Beaches north of Barcelona have lost 30,100m2 of sand in five years

The Metropolitan Area of ​​Barcelona (AMB) has warned that the beaches north of Barcelona have lost about 30,100 square meters of sand in the last five years.

According to data collected by the ‘Study on climate change trends in metropolitan beaches’, 965,045 cubic meters of sand would be needed to regenerate the most affected beaches, such as those of Badalona and Montgat, which remain in a critical state of extreme vulnerability.

In the case of Montgat, it has lost 70% of its beach surface in four years as a result of the storms that have affected the coastline.

The AMB also point out that sea levels have risen by around 14cm in 25 years, and that the waves that occur during storms have grown by 30cm.

Authorities quantified the loss of sand on beaches north of Barcelona as 13% of their total sand lost.

The only coastline that has actually gained sand is Sant Adrià de Besòs, thanks to sand and sediment reaching it from the Besòs river.

In terms of volume of sand lost, AMB calculates 83,000 cubic metres, a 15% reduction in the volume of sand on the beaches.