Tarragona's beaches, ready for the summer season

TarragonaThis year's storms have not been as aggressive and have been somewhat more gentle on the beaches of the Costa Daurada, some of which already have specific protection plans. (FEE) has once again awarded the Tarragona region, granting up to 34 Blue Flags for the condition of its beaches. (last year), while the Girona region has 27 and the Barcelona region, 24.

The positive rating given by this foundation to Tarragona's beaches coincides with the perception of visitors. Tarragona Provincial Council Tourism. The visitors who most value this area are families, who are also attracted by the services offered by the area, whether it be the Port Aventura amusement park, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, or the accommodation, restaurants, or all the activities that can be carried out in the world. "The beach is the gateway" to the world. They are also offered "other tourist attractions." One of them is located in the interior of the district, where there are attractions for a tourist profile that values ​​​​cultural and natural attractions.

Tension over sand

This spring, it hasn't been necessary to replace much of the sand that storms carry away almost every year. The beaches of Tarragona city, for example, which last year needed an addition of sand, have been able to save it this year. However, those that did need it have had problems. Altafulla, which two years ago saw water reaching the doors of beachfront restaurants, this year only needed a small reinforcement of between 1,500 and 2,000 cubic meters, as Alba Muntadas, the co-mayor and Councilor for the Environment, explained to ARA: "The efforts we have made to consolidate those that had been previously made, of 20,000 or 40,000 cubic meters." However, it has not yet been able to do so.

The Port of Torredembarra is required to compensate the beaches further south each year because its infrastructure prevents the sand carried away by storms from returning to the beaches naturally. The Altafulla City Council already requested in October that a sand supply be prepared, but the decision, which not only involves the Torredembarra City Council but also the State and the Generalitat (Catalan Government), has been delayed. The key meeting was held on Monday, and according to sources from the Department of Territory, Housing, and Ecological Transition, the extraction of 1,500 cubic meters of sand has finally been authorized, under the supervision of the environmental group GEPEC. The Generalitat (Catalan Government) is trying to find "a consensus between both municipalities," according to government sources. "It seems that there has been some interest on the part of some of the stakeholders in extending the deadline, to the point that the Torredembarra City Council, which was initially in favor, is now completely opposed," Muntadas lamented. Altafulla City Council's Plan B, if the agreement with Torredembarra fails, is to move the sand from the ends of its own beach to the central area, which has been most affected this year.

Another beach that has also required the transfer of sand is Calafell. In this case, the 20,000 cubic meters needed are extracted from the port of Coma-ruga, in El Vendrell. In that case too, there has been tension. In recent years, the trucks transporting sand from Coma-ruga to Calafell have done so over the sand, but this year, the El Vendrell City Council requested that it be transported by road, because there are already bathers by now and also to prevent the trucks from passing through the sand from affecting biodiversity. The Environment Ministry sided with El Vendrell, and the trucks, which will have to make some 1,200 trips to transport the sand, will have to travel on the road. The mayor of Calafell, Ramon Ferré, in a statement to Calafell TV, expressed his displeasure with this change, stating that it will entail an additional cost of around 50,000 euros. Furthermore, the transfer of sand had to be temporarily suspended after unknown individuals sabotaged the trucks by pouring sand into the fuel tank.

Another beach that has also required sand replacement is La Pineda, in Vila-seca. In 2003, following the extension of the Levante breakwater, the Port of Tarragona committed to carrying out this "compensatory environmental measure" for 20 years, the planned period for the construction of the Western breakwater, which should put an end to the loss of sand. As a result of this agreement, the Port of Tarragona replaces 100,000 cubic meters of sand each year at La Pineda. This year, the replacement took place last April without any tension between the two parties.

Renaturalizar

In addition to the respite from the storms, the sand has also been preserved thanks to the specific protection measures being promoted by some local governments. Some have already begun work, such as Altafulla and Calafell, and others have plans and are just beginning to consider it, such as La Pineda and Salou. Behind many of these projects is Francesc Xavier Roig, a doctor in geography and geology who works as a beach technician in Catalonia, the Balearic Islands, and also in the Caribbean. "Many beaches on the Costa Daurada had natural dunes that functioned as reservoirs and prevented the sand from washing away," explains Roig. However, these natural barriers were removed to widen promenades and build hotels and villas on the seafront, and now, when storms arrive, they find nothing to hold back the waves. "The beaches have no defense mechanisms," says Roig. Since this human-made alteration, it's very difficult to guarantee that beaches can be maintained as we know them. "We have to accept that it's a dynamic area," the geographer insists. As he explains, "the solution is to take an X-ray of each beach" to determine how to proceed. In some cases, for example, dunes, now artificial, have been reinstalled in the sand, and for now it's working. What Roig is very clear about is that instead of dumping tons and tons of sand to reclaim land from the sea, we need to do just the opposite. "We have to give the sea more space," he explains. Roig complains that some seafront promenades are oversized and should be made smaller and give way to the sea. The expert also points out that four years ago, the semi-submerged breakwaters in Cunit and Calafell were removed "and the beach hasn't eroded." He claims this demonstrates that the policy of building breakwaters to prevent sand from disappearing "is a failure."