The Llobregat delta

The Llobregat delta is formed by an extensive plain that occupies 98 km2 between the massif of Garraf and Montjuïc, and the narrow pass or canyon of Sant Andreu de la Barca in the northern part. It was formed in the Roman age and has been growing up to the 19th century. It has had different estuaries which, with the passing of time, have created coastal lagoons.

For the nature of the materials that form the delta, it has a layer of underground waters, the aquifer, which has made the transformation of the agriculture possible and has facilitated a human intensive use; in fact, it is one of the richest agricultural zones in the Mediterranean.

The coastal wetlands are connected with the aquifer and depend on it. The Llobregat delta is the second largest delta in Catalonia and it has one of the most important marshes in the country.




The Llobregat delta started its formation approximately 18,000 years ago, but the sea level became stable only about 2,300 years ago when the formation of the current delta began. This delta has been exposed to continuous transformations due to the difficult balance between sea and land, and to the variations of the river.

For many centuries, it was an inhospitable land, with precarious and dispersed inhabitants submitted to the hard conditions of the territory. From the 15th century on, the territory was continuously occupied: dry farming first, and irrigation farming later, were the economic dominant activities up to the 20th century. After that, industry and later tertiary activities settled.

The current delta is a space which has been transformed by human action. The different stages have left a trace on the territory, which has turned into a mosaic of landscapes: natural spaces; farming; urban, industrial and service zones; railway and road networks; and infrastructures like the Port and the Airport of Barcelona.

The left margin of the river Llobregat changed rapidly. Nowadays, natural areas and farming have nearly disappeared. The right margin, on the other hand, shelters the remains of coastal wetlands, some beaches and well preserved pine groves, as well as agricultural and humanized areas.




Today the diversity of landscapes is the most relevant characteristic of this territory. In the middle of this mosaic of landscapes, the natural spaces stand out because of their value. The Delta has 20 natural habitats of European interest, 3 of which are of priority interest, and the aim is to preserve them. It hosts the only population of Kosteletzkya pentacarpos in Catalonia and an interesting population of Stachys maritima. In the humid meadows and in the pine groves, more than 22 species of different orchids have been found. We also find a considerable population of invertebrates, amphibians and reptiles. More than 350 species of different birds gather together and it constitutes one of the most important routes for migratory birds. For all these reasons, more than 900 hectares have been declared ZEPA (Area of Special Protection for Birds) by the Council of European Communities, which are protected areas like Red Natura 2000, and of these, nearly 500 hectares are Partial Nature Reserve.

The natural spaces of the Llobregat delta keep a constant but dynamic balance; they also have natural intrinsic values that grant worldwide importance to them, and strategic values regarding public use and environmental education. The main priority is to manage and preserve them and, because of this, in 2005 the Consortium for the Protection and Management of the Natural Spaces of Llobregat Delta was constituted.