Ens D'Abstament d'Aigua Ter Llobregat (ATL)
Ens D’Abstament d'Aigua Ter Llobregat (ATL) is the new public company of the Generalitat and replaces and was created in 2019. It replaces the ATLL (subsidiary of Acciona). It currently manages the desalination plant. The ATL distribution network receives water from the Llobregat, Ter and Cardener rivers, and from desalination plants located at the mouths of the Llobregat and La Tordera rivers (XIII).
So currently, in Barcelona, ​​the water comes from ATL the Sant Joan despí treatment plant and the desalination plant. Also, ATL plans to invest 150 million euros in the period 2019-2023 to modernize its facilities and increase the efficiency of the system, which serves Barcelona and its metropolitan region, where around five million people reside (XXXII).
During our interview, professor Erik Swyngedouw explained:
“Some regions of Spain no longer wanted to see the big water transfers. Especially the North such as Catalonia were not happy about the Ebro diversion. However, the South of Spain desperately needed and still needs more water to sustain their agro-urban-speculative economic model, which is based on, for instance, extensive agriculture and flower culture in order to sustain their highly competitive market. At the same time we can observe processes of urbanisation. Thus, desalination offered an alternative in a context where there was a decreasing likelihood of inter-basin water transfers.”
ATL and the desalination plan