and the tender remained vacant. From the island’s council, they assure that ”the plan is to award it later this month”.
On the other hand, the works to create a new Regional WWTP for the Valle de LA Orotava are also awaiting awarding, to be put out for tender in July for 25 million euros.
