Save water. It all starts with you
With the aim of encouraging the adoption of good water-saving practices, the Vila do Bispo City Council launched the “Think Before You Spend” campaign this month. The campaign targets the general public, as well as the largest water consumers in the municipality, particularly tourists staying in hotels and local accommodations during the summer.
The campaign aims to highlight the importance of everyone’s role in this vital cause for the future of the region through a clear and assertive message, with bilingual content in Portuguese and English. It emphasizes that every moment of carelessness and inaction worsens an already critical situation, and small changes in individual routines can make a significant impact on the whole.
This campaign calls for collective action and appeals to individual responsibility. As part of an integrated communication strategy, the campaign distributes a diverse set of materials in public spaces, the press, hospitality venues, other tourist and commercial entities, schools, parish councils, and various municipal services.
It’s important to note that Vila do Bispo, along with other municipalities in the Algarve, must reduce urban water consumption by 10% this year compared to 2023 levels.
The Resolution of the Council of Ministers No. 80/2024, dated June 21
In compliance with Resolutions of the Council of Ministers No. 26-A/2024, dated February 20, and No. 80/2024, dated June 21, which declared a state of alert in the Algarve and set out a wide range of measures to significantly increase water savings across the region, the Vila do Bispo municipality has already implemented the following measures:
- Reduction of pressure in the public water supply network where operational conditions permit;
- Monitoring and control of the supply network;
- Active detection of water leaks;
- Installation of smart meters in the localities of Barão de São Miguel, Burgau, and Sagres, enabling automatic meter readings, increased efficiency in measurement, and reduction of apparent losses;
- Suspension of irrigation for all public green spaces;
- Closure of fountains, drinking fountains, and public taps;
- Increase in water tariffs according to guidelines from the Water and Waste Services Regulation Authority (ERSAR).
Now, with this campaign, the municipality is calling for greater involvement from the hospitality sector during the peak tourist season and from all citizens.
