Spain
Catalonia is divided in two river basin districts which include a total of 53 groundwater bodies. According to the Catalan Water Agency, 21% of groundwater bodies are at risk of non-compliance with the Directive objectives for groundwater quantitative status. These groundwater bodies are mainly affected by overexploitation for domestic public water supply in densely populated areas. This overexploitation creates an imbalance between the available and required water and allows saline intrusion in many groundwater bodies of the region. For addressing this issue, the Catalan Water Agency promotes the substitution of groundwater abstraction with other sources, such as water discharged from tertiary waste water treatment plants and desalination plants. In addition, the Catalan Water Agency is also considering the use of treated and desalinated water for artificially recharging groundwater bodies. This response has reversed the effect of overexploitation in the two pilot groundwater bodies where it was implemented. (Ninerola and Ortuno, 2008).
