The Directorate General of Water Resources will take action this afternoon in the wetland area of Son Bou with the aim of preventing eutrophication, promoting water renewal and guaranteeing the sanitary conditions of the beach.

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Intervention in the Son Bou wetland area

Over the last few months, the increase in the water level at Prat de Son Bou, due to the closure of the natural outlet to the sea, has generated a significant risk situation. This situation threatens the functioning of the wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) of the Sant Jaume urbanisation, as the effluent has no outlet, which could cause an exponential increase in eutrophication and a decrease in oxygen in the wetland area.

The intervention has been planned to ensure that environmental conditions are respected and negative impacts are minimised. The General Directorate of Water Resources will be responsible for the actions for the controlled emptying of the surplus water of the Prat, while the Alaior Town Council will be in charge of the sanitary control of the beach.

The operation will be carried out by opening a trench approximately 40 metres long to connect the Prat with the sea. The width of the ditch will be defined naturally by the flow of water, and the highest point of the ditch will be 70 cm to overcome the sand dune.

A resolution has been obtained from the Directorate General for Natural Environment stating that it does not affect the Natura 2000 network, as well as authorisation from the Directorate General for Coasts to open the gully. Before excavation, the water level in the wet area will be monitored by means of graduated stakes driven into the sand. These will make it possible to quantify the lowering of the water level.

Once the trench has been opened, the level will be continuously monitored and, when it has dropped sufficiently to ensure that there will be no effect on the infrastructure, it will be closed again with the extracted sand. In addition, measures will be implemented to monitor the quality of the bathing water on Son Bou Beach.

The Alaior Town Council will carry out this monitoring, preventively closing a 100-metre stretch of beach on each side of the point where the water comes out into the sea, delimited with safety tape. Three daily water quality samples will be taken: one in the centre of the outlet to the sea and two outside the delimited area. The results of the analyses will be sent daily to the beach surveillance service and to the Alaior Town Council.

This action protocol will be maintained throughout the drainage process and until all the analyses confirm that the water is suitable for bathing. The intervention is essential to restore the correct functioning of the WWTP, protect the biodiversity of Prat de Son Bou and guarantee public health in the area.