As I have followed the water crisis in the Barcelona region, I have noticed that suddenly everyone is an expert on water issues. It was refreshing to hear the analysis by Narcís Prat, an aquatic ecologist from the University of Barcelona. You can listen to the interview today on Catalunya Radio here.
Prat recommends water banking, or water trading, as the most viable long term drought management strategy in north eastern Spain. This is the first time that I hear someone make this argument in the media, even though water experts have been discussing the options for years. The surprise is that it has taken so long, and such an extreme crisis, for water banking to get any attention. Prat astutely points out that Catalonia should not endlessly build dams to prevent water shortages every 5 to 10 years. The challenge is to use existing water supplies more efficiently. Some might ask: Will the environment be shafted in a water market? The answer is no. Water banking is compatible with sound ecosystem management as long as minimum instream flows are protected. The Catalan Water Agency (ACA) has already done much of the footwork by determining minimum instream flows for each river in Catalonia across spatial and temporal variance. Once minimium flows are set aside, water users can trade with the rest.
Prat also observes that trading needs to happen between the Segre and Llobregat Watersheds. These watersheds essentially represent a rural-urban divide in Catalonia. In a water trading scheme, urban users would negotiate a higher price for water from rural farmers. To accomplish this, Catalonia would still need to build the water infrastructure to connect these watersheds. Still, the investment could pay for itself if it prevents future water crises. Read more about the potential for water trading in Spain here.
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