Sustainability and conflicts

[Oriol Miralbell]

Climate change is causing many problems to sustainability, because the resources that until now were available are changing place or even disappearing. One case is the scarcity of rain that Catalonia and the area of Barcelona has suffered in the last two years. The water supply was threatened for a n area of 5 milion people in the Metropolitan area of Barcelona, and beside the supply of water from the desalting central in Almeria (1.000 Km away) there was no other chance than the transfer of water from the nearest rivers Ebro or Segre (with a conduction of 50 to 100 km). This has caused conflicts with the people from the regions by the rivers. What could the government do? A desalting plant close to Barcelona will be built in the next year, but the problem is threatening now the water supply to Barcelona.
Like the Spanish government, the European Union is against the transfer of water from one river to another region, because this means a strong damage to the fauna and the sustainability of rivers, especially in the Mediterranean region.
What do you think this means for policymakers? What shall governments do in times of crisis?

[Anna Soliguer Guix]

Hello Oriol

A desalting plant is the solution.
I don't like that the Spanish governement transfer water from other rivers. I hate this kind of solutions. They are nor professional neither fair. A few days ago, Mr. Montilla, the Catalonia Generalitat President said that transfer water from the Rhone wasn't a good idea because if we just take a look of the history, we will see what happened. And he was right. No one has to have the key of the water. We need desalting plants.
But right know and up to have a solution, I would buy water in other areas but I wouldn't distribute it with a "mini trasvase". Why don't they bring water by lorries? Or depending of the source, by big boats? There is a harbour in BCN.The problem is how to distribute the water. It is a logistic problem. Hotels should be applying sustainable policies because turists are spending lot of water and many inhabitants are having water limitations. It's the right moment and they are not doing anything. it should be a change of mentality in the city inspired in water best practices. It's a general problem. It is very simple to think that this is a problem of policiymakers and suppliers. It's an ethical, sustanaible and civic problem.
Cheers
Anna

[Oriol Miralbell]

Anna,
Desalting see water may be a solution in a near future, but it must be done a lot to avoid pollution. Desalting water consumes a lot of energy and, at the same time it needs oil for now. Thus, it pollutes a the same time.
The problem I wanted to show is that crises or exceptional periods of scarcity of water may cause conflicts between people. I agree that the transfer of water is not a sustainable policy, but what to do in exceptional cases. The policy of water use must be addressed in a better way in the Mediterranean areas. This is obvious, but we must not avoid to analyze that water may cause conflicts where rational debates are missing.
The "mini.transfer", as politicians have called it, from water from Tarragona to Barcelona, is thought to solve the problems for this summer in exceptional conditions. If it is good or bad, is something that should be considered in the present exceptional situation. The transport of water with lorries is more unsustainable than transferring surplus water that Tarragona gets from the Ebro to Barcelona, as the project previews.
But my intention was not to argue on the appropriateness of the decision of the Spanish Government or not, but on the way we can resolve such conflicts in peace and with rationale debates.
I address you to an interview done by the Catalan TV (TV3) to the expert Pedro Arrojo who owns a honor prize of the Goldman Foundation, where he explains in a rational way the solution of the problem.
The interview is in Spanish, and I apologize for not having it in English.
What I find as really shaming is the debate taken by politicians and some civil organizations who have tried to use this problem to make publicity instead of debating it.
Conflicts appear because economic interests are opposed. Agriculture needs water and a new irrigation water is built in the dry land of Catalonia. Farmers have been irrigating their fields by drowning their fields instead using drip methods. On the other side they don't pay the water, while the people in the city (5 million people) pay 3 different taxes for water consumption, that help the construction of the channels of water for agriculture.
Solidarity is understood only if people have a surplus, but when there's scarcity, people become miser. That's what I've learned these days and what I'm afraid we will see in the coming years.
I'm sorry for such a pessimistic vision. I hope in this debate we can know about othe experiences that say that there are other way to solve these conflicts.

[Anna Soliguer Guix]

Hello Oriol

You have convinced me....
Thanks to add Pedro Arrojo's video. It is very interesting. In fact, water is a big problem. We are arriving to a new water culture. It's a new reallity. Do you really have a so pessimistic vision?
Can you imagine when oil will be finishing?...
Anna

[Oriol Miralbell]

Another interesting article to read is about the dilemma in Scotland on the Wind Farms.
http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/latestnews/Wind-farms-or-peat-bogs....

Oriol