Barcelona is heading for a ‘drought emergency’ as water shortages worsen

Barcelona is facing water shortages as Spain experiences one of its worst droughts in decades.

In the northeast of Spain, Catalonia’s 7.7 million residents are suffering the effects of 32 months of drought. Lack of rainfall is particularly bad in Barcelona where reservoirs are now running dry.

Authorities warned on Tuesday that the region is heading for a “drought emergency” in September unless forecasts for rain improve. It would mean even tighter restrictions on water use.

"At this point, it's the worst problem we're facing," said Catalan leader Pere Aragones, lamenting one of "the worst droughts in 50 years".

Barcelona, Girona and other towns and villages in the area are supplied with water by the Ter-Llobregat river system. Spain’s government has said that its reservoirs - and others in Catalonia - have shrunk to 27 per cent of their capacity.

The only region in Spain that is worse is the Guadalquivir river basin in southern Andalusia where reservoirs are at just 26 per cent of capacity.

Around 13 cubic hectometres of water were moved from Catalonia’s Sau reservoir to another nearby in recent weeks in order to preserve water quality. Thousands of invasive fish have been culled to protect native species as the levels drop.

It comes after levels fell so low last summer that the ruins of an 11th-century church were revealed from beneath the surface.

Current restrictions mean that Catalonia’s cities are only allowed to use 230 litres of water per person per day. That includes personal use and also public services like fountains or street cleaning. Under “emergency” plans, that quota would drop to 200 litres.

The average person consumes around 116 litres a day for domestic use alone. The region’s government is now looking to