The first thing that surprises on the large panel that presides over the operational control center of Aigües de Barcelona in the Catalan capital is a world map where the movement of arrows with threatening blinking follows one another that go from various parts of the planet to the place where that we are Instinctively our gaze is directed towards Russia, from where many arrows leave.
The incessant arrival of cyberthreats is represented on the world map and the work of the applications that monitor attacks against the technological infrastructure of the center is displayed. "Every week we have an average of 13,000 attacks," say the Aigües technicians. The statement suggests that it is urgent and convenient to reformulate the topic. In reality, “water is a scarce commodity…and under siege”. If an attack were to take effect, "in 10 minutes we could operate from another alternative center", they reassure us.
From the panel (6 meters long and almost 3 meters high), the central totem of this glass floor, the supply networks managed by the company are monitored. It's his big brother. These monitors control 4,700 km of the drinking water supply network, 1.5 million daily records and 5,600 sensors distributed throughout the network in 23 metropolitan municipalities (three million inhabitants).
Another marker indicates that water consumption in the 23 metropolitan municipalities is 5.8 hm3 per day, a lower amount than 15 years ago, when demand reached 7 hm3. Before the cyberthreats arrived, the people of Barcelona were already familiar with the siege of droughts and learned to save water. Result: domestic consumption is now 105 liters per inhabitant per day, very close to the minimum of 100 liters recommended by the WHO.
Another graph shows a demand forecast curve for the next 24 hours, obtained with the data from the sensors present in the network, and how it is updated hour by hour; while, almost superimposed, another curve appears that shows how actual consumption matches what is forecast.
The panel-big brother is also in charge of planning and executing possible domestic water restrictions if the drought worsens. The water company has prepared a device to reduce the pressure of the supply in the event of an emergency situation and it is necessary to act in coordination with the metropolitan authorities.
The Government's special drought plan now gives municipalities 230 liters per person per day for all uses; but if a second or third stage of the emergency were to enter, the belt would have to be tightened even more, up to limits close to and even below the minimum consumption.
In this scenario, Aigües is inclined to reduce supply pressure, rather than make time cuts. The argument is that "the large supply networks are not prepared to constantly work with cuts and interruptions in the supply because it would end up causing such a number of breakdowns in the network that, in the end, the remedy would be worse than the disease," they say. their technicians.
“We have a very prepared network. Managing the water pressure, instead of making cuts, is much less damaging to the networks”. However, before reducing the pressure, many other saving measures would be applied, along the lines of those that the municipalities are already adopting.
The high degree of monitoring and digitization of the service would allow an adjustment to be made in all channels. However, lowering the pressure would not have a homogeneous impact on all citizens, because the upper floors would in any case be the "most affected".
Even so, "sensitive customers identified by the municipalities will have guaranteed supply in all cases," they stress. On the other hand, other small municipalities, lacking such technical systems, would be doomed to the risky time cuts in this scenario.
The panel indicates that the drought is so intense that every last drop of water must be used. Aigües de Barcelona has set itself the objective of capturing almost 100% of the flow carried by the Llobregat as it passes through the Sant Joan Despí station. We drink almost the entire flow of water released from the reservoirs.
The Llobregat transports 3,000 liters per second and 2,760 liters per second is being taken from the river. Only a few small streams downstream from Sant Joan Despí guarantee that the river carries a minimum flow at its mouth.
Before the drought, more than 60% of the water consumed in these 23 municipalities came from Llobregat and Ter; now instead the rivers contribute less than 20%.
Desalination and reuse are now the central pivot of the service (58%).
Desalination accounts for 33% of the demand while 25% of the water we drink is reused flows from the El Prat regeneration station (which, once treated, are pumped upstream to be discharged in Molins and made drinkable at the Sant Joan Despi).
The rest is water from wells (23%) and rivers (19%). "If we had not counted on desalination and reuse, now we would be with domestic restrictions," say the technicians.
The reuse of water, which is pumped to Molins de Rei, is set to play an important role in the future. Furthermore, reclaimed water in El Prat does not necessarily always require the same quality requirements as drinking water for treatment. "There are many uses that do not need that high level of demand."
During 2022, Aigües de Barcelona has regenerated 50 cubic hectometres of water, a figure that would be equivalent to the annual water consumption of more than 1 million people.
In fact, since there is less water in the rivers, reuse is an ideal resource for agricultural irrigation, street cleaning, garden irrigation or for the Free Trade Zone industry: a fundamental tool for saving drinking water.
For this reason, Aigües de Barcelona asks the Government (in charge of planning) that, once the drought is over, the reused water continues to be the structural element of the supply. "Its use should be the new normal in the future," he emphasizes.
