Consecuéncias a Largo Plazo de la Gestión Desintegrada en Zonas Costeras

El Caso del Delta de la Tordera (Cataluña, España)

Abstract

Catchment-coastal zones have undergone enormous changes during the last decades that have led to erosion processes, which in turn have compromised their stability, viability and existence. The main problem lies in human-made interventions that have degraded the beaches but also the river basins on which they depend. For many years, we forgot that everything we do in the river basin would have an impact on the associated coastal area. Gravel and water extraction, sand dredging, river channelling and land-use occupation, among others, have degraded fluvial and deltaic systems, which are no longer functional losing resilience. From 1956 to 2006, the coastline of the Tordera delta receded an average of 22 meters at the northern arm, 42 meters at the mouth of the river and advanced 35 meters at the southern arm. In some areas, this led to the total loss of the beach surface in 2006, with multiple damages to its hinterland and its infrastructures such as seafront promenades, buildings or campsites that receive the direct impact of sea-storms due to the inability of the beach to protect the coast. To learn from mistakes and propose solutions, the first step was to strengthen the knowledge base of what we did in the region and its effects and consequences. Only then, we will be able to propose solutions following ecosystem-based management guidelines.