Hotels on Greece’s islands could soon be filling their swimming pools with seawater due to worsening drought conditions, under new legislation currently under parliamentary review.
According to AP, over the past two years, Greece has experienced severe drought, with the influx of tourists during peak season placing additional pressure on water supplies, particularly on popular island destinations.
Elena Rapti, Deputy Minister of Tourism, announced government plans to remove existing legal barriers, allowing hotels to pump seawater into private pools as a response to dwindling freshwater reserves.
“This (draft legislation) regulates the framework for carrying out seawater extraction and pumping it for swimming pools. The focus, of course, is to conserve water resources,” Rapti told a parliament committee.
Her remarks, made on Monday during discussions on a broader hospitality industry reform bill, were published on the Greek parliament’s website on Tuesday.
Source: AP