Drinking water collected from the air

Water is a matter of both global news and international importance so the lack of it in parts of Spain brings the problem of drought close to home.

At the moment it seems that the Spanish authorities are hoping that if they start to create additional desalination plants in coastal areas then that will go some way to helping resolve the situation.

In Gibraltar, with almost no natural springs, as well as collecting water in catchment areas from rain, the population is served by a desalination plant but salt water is used for flushing toilets, fire-fighting and street cleaning.

Spanish companies lead the way

Spain however is one of the leaders in the concept of creating pure drinking water using a process that captures humidity in the air and converts it to water.

There are at least three companies in Spain, Aquaer in Sevilla, AguaPARS in Malaga City, and Genaq in Lucena (Cordoba) who have been in this sector for some time and have proven machinery which works on electricity.

It is unlikely that they will be in a position in the immediate future to solve the water problems of a town or city, but they do offer a good option to urbanisations and smaller communities.

What is also interesting is that at least one of these companies offers a home system which creates just 10 litres per day using very little electricity and fits into  the average kitchen

With their cheapest machine costing €2,500 plus IVA they estimate that if you replace bottled water expenditure you will recover your cost over three years and then all additional water is free.

Water with no impurities

What is also very interesting is that water collected from humidity is generally much purer than bottled and other sources as there is simply no opportunity for minerals, bacteria or microplastics to get into the water.

Certainly it is an interesting concept which could become increasingly more important and affordable if drought conditions continue and their larger machines would certainly allow for the average home swimming pool to be topped up on a regular basis or to even fill a jacuzzi.