Lanzarote extends water emergency on its islands for six months

The Insular Water Council of Lanzarote has approved the third extension of the declaration of a state of water emergency in the islands of Lanzarote and La Graciosa for a period of six months. The agreement, adopted in the ordinary session of the General Board held on Friday, July 31, 2026, was made public via an announcement on August 18, 2026, in the Official Gazette of the Canary Islands number 174, dated August 31, 2026, with case reference 496-2026.

The extension responds to the reasoned request of the Lanzarote Water Consortium and is based on articles 199.2 and 199.3 of the Canary Islands Hydraulic Public Domain Regulations, approved by Decree 86/2002, of July 2, and article 107 of Law 12/1990, of July 26, on Canary Islands Waters. The new period of validity is calculated from February 4, 2026.

Background of the declaration

The state of water emergency was initially declared by Agreement of the General Board on January 14, 2025, and published on February 4, 2025, in the Official Gazette of the Canary Islands number 23. Since then, it has been subject to successive extensions:

• First extension for six months via Vice-Presidency Resolution No. 2025-0329, dated August 1, 2025.
• Ratification by Agreement of the General Board on October 15, 2025, published on November 7, 2025, in the Official Gazette of the Canary Islands number 222.
• Third extension, the one now approved, for six months starting from February 4, 2026.

Measures and legal effects

With the new extension, all measures adopted in the original declaration of water emergency remain in force. The agreement also incorporates two legal effects relevant to water management in the insular territory:

• The implicit declaration of public utility or social interest of the necessary actions.
• The authorization for the expropriation of assets or rights, once the procedure for the necessity of occupation has been completed, provided that the adoption of measures so requires.

Publication and dissemination

The agreement is published in the Official Gazette of the Canary Islands for the general knowledge of all affected parties, by reason of public interest, in application of article 45.1 of Law 39/2015, of October 1, on the Common Administrative Procedure of Public Administrations. Likewise, it will be disseminated on the notice board and on the website of the Insular Water Council of Lanzarote. The announcement was signed in Arrecife on August 18, 2026, by the Vice President, Domingo Manuel Cejas Curbelo.

The third extension confirms that water scarcity remains a structural problem in Lanzarote and La Graciosa, where the supply depends on extraordinary measures. For the residents and businesses of the islands, the continuation of the emergency means that restrictions and intervention mechanisms over the public hydraulic domain remain in place at least until February 2027, with the possibility of expropriation of assets to guarantee the supply.

Source: Official Gazette of the Canary Islands, no. 174, August 31, 2026, V. Announcements, Other announcements, page 33698 (official reference: file 496-2026).