The Barcelona Metropolitan Area (AMB) has removed 110,000 kilograms of hazardous materials, such as logs, reeds, and dead rats, from metropolitan beaches, particularly in El Prat de Llobregat and Sant Adrià de Besòs, according to data obtained by 20minutos. This clean-up follows intense storms at the start of the year, including Storm Harry, which caused significant damage to the Catalan coastline.
These storms led to the collapse of walls, substantial sand loss, and deposited sediment carried by heavy rains. The AMB is working to prepare the beaches for the bathing season, which starts on 30 May, but faces a yearly struggle against coastal erosion exacerbated by increasingly intense weather fronts linked to climate change.
Coastal Retreat and Damage
Storm Harry and other severe weather events in late 2025 and early 2026 caused significant coastal retreat across the region. Beaches in Badalona and Gavà were left exposed by a Christmas storm, leading to greater damage when Storm Harry arrived. For example, Baixador i Luminetes beach in Castelldefels receded by up to 20 metres between January and February, while l'Estany beach in Gavà saw a retreat of up to 28 metres.
Viladecans beaches also experienced significant erosion, with a retreat of up to 31 metres in February. AMB technical teams estimate a loss of approximately 27.17% of Murtra, Pineda, and Pineda Ca'l Francès beaches, equating to about 40,000 square metres. The severity of Storm Harry was also evident in the disruption to the Rodalies railway network, which is still recovering from the intense rainfall.
Waves of up to six metres were recorded in Badalona during the storm, according to Puertos del Estado. This caused extensive damage to the promenade, close to the R1 train line, which is particularly vulnerable due to its proximity to the coast. Beaches in Pont del Petroli and Pont d'en Botifarreta in Badalona lost up to 18 metres of sand, and measurements could not even be taken at Barca Maria beach due to the damage. Montgat experienced a 59.15% loss of its beach area after the storms. The AMB describes the beaches in Badalona and Montgat as being in a “critical state of extreme vulnerability”.
Calls for Strategic Planning
The AMB continues to call for a Strategic Plan from the Spanish government to address the increasing lack of sand on the beaches. The organisation urges the Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge to develop a long-term structural plan to reverse coastal regression, stabilise, and restore the beaches. In 2025, Mediterranean beaches opened with 20% less surface area than the previous year, and the upcoming bathing season is expected to see further reductions.
In response to the worsening situation, the Generalitat launched a plan to improve coordination with local councils and the government. This initiative aims to define master lines for the re-naturalisation and management of Catalonia's 346 kilometres of coastline by 2100. The plan, which affects 70 coastal municipalities and 21 inland ones, is expected to be definitively approved by the Territory Commission in 2028, according to sources from the department led by Sílvia Paneque.
While specific measures are not yet detailed, the plan intends to promote actions similar to those at Les Madrigueres in El Vendrell, Tarragona, where new lagoons have been created to prevent future flooding from severe storms. In a parallel effort, the Spanish government's Coastal Service recently moved 20,000 square metres of sand from Tarragona port to the Ebro Delta. This emergency action aimed to reconstruct the coastal barrier of the Buda Island's lagoons, which was broken during Storm Harry, creating a 70-metre discontinuity and a direct connection between the sea and the lagoons.
