The bad situation caused by the prolonged drought is alleviated in Andalusia and, to a lesser extent, in Catalonia, thanks to the Easter rains. 

The storm Nelson has dampened most of the Easter processions in Andalusia, however, it has eased the ongoing drought in the region. Over the past week, rainfall has increased water reserves in the Guadalquivir basin by more than 1,043 cubic hectometres, raising the reserve by nearly 13 percentage points. As of Monday, Guadalquivir reservoirs were at 43.01% capacity, compared to 30.29% just a week ago, marking the highest levels since spring 2021. The rainfall has also brought relief to Catalonia, another region severely affected by the drought. The rain has been a boon for many of Andalusia’s reservoirs, which were critically low, and has pushed back the prospect of harsh restrictions the Andalusian government had anticipated if there was no rainfall before summer. Andalusian President, Juan Manuel Moreno, confirmed on Monday that it would no longer be necessary to transport water by ship this summer, a measure discussed in a meeting with the Minister of Ecological Transition, Teresa Ribera, in late January if there was no rain for 30 days leading up to summer. One of the immediate effects of the rainfall, highlighted by Moreno, is that the Sierra Boyera reservoir, which was the first to dry up due to the drought last March, can now supply water to the regions of Los Pedroches and El Guadiato. Over 80.000 residents who relied on this reservoir have had to go without tap water for 11 months due to the poor state of the water from the La Colada reservoir, which was used as an alternative. However, the regional administration is urging caution. Provincial drought committees are set to meet in the coming days to decide on specific measures after analyzing the runoff data. More than half a million Andalusians have faced water use restrictions since the beginning of the year, particularly in Campo de Gibraltar in Cadiz, and in La Axarquia and Costa del Sol in Malaga. Following last week’s rain, all of Cadiz’s reservoirs are nearing 30% capacity. The Hurones reservoir, which supplies nearly a million residents of Cadiz, began to release water on Sunday afternoon after exceeding 92% of its capacity. Despite starting the year at 34%, it is now one of the fullest basins in the country. The increase in the Hurones reservoir has led the municipalities of Medina Sidonia and Chiclana de la Frontera to ease drought measures in their cities, which have been affected by low pressure or even nightly cuts for months. Measures will also be adopted in Cadiz based on the drought commission’s determinations. In particular, the province of Cadiz, specifically in Grazalema, has received the most rainfall during Easter, with 478 liters per square meter, followed by 274 in Cardeña (Cordoba) and 260 in Cazalla de la Sierra (Seville). The intra-community basins managed by the Andalusian government have also collected dammed water: the Andalusian Mediterranean has received 316 cubic hectometres, 27.3% of its capacity; the Guadalete-Barbate demarcation is at 27.1% and the Tinto-Odiel-Piedras-Chanza has reached 43% of its total capacity. The recent rains have given Malaga’s reservoirs some relief. As of Monday, they are at 23.6% of their capacity with 144 cubic hectometres, a figure expected to rise in the coming days thanks to runoff. The total dammed water is 30 hectometres more than last week, but 80 less than a year ago, hence the situation is still declared as exceptional drought with severe shortage. Since February, water consumption in the province has been limited to 160 liters per day per inhabitant throughout Malaga and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development ratified this in the order published last Holy Wednesday in the Official Gazette of the Andalusian Government (BOJA). The document also maintains the prohibition of filling swimming pools except those located in hotels, campsites, sports clubs and those for sanitary use or filled with seawater. The positive data has encouraged irrigators. From Feragua, the federation that brings together Andalusian irrigators, its president, Pedro Parias, has asked the managing bodies that regulate the basins to review water allocations to give relief to those farmers who bear restrictions of up to 100%. Again, the Board has appealed to prudence: «There is no doubt that it is an improvement, but we have to see if it is mild or allows us to make a more hopeful decision for the Andalusians,» said the counselor of the Presidency, Antonio Sanz. From the CHG, its president, Joaquín Paez, is a bit more optimistic and this morning in statements to RNE has advanced that the allocations compared to last year, which were 385 cubic hectometres, will improve a lot, although without reaching normality. It is estimated that between 1,000 and 1,100 cubic hectometres could be released, although this will depend on the temperatures recorded in the coming weeks.