Can one day the Ebro flows reach the center of Catalonia? The idea of ??connecting the supply networks of the Barcelona region with the supply networks of the Ebro often reappears as an alternative to face the scarcity of resources in the central territory of Catalonia. And, in this sense, the environmental commission of the College of Road Engineers has made the proposal to interconnect the large supply networks of Catalonia to “optimize” resources. The College’s document does not detail whether the interconnection must be made with the Tarragona CAT network (which carries water from the Ebro to Camp de Tarragona and to Cunit) or through the area served by the Segre. The door is left open to both options.
The College’s document considers that Catalonia “cannot leave the interconnection of its water networks” for later. He argues that it is necessary to “overcome a technical and administrative division in the management of water resources”, which “makes authentic comprehensive management more difficult”. The complaint is because the networks are totally segregated. The metropolitan networks (internal basins, rivers that are born and die in Catalonia) are under the umbrella of the Generalitat; on the other hand, those of the Ebro belong to the demarcation of the Ebro, based in Zaragoza. Any decision on this last demarcation would require the approval of the Central Administration.
The engineers do not present this proposal as an emergency work against the drought, but as a structural measure to solve future deficits in the metropolitan region.
Carles Conill, president of the College’s environment committee, points out that “it is time to think about this interconnection” in the face of the scenario of “scarce and irregular rains, and climate change that is upon us”. Its promoters are in favor of taking advantage of local resources (desalination, reuse and underground water) and of implementing the new works proposed to reuse Besòs waters and everything that the Water Agency has planned. “We have shown that we know how to manage desalination plants and reuse”, says Conill.
However, they believe that this interconnection is also a solution to overcome the uneven impact of the drought on the availability of water in Catalonia. “Today, water restrictions – especially for domestic use – only affect part of the territory, while another part enjoys almost enough resources for all uses,” the document states.
“In no case are we talking about recovering the idea of ??transporting water to Barcelona as was proposed years ago; it is not the vision; we try to optimize the integral management of water throughout the territory”, says Conill, since “a meshed network is better than a branched network”. “Rationality” and “economic” reasons are also added.
The interconnection of the CAT network in Tarragona was already proposed during the drought of 2018, when several spokespersons said that bringing the water from Cunit to link with the regional network could be executed in three months.
For its part, the Segre option could have a connection point in Tàrrega; the water would be pumped to the Rajadell stream (Montserrat massif), from where it would reach the Llobregat and the Abrera water treatment plant. Some sources believe that this option should be preceded by an agreement to improve and waterproof the Canal d’Urgell, and by an agreement with the irrigation community through a public exchange of water rights.
The entire central region of Catalonia (224 municipalities and 6 million inhabitants), served by the Ter and Llobregat, is now in an exceptional situation. This means water reductions of 40% for agricultural uses, 15% for industrial uses and the prohibition of watering public and private green areas.
