Montagat, Spain – Ana Garcia rented a hut on a beach north of Barcelona every year, spending two months in summer with her daughter. But Garcia is afraid of summer from the sea in the Montagat, on a 30 -minute drive from Central Barcelona, could eventually be counted.
Climate change -inspired storms and sea levels increase are erasing man -made beaches in metropolitan Barcelona, swallowing the swallow of the beach every year, the authorities say. Compared to natural beaches, man -made beaches disappear rapidly. The coastline of Montagate is particularly intensified, saying locals and officials.
“Clearly, it’s worrying,” Garcia said. “Because it is growing more and more, and does not show any signs of stopping. Our co -existence with the sea here is in danger.”
There is no stranger to change the fishing city of fishing. Fishing was once the main economic activity in the “Marsme,” or Marshallona in the north of Barcelona, but everything changed in 1986 when the second largest city in Spain was named as the 1992 Olympic Games host.
Where once only in rocks, breakwater and thin parts of sand, many new beaches were constructed, converting the city into one of the major tourist hotspots of Europe.
Climate change is threatening that changes in small coastal cities like Montagat intensifies storms that eradicate sea-level growth.
While the authorities have responded by changing the lost sand and constructing some breakwater, the effort has not kept coordination with beach erosion.
Ramon Torra, the manager of the metropolitan region of Barcelona, admitted that it is not enough to add more sand.
Torah said, “What we should do first is not just to repay the sand, but to stop its loss.” “Here in the case of the ‘Marsme’ region, we are talking about structures like breakwater because they limit the beach.”
According to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service, Europe is the fastest-warm continent in the world, growing twice as a global average since the 1980s.
As the planet is hot, the sea level increases to a great extent due to the melting of the glaciers and the thermal expansion of seawater as it is hot. This increases the risk of coastal floods and storms, causing loss of land.
On Montagate and nearby beaches, the main damage occurs in the fall and winter, when the locally known devastating weather system by the Spanish brief name Dana brings a powerful storm in southern Europe.
In recent years, storms have wreaked havoc on the banks of Montagat. In April 2024, a storm system brought waves that climbed 5 meters (16 ft) long and climbed without a high beach in the form of left parts of Montagate. Later, a line of rocks serving as a breakwater was formed after reaching a line of beach houses.
Montagat Mayor Andreyu Abil survived only one -third of the beach a year ago. He emphasized the importance of the beach for the local people.
“We have the last democratic places, the beaches,” said Abil. “And they should be for all to use and enjoy the whole year.”
Barcelona officials estimate that 60 million euros ($ 70.2 million) need to stabilize the beach at 42 km (26 mi) coastline of Metropolitan Barcelona, of 30 kilometers (18.6 mi) of which are beaches like Montagate. Add to the cost of annual maintenance after storms.
Scientists say that the biggest problem will come when the sea train reaches the infrastructure of the city including line, houses and businesses.
Educationists say that the rate of increase in sea level reflects greater losses.
Agustin Santhez-Ariala, a marine engineer at the Polytechnic University of Catalonia, said the sea level along the Catalan coast is four times higher than three decades ago. He said that it has increased by 14 centimeters (5.5 inches) in 25 years, while the waves are 30 cm (11.8 inches) on average.
He said, “Therefore we do not need to guess that it will accelerate. We can already say that it has multiplied by four since the 1990s,” he said, he believes that there is time for climate adaptation now. Those measures include the construction of the sea shore, planting vegetation and more as the sea obstruction.
Local business owners in the city depend on summer tourism and worry what can catch when the sea swallows more sand. Those who come to year -tears for fresh seafood and cold beer, share anxiety.
Jose Louis Welse, a retiring, coming in the same beach bar for years, ’92 Olympics with Montagate along with Montagate, the retreat has seen changes after its beach.
“It’s been very good, but the sea has started erasing all the sand. And we are not really looking at the people doing anything about it. So we think it could be a termination date,” said Valez.
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Kijdham reported from Madrid.
