Costa del Sol town halls study use of seawater for beach footbaths

Town halls in the Axarquía on the eastern Costa del Sol are making plans to use sea water for beach footbaths. The move comes despite heavy rainfall throughout autumn, winter and spring leading to the reintroduction of footbaths, and in some cases, showers, on the Costa's beaches.

However, the use of beach showers and footbaths has become a symbol of the management of water resources in Malaga province in the recent years of extreme drought. This year, although Malaga city has announced that both footbaths and showers will be in use from 15 June, four of the five town halls in the Axarquía: Rincón de la Victoria, Vélez-Málaga, Algarrobo and Torrox, have decided to put only footbaths into operation "as an awareness-raising measure".

In Nerja, the showers and footbaths have been operational since Easter, but the town hall has announced that they will decide before 15 June whether this service will be maintained throughout the summer season.

The town halls are looking at ways to use sea water to supply the footbaths "as a measure of saving and awareness". Other coastal areas of Spain, including towns in Valencia and Benidorm, already use this system.

The Mancomunidad association of town halls on the eastern Costa del Sol-Axarquía is carrying out a study to implement this measure, which it describes as "pioneering", from 2026. Vélez-Málaga's councillor for tourism, Jesus Carlos Perez Atencia, explained on Tuesday 20 May that the Mancomunidad is applying for permission from the Junta de Andalucía.

"We have been working for a couple of years with the Junta, after this water crisis, to use sea water in the footbaths," explained Atencia, who said that they have submitted a request to the Junta de Andalucía. "We want it to be incorporated as a protocol in the beach plans," he said, adding, "There should be no problems because it is already being done in other areas of the Spanish coast."

He went on to say that "these things take time, they are not easy, but if we emphasise and keep working we can get it, but we depend on other administrations". He added, "If Benidorm has it, any other place can have it, we want to have it as soon as possible, another thing is these authorisations from the Junta and the state."