Dealing with water management is a challenge that more and more countries are facing. Spain is one of them, given the scarcity of rainfall and the concerning situation of some of the country’s basins, which have recently led municipalities to implement emergency restrictive measures in numerous localities. Water scarcity is an increasingly widespread concern. Additionally, certain territories have special cases, such as being surrounded -by water, indeed- by the sea. Canary Islands have their own characteristics; the islands are heterogeneous in their geography, landscapes, orography… and also in terms of their available water resources and how they exploit them. Moreover, the islands’ natural resources must face urban and tourist growth resulting in a growing demand for water year after year.
It seems that in terms of water management, an additional level of difficulty is added, which can only be overcome by optimizing the integral water cycle. In this scenario, efficient, digital, and innovative management will play a key role. The goal is to maximize the performance of supply networks and try to reduce losses, as well as promote the reuse of resources and adapt them to the reality of each island and its sources of supply, considering that the sea and groundwater represent an important resource in them.
Effectively managing something that is not measured is complex. Therefore, the role of digitization is essential in the sector, and it is one of the guidelines setting the course for companies managing the integral water cycle. Technology provides vital information to prevent losses in water distribution networks due to leaks, breakages, or seepages. Thanks to digitization, the invisible becomes visible in real-time. A digitized network allows access to the necessary information to optimally manage water resources, being able to predict and estimate, for example, water and energy requirements in real-time for a population, measure unaccounted-for water volume, or improve infrastructure.
30 years of progress in the Canary Islands
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The digitization process of municipal water services managed by Aqualia in the Canary Islands is highly advanced thanks to the experience in the concession model and the high degree of development in innovation and proprietary technology. The company has been working for over 30 years serving more than 400,000 citizens of 30 municipalities in the archipelago.
Through the close public-private collaboration between the company and the Canarian municipalities, progress has been made in the sustainable management of services on the islands, where water is a highly valuable resource. One of these advancements is the deployment of remote meter reading systems, which results in greater accuracy and reliability of measurement, ensuring consumption readings under any circumstances, providing quick information to residents, avoiding travel, and saving work time. Furthermore, it allows for the immediate detection of breakdowns or other incidents in the measuring equipment, and therefore, alerting possible occupations in second homes or situations of risk for vulnerable people.
In the municipality of Güímar (Tenerife), 11,500 meters have been installed to date, and it is planned to install an additional 500 this year, reaching 100% of the meter park. In Santa María de Guía (Gran Canaria), 5,200 smart meters for remote reading have recently been installed as part of the first phase of the system’s modernization. In Guía de Isora (Tenerife), by the end of 2023, the vast majority of the remote reading meter park in the municipality was renewed.
Technology provides vital information to prevent losses in water distribution networks. / El Día
In the municipality of Gáldar (Gran Canaria), the drinking water supply network has an enormous length, reaching 327 kilometers. The terrain through which the pipes run, with pronounced height variations, particularly complicates pressure control, and to overcome this obstacle, Aqualia implemented a Plan for Digitalization, Automation, and Hydraulic Performance Improvement in the town. One of its focuses is the sectorization of the network, a technique that involves dividing a network into several smaller, limited, and homogeneous sub-networks (or sectors). This way, the management of the data to be captured and analyzed is faster and more reliable, as well as the detection of anomalies, such as leaks or pressure deficiencies. Additionally, an autonomous sensor system has been implemented in the supply network, acting as water leak locators to precisely determine their location from the control room.
The Gáldar supply network has been divided into seven large sectors, and in each of these, large meters have been installed to remotely control the volume of water supplied to each area and detect a possible abnormal increase in distributed volume, which is usually indicative of breakdowns. The data recorded by these sensors are dumped daily into a database for control and monitoring by Aqualia’s technicians. All these measures implemented enhance control over the network and significantly reduce water losses, an essential element in a water scarcity situation that has already led to the declaration of a water emergency in various parts of the archipelago.
More innovation and less environmental impact.
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To address the changing challenges, such as the climate emergency or population fluctuations,The Necessity of Water Management Innovation in the Canary Islands
In the island context, innovation in water management is essential, especially with the combination of alternative sources such as desalination and water reuse emerging as solutions to ensure sustainable water supply. These technologies not only help conserve limited natural resources but also contribute to resilience in the face of changing environments. Aqualia is investing in the Canary Islands as a platform for development and a spearhead of new advancements in the water industry. From this investment, Aqualia Wave is born, with a focus on developing technologies and strategies for water treatment in the Canary Islands. The Wave Project, an internationally-focused research centre to be built in Adeje (Tenerife) next to the La Caleta desalination plant, integrates desalination, waste valorisation, and renewable energies.
Aqualia Wave will be established as a multidisciplinary centre where technologies from both Aqualia and international partners will be developed, scaled up, and subsequently validated. The aim is to optimize desalination processes, valorise waste such as brine for raw material production, and integrate renewable energies into water treatment processes. It is expected that Wave will be inaugurated by mid-year and fully operational by the end of the same year. Initially, two research projects already underway at Aqualia will be installed at Wave: Sea4Value, a research project financed by the European Commission focusing on extracting critical raw materials from desalination brine; and Rewaise, another EU-funded research project aiming to optimize and decarbonize water cycles in line with the circular economy concept, recovering minerals of interest from brine.
Collaboration at All Levels
It is imperative for companies to find in the public sector an ally to continue advancing in the protection of water resources. Public-private collaboration opens avenues to increase the positive impacts of water management and to ensure that the sector and infrastructure are prepared to face future changes.
In the tourism sector, which plays a crucial role in the economy of the Canary Islands, there are already hotel projects committing to operate with 100% green energy or adopting circular practices such as using regenerated water in green areas and smart irrigation solutions. The water service management sector and the tourism sector have a responsibility to care for the environment in which they operate and their local communities, aware that their impacts have the potential to contribute to their development and well-being. However, it is a mistake to think that this is the only sector interconnected with water.
Economy, administrations, and citizens all rely on water resources to develop and prosper. Therefore, it is essential to raise awareness at all levels to promote responsible water consumption, enhance water savings and reuse, and strengthen public-private collaboration.
In the Canary Islands, awareness campaigns are being developed periodically, especially in highly touristic areas. In Puerto de la Cruz in 2023, a campaign was launched to promote responsible water consumption under the slogan ‘I am a Water Saver’. The aim was to regulate water consumption in showers and foot baths in the bathing areas of Puerto de la Cruz, such as beaches and natural pools, promoting a more sustainable use of water. A more extensive campaign is the “100% Healthy Desalinated Water” campaign launched by Aqualia in four municipalities in Tenerife: Adeje, Guía de Isora, Santiago del Teide, and Granadilla de Abona. The initiative was initiated at the request of the municipalities, following the proposals of the Insular Hydrological Plan to promote desalination as a solution to drought and water reduction in aquifers. The campaign focused on promoting the consumption of desalinated water among the citizens of these municipalities in Tenerife, who benefit from improved water quality due to the action of the desalination plants.
Efficient water management in island territories presents very specific needs that allow for a balance between economic development and water resource sustainability. In this context, the Canary archipelago is developing promising initiatives through public-private collaboration, yielding highly notable results.
