The public water utility company Acosol – which comes under the auspices of the Western Costa del Sol Council of Municipalities – has made a firm commitment to sustainable tourism and respect for the environment. This is clearly demonstrated in the services it offers to 11 member town halls, providing recycled water for the irrigation of golf courses and garden areas.
During 2014, Acosol supplied 5,676,028 cubic metres of recycled water to golf courses, and the company maintains this commitment to nature and the area’s surroundings with a tourism model promoted by the Western Costa del Sol Council of Municipalities and focused on quality and respect for the environment.
The council is making great progress in this direction, contributing to the conservation of this resource, sustainability and care of the environment, as the use of recycled and regenerated water for golf course irrigation is of vital importance to an area such as the Costa del Sol. The re-use of water also represents a saving for the La Concepción dam’s reserves, as well as for the area’s aquifers.
Acosol currently supplies 41 golf courses on the western Costa del Sol, and plans to cover all courses in this area in the short term. In addition, thanks to the latest work carried out last summer, as part of an agreement between Acuamed and Acosol, eight courses will be included in the initiative: Marbella Golf, Santa Clara, Río Real, Greenlife, La Siesta, Los Lagos, Los Olivos and Santana Golf.
An average of 300,000 cubic metres per golf course
The water supplied by Acosol each year represents an average of 300,000 cubic metres per golf course, comprising 2,500 cubic metres a day for an 18-hole course. This total varies according to the weather prevailing at a particular time of the year, as from October to March – depending on the rainfall – courses have greater opportunities to use rainwater or their own resources.
The company takes into account the fact that golf plays an important and indispensable role in easing the seasonal nature of tourism in this destination, and is a key component of the area’s economic engine – a situation that is highlighted by its support of the work undertaken by golf courses in the western part of the Costa del Sol.
As for the quality of recycled water used for irrigation, Acosol uses the Royal Decree 1620/2007 (dated 7 December) as a basis in determining the necessary requisites for supplying regenerated water, the procedures involved in securing the licences required by law, the respective regulations related to this approved usage and the specific aspects of each case.
Acosol’s aim with these initiatives is to continue working within a framework that ensures maximum respect of the environment while providing a satisfactory service to users.
Launched in 1994 with the objective of optimising water supply and sanitation management services, the company is a pioneer in Europe when it comes to the number of golf courses using recycled water for irrigation, a status demonstrated and guaranteed by its progress to date.
