The Andalusian government's spokesperson and Sustainability Minister, Ramón Fernández-Pacheco, said on Wednesday that the data on the water levels in the reservoirs of Andalusia can only be described as "dramatic", since none of the basins have reached 30 percent of their capacity.
"Andalusia today has more than 500 cubic hectometers less than we had the same week last year," the minister stressed during an institutional visit to the City Council of Gádor (Almería), where he pointed out that the situation is even "more worrying" in provinces like Almería, where reservoirs such as the one in Cuevas del Almanzora do not reach 15%.
"We have been carrying a series of months in which it has barely rained, and that has consequences that we all notice. It is more evident in the agriculture sector, but also in the natural environments that are suffering from this drought, as well as for industry and tourism," he argued.
Fernández-Pacheco emphasized that water is "essential" for Andalusia, and that in the face of the situation of the reservoirs, responsible public administrations can only "invest, invest and invest in infrastructure that makes us more resistant to this drought situation."
"The Andalusian government has already launched two drought decrees. We are working on a third decree that will be issued imminently, in a plan of solutions and works against drought with a budget of 4 billion euros," he added, maintaining that hydraulic infrastructures are the "engine" that drives public works in the region.