Thousands of people demonstrated this Sunday in Barcelona against the future expansion of El Prat airport, in a mobilization called by Zeroport, the platform against the expansion, which has the support of 210 entities, social, neighborhood and environmental groups, as well as various personalities and academics and some political parties, such as Comuns, ERC or the CUP. Farmers from Baix Llobregat who traveled to Barcelona with their tractors also participated in the demonstration, as well as other residents of the area who arrived in the Catalan capital by bicycle. As always, there is a disparity in figures regarding participation: 30,000 people according to the organization, 5,500 according to the Urban Guard.

The money to expand El Prat airport was left out of the Second Airport Regulation Document (DORA II) for the 2021-2026 period because the project derailed due to a lack of consensus between the Generalitat and the State. Five years later, the scenario is different: with the project back on the table, DORA III (2027-2031) includes a budget line to make this expansion possible, although it is not the most significant one. In fact, the money that will be allocated during this period (191.9 million euros) will be used for "preparatory actions". That is to say, for the initial procedures, but not for the expansion works, as explained by the Minister of Transport, Óscar Puente, in a press conference this Tuesday. These actions include drafting the project and environmental compensations in case the expansion goes ahead.

Aena, the public company that manages airports in Spain, is advancing in the works to begin the expansion of El Prat airport in 2029. For now, it has awarded the drafting of the master plan, which sets the foundations for the infrastructure, and the environmental assessment of the project.

Of the 3.2 billion euros planned to expand El Prat airport, as announced this summer, over 1 billion would be spent in the Airport Regulation Document for the period 2027-2031 (DORA III). The rest of the investment, that is, around 2.2 billion euros, would be left for the next five-year period (2032-2036) or DORA IV, as confirmed by sources from Aena this Friday.

Aena, the state airport operator, plans an unprecedented investment of €12.88 billion between 2027 and 2031 for the Spanish airport network, of which €9.991 billion corresponds to regulated investment, as announced by the Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, this Thursday. The company then notified the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV). The nearly €13 billion represents a surge in investment over the past five years: for example, between 2022 and 2026, regulated investment alone will have amounted to €2.5 billion.

The main criterion for deciding whether to expand Barcelona Airport should be environmental. In a world where curbing climate change is absolutely necessary and cannot be postponed, expanding the airport's capacity takes us further away from the goal of reducing emissions. Furthermore, expansion would further damage an important natural heritage protected by the Birds and Habitats Directives.

According to the City Police, approximately 800 people gathered this Saturday morning in Barcelona's Plaça Sant Jaume to protest against the expansion of El Prat Airport. Organized by the Zeroport platform, the activists created a human mural on the square under the slogan "No to the expansion" and launched paper airplanes in protest of the Catalan government-Catalan pact.

The Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and seven other Catalan business organizations have rated "very positively" theAgreement between the Generalitat (Catalan government), the Spanish government, and the state airport operator Aena to expand El Prat Airport.In a joint statement, the Chamber, the employers' association Pimec, Fira de Barcelona, ​​​​the Royal Automobile Club of Catalonia (RACC), the College of Economists of Catalonia, and the business organizations FemCat, Barcelona Global, and the Círculo de Economía have positively assessed "the project announced by the Catalan government and consider it necessary and strategic to improve intercontinental competitiveness."