Barcelona recovers its fountains with the end of the drought (but Montjuïc will wait for the Mercè)

BarcelonaFollowing the water shortage and consumption restrictions, Catalonia has emerged from drought alert, and Barcelona once again allows itself the luxury of turning on its 330 ornamental fountains. In November 2022, the vast majority were closed—only 85 were maintained because they are small ecosystems of biota, flora, and fauna—and after two years off, Barcelona's mayor, Jaume Collboni, announced this Wednesday that they will be gradually restored. "More than two years of shutdowns have caused maintenance issues that need to be adjusted," he explained in a symbolic ceremony in front of the Twin Fountains in Plaça Catalunya.

These central fountains have been the first to be reactivated, although the water will not flow for a few days. The mayor was in charge of turning on the water valve to these springs, located right next to the public piano that has long been installed on a corner of Plaça Catalunya. "There are many people asking us, stopping us on the street, and today is the day to announce precisely that we are starting to open the fountains and that it will be done progressively over the next few months," the mayor explained. In fact, Collboni asked a man sitting down to play the piano to "entertain" the staging of this resumption of normality.

The City Council plans to bring the rest of the city's fountains back to life in three phases. The first stage, which begins this Wednesday and lasts until June, includes 68 fountains with a surface area of ​​less than 40 m². These include the five fountains on the Passeig de Gràcia-City Center axis, including the Twin Fountains in Plaça Catalunya, as well as the Manuel de Falla fountain in Nou Barris.

The second phase will be between June and October of this year. Collboni announced that among the 73 fountains that will be reactivated at this time is the Font Màgica de Montjuïc, which will not flow again until the Mercè festival. The mayor has defined this infrastructure as "the city's fountain of fountains," and therefore, in addition to the maintenance work on the fountain itself, the lighting will be renovated, incorporating LED technology into the 4,760 lights of this Barcelona icon. During this phase, another 70 fountains, measuring between 40 and 100 m², will be reactivated.

Finally, between the end of 2025 and the beginning of 2026, 72 fountains with a surface area greater than 100 m² will be brought online. Collboni stated that "the idea is for all the city's fountains to be fully operational throughout the year"; a process that "costs the city money," he added. Specifically, the mayor detailed the preparations for cleaning and commissioning the fountains, for which the council has allocated 2.1 million euros. Furthermore, improvements to the fountains will continue until 2028, potentially increasing the budget to 6.6 million euros.

"The image of a return to normality"

Within the framework of the Endreça Plan, the city's aesthetics carry great weight, and it seems the Climate Plan is also moving in this direction, as the mayor has stated that the projects aim to "project the image of a return to normality" for the city. Therefore, the fountains are not the only project Collboni has announced: he also spoke about projects to restore and improve green spaces, which will put an end to irrigation restrictions. In this regard, 9,000 trees and 8.2 hectares of vegetation are planned to be planted before spring 2026 to restore the greenery affected by the drought.

Work will also be carried out on fifteen squares, parks, and gardens as part of the Endreça Plan's comprehensive maintenance plan. In addition, €17.5 million will be allocated to improving irrigation and drip irrigation systems, expanding the groundwater network with the goal of increasing the percentage of green spaces irrigated with groundwater from 18% to 25%. The goal is to be able to cope with future droughts, and the City Council will allocate €20 million. Collboni said that Barcelona has "learned its lesson" and will continue to invest in more efficient and energy-saving systems to avoid future drought crises. "This is how the city of Barcelona is addressing the climate change that is impacting the city," he concluded.