Santa Coloma de Gramenet has given new impetus to the renaturation of the Besòs river with the approval of the second phase of the Biodiversity Refuge which adds improvements to the development of river flora and fauna. The investment, of 2.8 million, is financed by the European Next Generation funds. The project protects three kilometers of the river course and promotes the processes of self-regeneration of the ecosystem. The aim is for birds, amphibians and mammals to establish themselves in this area, which favors, among others, the survival of the European eel (Anguilla anguilla), which is in critical danger of extinction. In the regenerated course, more than 80 species of birds have already been detected, as well as several mammals.
The works will begin in the summer and will last for a year, when the last phase is scheduled to begin. The one inaugurated today by the Minister of Ecological Transition stands out for the restoration of the Rec Comtal area, whose high-quality water will give rise to new water bodies. Access will also be modified to avoid the excessive presence of people, often with loose dogs, which endanger biodiversity. The project will enable an ecological connector between the Marina and Collserola mountain ranges and another to Can Zam.
At the last meander of the river, a biodiversity island is created, at a point where more than 17,000 trees, shrubs and other species will be planted. The island will create new habitats for threatened fauna and flora and generate nesting areas for protected birds, such as the little corriol. Action will also be taken on the service roads and the naturalized ramp between the artificial wetlands with an area of riparian groves with alders and aquatic plants. Likewise, an ecological corridor will be built under the BV-5001 road that will connect the Besòs river with the Marina mountain range, next to the ramp and the wall, which will be naturalized and will be separated from the course by a wild meadow without irrigation that will allow connecting with the Can Zam park.
At another point on the waterway, a new pond will be built with water from the Rec Comtal, which the technicians judge to be of very good quality. In the flooded areas there will be planting areas. These lagoons are fed by the Montcada treatment plant and flow towards the river, which avoids the impact in the event of a pollutant discharge.
The last phase of the Biodiversity Refuge will begin between 2025 and 2026 with an investment of one million euros that will be assumed by the Santa Coloma City Council and the Barcelona Metropolitan Area (AMB), as with the first phase. In the last stage, river meadows will be created on the left bank, downstream of Can Zam, and the great ecological connector between the Marina mountain range and the river will be consolidated, through the Bosc Llarg stream.
In two years, the Biodiversity Refuge will have extended three kilometers to both banks of the Besòs. All this will reaffirm the work started by the municipal government decades ago to recover what in the last century was a polluted river and an open-air sewer, to become a space where "nature and life meet they pave the way", summarizes the mayoress, Núria Parlon.
