The Balearic Water Agency (Abaqua) has initiated the processing of an emergency contract to install a new pipe in the auditorium of Caló de s’Oli after suffering two breaks this year, the last one on Monday.
This means that the current pipe is still discharging sewage and will continue to do so until the new one is installed, so operators are using trucks to “minimize” the impact of the discharges. What happened in mid-April when the old asbestos cement pipe failed has occurred again, although on the first occasion it was possible to repair and replace some parts.
According to sources from the Department for the Environment, “the new pipe will follow the route outlined in the project already drafted for the comprehensive rehabilitation of the sewage network linked to the treatment plant of Sant Antoni-Sant Josep”.
It should be recalled that in 2017 the municipalities of Sant Josep and Sant Antoni presented the project for the management of the coast of the Bay of Portmany from Port des Torrent to Cala Gració in which several actions are included, including improving and rearranging the sanitation structures throughout the area to avoid discharges into the sea, as well as minimizing the visual impact of the existing pumping wells huts. However, this will not be a reality in the short term since the drafting of the execution project and the strategic environmental assessment began last June.
Operators clean the area J.A. Riera
Abaqua and City Council look for location for new pumping station
In this regard, in early September last year the council submitted a report to Abaqua on the proposed relocation of the Caló de s’Oli WWTP and a few days later the management of Abaqua requested the exact location of the proposed land and its distance from the neighborhood plots.
To date, the Abaqua “is still awaiting a formal response from the City Council”, clarify the same sources. Even so, its relocation requires the transfer by the City Council of the use of land with a minimum usable area and length to allow its construction, road access and electricity supply.
In addition, it should be borne in mind, they insist, that the treatment of urban wastewater is considered a “potentially annoying” activity from the point of view of odors and noise, so it cannot be in areas adjacent to homes. For their part, Sant Josep insist that they have offered “various alternatives” to Abaqua to install the pumping, but “they have not accepted any”, so they are still looking for the most suitable place.
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