He landscape in Sau has already become the official postcard of the drought in Catalonia. During the last year, the reserves of this reservoir have been oscillating, but they have always remained within scarcity parameters. Today, the swamp only has the 5.41% of its maximum capacity. 165.2 hm3 possible, there are only 8.9 hm3a state that perfectly reflects the severity of the drought. Not even in the great drought of 1990 was there so little water: then the minimum was 5.7%.
The Catalan Water Agency launches a device to rescue the little water that remains in the reservoir and send it to Susqueda
The worst thing about the situation is that this reservoir, one of the main sources that supplies the regions of Barcelona and Girona, is in a much more precarious situation than a year ago, when the outlook was already critical. The Government, faced with Sau’s agony, in February 2023, announced a special operation to save the water in the swamp. The department hired fishermen to capture the fish (invasives), which were at risk of dying due to the possible lack of oxygen, rotting and leaving the water in poor condition. While fishing, water in good condition was sent to Susqueda, the other large reservoir in the Ter river.
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Now, it’s been weeks since Catalan Water Agency (ACA) has launched a new operation for rescue the little water that remains in Sau. 6 m3 per second are being sent to Susqueda, further down the Ter River. Thus, the water will be used to supply the regions of Girona and Barcelona. In summer, in the surface layer of the water, due to the heat, some algae appeared and only the middle layerthe one with the best quality.
With the arrival of the cold, ACA sources explain, The state of the water improved and many of these algae disappeared. For this reason, it was decided to send this water, as much as possible, while it has optimal quality, to Susqueda to prevent it from getting worse and not being suitable for supply when the heat returns. At this time, it is not ruled out to repeat the fishing device when temperatures rise, but for now it is not on the table.