Spanish National Water Plan: Characteristics (original) (raw)

| | Spain's National Hydrological Plan The characteristics of the plan are to alleviate the drought and the hydraulic deficiency of the Southeast of the Spanish Peninsula and the inner river basins of Catalonia. For the Spanish Southeast four possibilities are discussed in the plan. The best option for the Government would be carry water from the Ebro river, which an assumed excess capacity of 5,300 hm³. Three hundred hm³ would be destined to the Valencian Community (river basin of the Júcar), 430 hm³ to Murcia and 90 hm³ to Almería. There are three possible options to solve the water deficiencies of Catalonia in general and Barcelona in particular. One option is to transfer 180 hm³ from the Lower Ebro taking advantage of existing infrastructures. Another involves transferring water from the Rhone river, although it is the most expensive solution. Finally, there is the possibility of transferring water from the Talarn dam on the River Noguera Pallaresa to the north of the region. Banner protest in the Delta town of Poble Nou The solution supported by the Government is the cheapest one that obtains all transfers from the Ebro river. This is the option with the lowest construction costs (about 3,600 million euros) and less environmental impact when the lack of need to construct new channels or dams is taken into account. The users who benefit from the transfers will pay 312 million euros per year, 50 percent will be for infrastructure and the rest for the management and maintenance works. In order to compensate the environmental lobby groups, the Government has announced an ecological grant of 0.03 Euros per cubic metre transferred that will be invested in the environment. If the Ebro transfer option goes ahead, the Hydrographic Confederation of the Ebro would receive 30 million euros annually as an ecological grant. There is great social and environmental pressure in the Ebro basin against any water transfer. Opponents to the Ebro transfer plan claim it is contrary to the new European Water Framework Directive and the sustainable development objectives adopted by regions such as California, with similar climatic and water deficit characteristics. Many environmental and other NGOs, as well as numerous academics, scientists, unions and political parties are aiming to stop the project mainly through trying to block the 40% funding from the European Union. Ebro River proposed water transfer: simplified map | | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | | | |