A tourist walks along Trabucador beach in the Natural Park of the Ebro Delta, near Poble Nou del Delta
Ebro Delta, a land threatened by the sea
With rising seas threatening to engulf the Catalan coastline, the Spanish government intends to buy up 832 hectares of private land in the Ebro Delta, in what would be Europe's largest climate-related land acquisitions so far. This has provoked strong opposition from farmers in the Ebro delta, where 62,000 people live and lucrative rice fields account for 65 percent of the area.
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The idyllic image
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The remains of the storm
A boat dragged by the storm Gloria into a field in the Ebro delta, near Deltebre
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The concern of those who live and work by the sea
Marcela Otamendi, 58, and her sister Maria Cinta Otamendi, 56, pose inside their restaurant, which is surrounded by rocks to protect it from the sea at Marquesa beach.
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Shame
Marcela, and her sister Maria Cinta, talk next to the rocks painted with the word shame in front of their restaurant, in protest for the administrations' inaction
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Water inland
Joan Ferrer's family home is still surrounded by water after storm Gloria in February 2020. The storm flooded Joan Ferrer's rice fields up to 3 kilometres inland and caused damages worth €15,000.
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Lunch break
Farmers have lunch before harvesting a rice field owned by Joan Ferrer's family in Deltebre
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Work in the field
Joan Ferrer, a 32-year-old farmer, observes Jordi working with the harvesting machine in a rice field owned by his family in Deltebre.
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The value of fertile land
A farmer drives a harvesting machine through the rice fields
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The sea is not the only threat
A farmer pulls out an apple snail before harvesting rice in his fields in the Ebro Delta. This invasive species is a major threat to crops
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Keeping his feet on the ground
Joan Ferrer walks barefoot through his rice field collecting samples for the Institute of Food Farming Research and Technology that will examine whether the humidity is optimal for harvesting, in the Ebro Delta.
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A day's work
Joan washes her feet after harvesting rice in his fields
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Preparing the field for a new season
A farmer drives a tractor to maintain and condition a rice field owned by Joan Ferrer's family, after the harvest in the Ebro Delta
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The delta is not just rice fields
Local fishermen wait for the catch at Migjorn beach, near the island of Buda, in the Ebro Delta. Fishing was also badly affected by the ravages of storm Gloria.
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Flamboyance of flamingos
Flamingos, which are one of the most emblematic birds of the Natural Reserve of the Ebro Delta, fly near the Poble Nou del Delta