Madrid - A few years ago, Spaniards could see a church spire rising from the water where the village of Sant Roma was before it was replaced by the Sau reservoir in the mid-20th century. Now, however, the entire church and the ruins of some houses are visible in an unequivocal sign of the worst drought to affect Spain in decades.
The north-eastern region of Catalonia, where the Sau reservoir is located, is even in a "situation of national emergency," as regional Environment Minister Francesc Baltasar put it.
One of the Europe's most arid countries, Spain is also among the ones most affected by global warming. But experts also attribute the current lack of water supplies to erroneous policies and a wasteful use of water.
The authorities are feverishly trying to guarantee the availability of drinking water for the summer, with the Catalan authorities at odds with the central government over possible solutions.
Rains have gone down to 56 per cent of the average over the past six months in Spain, and water reservoirs are filled to only about a half of their capacity.
The drought is hitting especially the Mediterranean basin and the central region. Catalonia, where it has not rained properly for 18 months and where reservoirs are filled to only 20 per cent of their capacity, is experiencing its worst drought in 60 years.
If rain does not come, the drought could threaten not only agriculture, but drinking water supplies and Spain's vitally important tourism industry.
"If someone has to restrict the use of water, it should not be tourists," said Marti Sabria, a hoteliers' representative on the Costa Brava.
Catalan authorities have now imposed fines on people wasting drinking water, ranging from 30 euros (47 dollars) for washing a car to 3,000 euros for filling a large swimming pool.
The region is also preparing to bring in water by tanker ships from a desalination plant in Carboneras in the south-east, and possibly by train from elsewhere in Spain.
Catalonia also wants to temporarily divert 1.5 cubic hectometres of water per day from the river Segre - a tributary of the gigantic Ebro - to Barcelona, a plan which has been rejected by the central government as being harmful to the environment.
In 2004, the government cancelled a much bigger plan to pump water from the Ebro to coastal regions partly on environmental grounds. The project had sparked large-scale protests and divided the nation.
"We cannot leave five million people without water to drink," said Miquel Iceta of Catalonia's governing Catalan Socialist Party (PSC).
As an alternative to the Segre plan, Environment Minister Cristina Narbona is proposing a "water bank" allowing farmers having irrigation rights to sell water to others.
Water demand has so far been supplied mainly by building reservoirs, with Spain having one of the highest densities of reservoirs in the world.
The government now sees the solution in desalination plants, dozens of which are under construction, but are slammed by critics as expensive to use and wasteful of energy.
Many experts feel that Spain's entire approach to its water problems is wrong, and that the country should adapt its way of life to the scarcity of water rather than trying to ensure unlimited supplies.
Spain's agriculture relies on subsidized irrigation, and the tourism industry has encouraged the construction of swimming pools and golf courses.
Leaking pipes allow an estimated 20 per cent of the water they transport to go to waste, and residents still have a long way to go in becoming conscious of the need to control their use of water.
