The president of Águas do Algarve predicts that the volume of treated wastewater could irrigate half of the approximately 40 golf courses in the region from 2025 onwards, allowing for more efficient management of water resources.
Speaking to Lusa, António Eusébio said that the estimate results from a planned investment of 23 million euros until 2025 in the Water Efficiency Plan, for the production of treated water for reuse in irrigation.
«With this investment, we estimate an increase from 1,4 to eight cubic hectometers per year, 71% of which will be used by golf courses», highlighted the president of the company that manages the multi-municipal water supply and sanitation system in the Algarve .
According to that person, the golf courses represent «currently a consumption of around 15 cubic hectometers of water per year», with Águas do Algarve's objective being «to reach the end of 2025 with eight cubic hectometers to be used for irrigation, essentially of golf courses».
On the other hand, he states, reused water from Waste Water Treatment Plants (WWTP) «can be used not only for watering golf courses, but also for agricultural watering, washing streets and watering public green spaces».
The person responsible is one of the guest speakers at the seminar on wastewater management on golf courses, organized by the Portuguese Golf Federation and which is taking place today in a hotel in the city of Lagos, in the district of Faro.
«It is an extremely important meeting, where I want to leave to all private parties [the idea] that it is essential that we work together to obtain new sources of water, new reserves and the reuse of water, aiming to contribute to ensuring the balance between supply and demand», he highlighted.
In this sense, he highlighted, «since reuse is not a new source, it allows water to be maintained in dams and boreholes, groundwater that is used for the current irrigation of most of these golf courses».
“Therefore, when using reused water from treatment plants, the water will remain upstream for future use in supply, essentially in public supply,” he noted.
For António Eusébio, effective water management «is a global challenge», but it is of enormous importance in the Algarve, a region that is going through «one of the most critical moments in recent decades in terms of water scarcity».
The official announced that Águas do Algarve is working on five water efficiency projects with funds from the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR): the second phase of Vila Real de Santo António, in Vilamoura and Quinta do Lago (Loulé), in Albufeira Poente and Boavista (Lagos).
The largest projects are those in Vilamoura and Quinta do Lago, with an investment of 14,7 million euros.
In Vilamoura, around 2025 kilometers of piping will be completed by 12 to the seaside resort's WWTP, for the irrigation of five golf courses and the irrigation of green spaces.
At Quinta do Lago, also to be completed in 2025, the expansion of the adduction system for three more golf courses and the irrigation of other green spaces.
As for Albufeira Poente and Boavista, António Eusébio said that «not being so large, they are projects that are already being executed», with the Boavista project expected to be completed in 2024.
«All these measures and investments are essential to ensure a greater balance between demand and availability of water resources. We all have to be able to do more and do better to face the challenges of climate change,” he concluded.
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