The general assembly of the Island Water Council of Fuerteventura has unanimously ratified the location of the new desalination plant in the Matas Blancas area, in Costa Calma, part of the municipality of Pájara. This decision represents a crucial step forward for the drafting of the project, which will be jointly promoted by the Cabildo de Fuerteventura and the Government of the Canary Islands.
The primary objective of this infrastructure is to decentralize water production, reducing reliance on the Puerto del Rosario desalination plant and ensuring better supply across the entire island territory. The initial capacity of the plant is estimated to be between 10,000 and 15,000 cubic meters daily, with plans for progressive expansion.
“"Within the Cabildo de Fuerteventura's planning to improve water supply, one of the priority actions is the implementation of a production center in the southern area, to reduce dependence on Puerto del Rosario and improve flow throughout the Island."
The selection of Matas Blancas as the site was based on a preliminary study of alternatives, which considered technical criteria such as ease of communications, access to the area, prior anthropization of the land, availability of electrical supply, and possibilities for integrating renewable energies. Additionally, the protection of sensitive areas such as ZEPA (Special Protection Areas for Birds), ZEC (Special Areas of Conservation), and LIC (Sites of Community Importance), as well as flood-risk zones, was taken into account.
Once the location is approved, the agreement from the Island Water Council will be forwarded to the Ministry of Territorial Policy, Territorial Cohesion and Water of the Government of the Canary Islands. This step is essential to initiate the administrative procedures required for the project's development, its subsequent authorization, contracting, and execution of the works.
