Malta’s water resources ‘among scarcest in the world’, newly-formed association warns

The newly-formed Malta Water Association is warning that urgent action is needed to protect Malta’s water resources which “are among the scarcest in the world and under severe stress.”

Reversing this unsustainable trend will require “difficult decisions” but these measures will only work if the population is informed and encouraged to play its part, the association says.

In its first statement the MWA notes that with annual rainfall of 559mm and a high population density Malta can only provide 58 cubic metres of water per person. The European Union considers any country with less than 2,000m3 per capita as having “very low” water resources.

Due to the shortage of natural water resources Malta is increasingly relying on the costly and energy consuming desalination process which accounts for 56% of Malta’s water supply according to statistics issued by the National Office of Statistics yesterday. Reverse Osmosis Plants consume nearly 4% of Malta’s electricity supply.

“Over-exploitation of the groundwater reserves has taken place over decades and continues today well above the natural recharge by rainwater. Consequently, the water resource is diminishing and undergoing invasion by seawater,” the MWA states.

The newly set organisation laments the “acute lack of appreciation for the value of naturally occurring freshwater resources.”

“This is demonstrated by a neglect of traditional, highly effective rainfall harvesting solutions such as the construction of water cisterns in households “with the consequence that the country routinely experiences flooding whenever it rains (in winter), and suffers from water scarcity in summer.”

While the private exploitation of ground water remains unquantified but estimated at 22 million cubic metres which is extracted from 7,431 registered private boreholes , NSO statistics show that a 31% decline in ground water extraction by the Water Services Corporatio in the past decade. This decrease is attributed to the increasing salinity of ground water which has to be blended with desalinated water to ensure that it is fit for consumption.  The increase in salinity is attributed to uncontrolled extraction from  private boreholes. Natural  aquifers also suffer nitrate pollution due to fertilizers, leakage from the sewage network and waste from animal farms.

The government is presently installing meters on private boreholes with a view of introducing a pricing mechanism in the future.

806 boreholes drilled in Malta are not used for either agricultural or industrial purposes, but exclusively for domestic use. 91 boreholes are also used for industrial purposes and a further 37 boreholes are used specifically for the production of food and beverages.  All these get their energy for free.

The founding members consist of a small number of local water experts including Ing. Dirk De Ketelaere (Hydrologist/Water Resources Management Engineer), Ing. Marco Cremona (Hydrologist/Water Treatment Engineer), Perit Philip Grech (Sewerage and Drainage Engineer), Dr. Gordon Knox (Geologist), Peppi Gauci (Permaculture expert), Keith Buhagiar (Archaeologist specialising in Medieval Maltese Hydrology) and Annalise Falzon (Environmental Educator).

The launch of the Malta Water Association was held this afternoon at the Archbishop’s Palace, Archbishop Street. The venue in itself is an example of sustainable water use due to its reliance on a fresh water spring, which appeared on a map dating from 1566 and which still flows today.