ENVIRONMENT AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Barcelona Metropolitan Area Strategic Plan for the Comprehensive Water Cycle
Water resources management and the ability of society to adapt to its availability have been fundamental within the framework of the social and economic development of any territory. Regarding the metropolitan area of Barcelona, the current comprehensive cycle of water will be affected in the near future. As a matter of fact, surface water resources are expected to decrease by 12% and underground water resources by 9% by 2050.
The Barcelona Metropolitan Area (AMB) elaborated the Strategic Plan for the Comprehensive Water Cycle (PECIA), a roadmap to reduce the water deficit that Barcelona could suffer from, with objectives set for the year 2050.
Tags: Strategic plan, water management, Barcelona metropolitan area
Challenges addressed
- Supply water in spite of the decrease in natural water resources.
- Supply water in spite of the increasing population in the Barcelona metropolitan area as well as their needs in water.
Main objectives
- Ensure the supply of water in the Barcelona metropolitan area for all uses in a sustainable, resilient and efficient manner.
Facts
Project type Water management
Partnership 87 organizations including the 36 metropolitan municipalities, other administrations, universities, environmental organizations, companies managing the cycle of water, experts in the field and representatives of the public.
Funding Between 2,100 and 2,400 million €
Starting date February 2022
Project description
The launch of the Strategic Plan for the Comprehensive Water Cycle (PECIA) means that, for the first time, a local administration aims to act in a comprehensive way on the entire water cycle, from catchment until the final stages of sanitation.
The final document is the result of a participatory process coordinated by the AMB in which 87 organizations have been involved.
The AMB plan is based on 5 main challenges that need to be addressed:
1. Increase the guarantee of supply and enhance the efficiency of the systems.
2. Increase the resilience of the water cycle.
3. Contribute to improveme the quality of water.
4. Adapt current systems to future requirements.
5. Improve governance, management, knowledge and transparency
The 5 challenges are broken down into 74 different actions, which include measures to reduce consumption and obtain new resources.
The PECIA proposes an important investment in new infrastructures that will increase the amount of available water.
In the current scenario, the main metropolitan infrastructures of the water cycle are located in the area of the Llobregat River. This is why the PECIA proposes to use the other major metropolitan waterway, the Besòs, and balance the pressure between the two systems. In particular, the new plan envisages the construction of a new water treatment plant in the Besòs, which will allow the capture of resources from this river. It also envisages the construction of a new water regeneration station in Besòs, similar to the one already operating in the area of the Prat de Llobregat treatment plant. This installation would make it possible to obtain superior quality water, suitable to be pumped upstream of the Besòs to maintain its ecological flows.
Impact and results
Through the PECIA, the use of regenerated water in the metropolitan area is to increase progressively over time. According to the forecasts, this plan should enable an increase in the use of regenerated water from 56.151.000 m3 in 2022 to 115.864.731 m3 in 2050.
Within the different sectors, the use of regenerated water is expected to increase as follows by 2050:
- For agricultural irrigation: from 5.151.000 m3 in 2022 to 51.355.538 m3 in 2050
- For industrial use: from 100.000 m3 in 2022 to 14.025.091 m3 in 2050
- For recreational use: from 150.000 m3 in 2022 to 823.989 m3 in 2050
- For urban use: from 2.514.507 m3 in 2025 to 6.192.763 m3 in 2050
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