Tourism’s Impact on Water Resources in the Canary Islands
Tourism consumes approximately 11% of the water used in the Canary Islands. However, contrary to popular belief, most of this water expenditure does not occur in hotel showers or resort swimming pools. According to two studies by the Renovables Foundation, around 80% of the water associated with tourism activities arises from indirect consumption linked to the entire value chain supporting the sector.
Studies Funded by the Government
The foundation has released two reports financed by the Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge. The first report, Water Consumption in the Canary Islands and Balearic Islands: Analysis and Proposals for Reduction, examines the relationship between tourism and water resources in both archipelagos. The second report, Assessment of Water Infrastructure and Innovative Solutions in Tourist Islands: Tenerife, Lanzarote, and El Hierro, evaluates the situation of these three Canary Islands and the capacity of their supply systems to address tourism pressure and climate change.
Structural Water Stress
The studies conclude that the Canary Islands face structural water stress, exacerbated by natural resource scarcity, growing demand, and climate vulnerability.
Direct vs. Indirect Water Consumption
The first report differentiates between direct and indirect consumption. Direct consumption includes water used in hotels, apartments, swimming pools, golf courses, restaurants, and marinas. Indirect consumption encompasses all the water needed to produce the goods and services that facilitate tourism activities.
According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, about 80% of total water consumption associated with tourism is indirect, occurring within the value chain.
Indirect Consumption Examples
Indirect consumption includes:
- Food production
- Agriculture supplying hotels and restaurants
- Industrial laundries
- Manufacturing of materials
- Services related to tourism activities
The report states that “agriculture and food production constitute nearly 75% of the total freshwater consumed by the tourism sector,” shifting the focus away from the visible consumption by tourists and residents.
Tourist vs. Resident Water Use
Research also compiles various studies on water consumption by tourists in island destinations. A resident in Spain typically uses between 127 and 140 litres of water daily, while a tourist can consume between 300 and 1,000 litres per day, depending on accommodation type, season, and activities undertaken. This figure is particularly high in luxury establishments, with studies indicating consumption levels ranging from 600 to 1,000 litres per guest per night in luxury hotels in the Canary Islands. In Tenerife, hotels rated four stars show water usage between 193 and 258 litres per tourist per night, not including water used in gardens.
According to the Renovables Foundation, the tourism sector accounts for 11% of total water consumption in the Canary archipelago, rising to 13.4% in Tenerife.
The Pandemic Highlighting Tourism-Water Link
The authors use the pandemic period as a clear example of the relationship between tourist influx and water demand in the Canary Islands, recording significant drops. In Lanzarote, data from Canal Gestión Lanzarote in the report show a “77.5% reduction in water use for tourism and/or industrial purposes.” These figures illustrate the direct impact of tourism on water demand in island territories.
Structural Water Scarcity in the Canary Islands
The second report focuses on Tenerife, Lanzarote, and El Hierro. The researchers describe the archipelago as “one of the main tourist destinations in Europe and a natural laboratory for analysing the relationship between water and tourism in island environments.” The study asserts that a combination of a dry climate, scarce and irregular rainfall, island conditions, volcanic nature, and high numbers of tourists creates a situation of “structural scarcity of this resource.”
The Renovables Foundation highlights that tourism primarily concentrates in arid coastal areas, where natural resources are more limited, and dependency on artificial water production systems is greater. “Tourist hotspots coincide with already vulnerable water regions,” the first report warned.
Tenerife: Population and Urban Pressure
Tenerife is the main tourist and population hub of the Canary Islands. Data from the study indicates the island welcomed 7.2 million tourists in 2024, with a population close to 966,500. The research asserts that high population density, coastal urbanisation, and mass tourism exert significant pressure on water resources. For decades, supply primarily relied on groundwater, with over 1,000 galleries and more than 400 wells drilled, cumulatively exceeding 1,600 kilometres in length.
However, increasing demand and ongoing exploitation of aquifers have caused declines in water table levels and salinisation issues in coastal areas. Consequently, Tenerife has progressively increased the proportion of desalination and reused wastewater in its supply system.
Lanzarote: Almost Total Dependence on Desalination
Lanzarote is described in the report as one of Europe’s driest environments, with average annual rainfall often below 100 to 150 millimetres. The Renovables Foundation claims that, given the natural water balance and traditional capture methods, “currently only 3% of the island’s needs could be met.” In response, Lanzarote was a pioneer in Europe in the use of desalination, having opened the first urban desalination plant in 1964. Since then, the island has evolved toward near-total dependence on this technology for supplying both residents and tourists. The report notes that “almost all water for urban and tourist consumption comes from desalination plants.”
El Hierro: A Different Model
In contrast, El Hierro enjoys a different reality. Lower tourist pressure and a greater natural ability to recharge aquifers have historically allowed for a more balanced relationship between available resources and demand. The island primarily relies on groundwater, supplemented by desalination and reuse of treated wastewater. Nonetheless, the study indicates that increasing climate variability and declining rainfall also require bolstering the resilience of its water system.
A Scenario of Structural Water Stress
Both reports converge on a shared diagnosis. The first concludes that “the combination of tourism growth, natural water scarcity, and climate change creates a scenario of structural water stress.” The second arrives at a similar assessment while analysing the water systems of Tenerife, Lanzarote, and El Hierro. The Renovables Foundation asserts that the tourist development of the Canary Islands has coincided with an increasing reliance on unconventional water sources, particularly desalination and the reuse of regenerated water, while natural resources face heightened vulnerability due to reduced rainfall, aquifer overexploitation, and climate change effects.
The studies maintain that these factors have turned water management into one of the foremost challenges for the future of island territories.
