The Llobregat Delta constitutes, for its physical characteristics as much as for its strategic nature, an exceptional territory. It is precisely this exceptional nature that makes the area extremely fragile and complex. There is very strong competition between the different possible uses and this makes its balance difficult.

The proximity of the city of Barcelona and the course of the river have been basic elements in the configuration of the landscape, the localisation of economic activities, the settlements of population, the communications networks and infrastructures and, particularly, the occupation of the land. In this sense, the environment of the Llobregat Delta is seen as being involved very directly in the development of the Barcelona conurbation. The agrarian activities that have traditionally been carried out in this fertile area have been giving way to the thrust of the industrialisation process, urbanisation and the growing need for infrastructures of all kinds. In this reduced area there live together the most diverse activities, sometime little compatible (residential, agricultural, industrial, services, installations...), together with all sorts of infrastructures (paths, roads, motorways, railway lines, port, airport, irrigation channels, gas pipes, oil pipes, main drains, electricity lines ….) as well as the river itself. To all this complexity and density of the area must be added an essential feature of the place, the existence of the Llobregat Delta nature reserve which must be preserved.

In this context, on 16 April 1994 in El Prat de Llobregat; the Convention for Cooperation in infrastructures and environment in the Llobregat Delta was signed between the various authorities involved in this field: the then Ministry of Public Works, Transport and Environment (MOPTMA), the Generalitat of Catalonia, the County Council of Baix Llobregat, the Association of municipalities of the metropolitan area, El Prat de Llobregat Town Hall and Barcelona City Hall.

This convention established a set of plans and projects to be developed with the aim of making this geographical area into the principal distribution area of the south of Europe, through the construction of a logistical platform which will become a key element in the economic development of Catalonia and a strategic area within the European Union, while underpinning and strengthening, at the same time, the landscape and environmental values of the Delta area. In this way, the Plan seeks to benefit from the synergies of the large port and airport installations as well as the potential of the connections with road and rail networks, all this located within the Barcelona area, which continues being the most potent industrial area in Spain, so as to consolidate a polarity of reference within the Mediterranean Arc and the south of Europe.

The principal actions envisaged in the Plan are the following:

• Extension of the port of Barcelona: In December 2001 the Barcelona port extension began, when the foundation stone of the east seawall was laid. When finished the port will have doubled its capacity and its infrastructures, which will enable it also to double its goods traffic. One of the main assets of the port will be the transport interchange facility, through the new road and rail accesses, the arrival of the European railroad gauge and the proximity of the airport.

• Extension of the airport: On 22 October 1999 the El Prat Airport Master Plan was approved. The Master Plan contemplates the organisation of activities in the airport precinct and the definition of new terminals for passengers, goods and the whole enterprise. The objective is to make Barcelona-el Prat Airport into an international HUB, capable of handling the transit of 40 million passengers/year, with a capacity of more than 90 operations per hour at peak times and over 400,000 operations/year. In October 2002 work began on the 3rd runway, expected to come into operation in 2004.

• Roadway infrastructures: the aim of these actions is to link up the road network in this area to facilitate mobility between the local municipalities and the Barcelona conurbation, on the one hand, and to consolidate a high capacity network, well connected with the port and airport, on the other.

• Rail network: In the initial agreement, the Plan envisaged improvements in the connections of the main logistical infrastructures with the railway network, through the construction of a railway line of European gauge from El Papiol to the port and airport. At the same time, the High Speed Train project Madrid-Barcelona-French frontier has brought a new dimension into the future of the railway system. This new focus not only guarantees the interchange potential of the transport system and the links with the port and airport, but also includes a new interchange station at El Prat, located on the main line of the High Speed Train, with a clear intention of providing urban connection, and the restructuring of the suburban networks to give a better level of service. In this sense the Plan has links with projects and initiatives which reinforce public transport, both with regard to international and national connections, and for regional and metropolitan.

• Environmental actions. The preservation of the environment has been one of the parameters characterising the different actions in the Plan, the great majority of which are closely concerned with diverting the final course of the River Llobregat. These environmental measures comprise a broad assembly of measures, from the protection and conservation of the wetlands and the regeneration of the coast, to the construction of a purification plant and an incinerator, by way of measures to palliate the possible negative impacts of these infrastructures. Specifically, mention must be made of two actions currently in progress: the construction of a purification plant at El Prat de Llobregat to cleanse the waters of the River Llobregat before their flow into the sea, and the diversion and channelling of the Llobregat in its final stretch, which will allow the extension of the port to the south and, at the same time, will increase the water capacity of this stretch.

In the same way, the impact of the Llobregat Delta Plan is not conceived only in a policy of creating large and sophisticated logistical platforms under a strategy of international competitiveness, but must also be measured by its local dimension and impact on the people of that special environment. The processes of industrialisation and densification taking place in the more intense years of growth have made this area into a complex territory, typified by a constant struggle over the different uses of the land, often contradictory, as is evidenced by the multiplicity of installations, infrastructures and the activities taking place there. In this sense, the Delta Plan tries to put order into this framework, which requires overall and balanced planning between the three basic elements: economic activity, infrastructures and the environment. In fact, the Plan is conceived as a basic instrument for the energising and revitalisation of this area. Aside from the effects on the productive system of the area, occupation and the attraction of industrial initiatives, the actions of the Plan have a clear impact on the quality of life of the inhabitants of the nearby municipalities.

It is in the ambit of the road and rail networks and in the environmental measures where this impact can be most easily seen. Thus, the different actions in matters of the road network (the south spur, Baix Llobregat highway, C-32 motorway...) have meant a very marked improvement in accessibility and in the general connection of the delta area with the whole of the metropolitan area of Barcelona. Then, the construction of new high capacity roads is allowing the existing roads to be freed from their traffic loads, permitting the revitalisation of these routes with a more local and urban character.

With regard to the environmental actions, the cleansing of the Llobregat and the seawater, due to the construction of the El Prat purification plant, is starting to make the regeneration of the coast and the recovery of the beaches come true. In the same way, actions in matters of prevention flood damage and the redirection of the Llobregat riverbed will have clearly positive effects for those living closest to the river. On this same line, the protection of the coastal area and the wetlands, together with the waterways, constitutes one of the aims of the Plan. We must not forget that the delta is, fundamentally, a natural area that must be preserved: the river, the marshes and lakes, the waterways, the beaches, dunes and pine groves, the agrarian activities, the whole landscape, all together make up a natural heritage which requires special treatment. From the balance and sustainability between the consolidation of a strong logistical platform and the protection and regeneration the inhabitants of the immediate environment will gain a special benefit. Thus, the works of diverting the river Llobregat include the configuration of a new wetland area to increase the existing protected areas, and the extension of the Port will bring with it the creation of a new beach, which will contribute to stabilising the coastal front.

Nine years after the signature of the convention, some of the actions envisaged have been completed, others are in the execution phase and other new ones have been incorporated into the Plan as a result of the development of the logistical and transport needs of the area. In spite of the delay in the time of execution of some of the projects, most of them are now in progress (extension of the port and airport, purification plant, diversion of the river…) and the works outstanding are in a very advanced phase of definition. In essence, it is expected that all of the actions will be completed by 2011, with which Catalonia will have a new winning element in international competition and the metropolitan environment of Barcelona, in general, and the municipalities of the Llobregat Delta, in particular, will enjoy a better environment, more ordered and more cohesive.