TERRES DE L'EBRE: A GREAT UNESCO BIOSPHERE RESERVE

Visiting Amposta, Montsià

The travel across the Ebre lands is arriving to the end. Today, The Grandma and her friends have visited one of the most beautiful places of the world, the Ebre Delta and its Natural Park.

They have enjoyed wild nature and have photographed lots of amazing species which live in these unforgettable lands which we must protect and preserve remembering what the local inhabitants say lo riu és vida, the river is life.

The Grandma has also wanted to visit some special places like the rice fields, Es Fangar lighthouse and Trabucador's beach in the southern part of the park. Joseph de Ca'th Lon has had a special interest in contemplating birds, especially flamingoes, and Claire Fontaine has enjoyed taking photos of the sand lanscapes with their natural dunes. Tina Picotes has wanted to visit some barraques,  the typical farmhouses in this part of the Delta, a land that was declared a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.

During the travel by boat from Tortosa to the Ebre Delta, The Grandma has enjoyed the landscapes of the Ebre river again, she has studied a new lesson of her First Certificate Language Practice manual (Vocabulary 14).

More information: Problems I, II & III

The Ebre Delta (or Ebro), in Catalan Delta de l'Ebre, is the delta region of the Ebre River in the Province of Tarragona, Catalonia. It is on the Mediterranean Sea, and is the northernmost point, by some designations, of the Gulf of Valencia.

The Ebre Delta is one of the largest wetland areas in the western Mediterranean region, at 320 km2. The Ebre delta has expanded rapidly on soils washed downriver. The town of Amposta, a seaport in the 4th century, demonstrates the historical rate of growth of the delta as it is now located well inland from the current river mouth. The rounded form of the delta attests to the balance between sediment deposition by the Ebre and removal of this material by wave erosion.

More information: UNESCO

The area at the primary mouth of the Ebre is currently protected by several fluvial islands: the Isle of Garxal, the Isle of Sant Antoni, and the Isle of Buddha.

The most beautiful landscapes, Delta de l'Ebre

The Ebre Delta was placed, with 7,736 ha in 1993, on the Ramsar Convention list of wetlands of international importance as defined for the conservation and sustainable utilization of wetlands, recognizing the fundamental ecological functions of wetlands and their economic, cultural, scientific, and recreational value.

Some delta areas have been drained for agricultural use over the centuries. The modern delta is in intensive agricultural use for rice, fruit, in particular citrus, and vegetables. A network of canals and irrigation ditches constructed by both agricultural and conservation groups are helping to maintain the ecologic and economic resources of the Ebre Delta.

The zebra mussel, an invasive species, is expanding through the delta and upstream in Ebre waters. Due to its rapid rate of reproduction with a competing advantage, the zebra mussel is adversely affecting native species.

More information: Turisme Amposta

In 1983, was designated a large part of the delta as a natural park. Ebre Delta Natural Park, in Catalan Parc Natural del Delta de l'Ebre, has a total surface area of 7,802 hectares. The natural park has protected wetlands, beaches, marshes, salt pans, and estuaries that provide extensive habitats.

The park is of international importance for eight of its plant species and 69 of its vertebrate fauna. It has some 95 breeding species of birds, is also very important for over 300 species of a wide range of transient and overwintering species, and serves as an essential stopover point for large numbers of migratory birds and waterfowl. The Ebre Delta has the world's largest colony of Audouin's gulls. In 2006 it held a record number of more than 15,000 pairs.

More information: Terres de l'Ebre

 Tota la gent de l'Ebre està ben unida per una veu que crida 

lo riu és vida. I als pobles de la terra ja no s'oblida 

que hi ha una veu que crida lo riu és vida.

All the people of the Ebro are well united for a voice that calls

 the river is life. And in the peoples of the earth no longer forget 

that there is a voice that calls the river is life.