River basins and water management in Spain : Tagus and Ebro river basin districts : an account of their current situation and main problems

This Study was commissioned and overseen by the European Parliament's Policy Department for Citizens' Rights and Constitutional Affairs at the request of the PETI committee. It aims to analyse issues related to the petitions from Spanish citizens on the Spanish side of the Tagus and Ebro River Basin Districts. Two main solutions have been brought forward in order to solve the water shortage in Spain: water transfer or desalination. The most widely used approach so far has been the transfer, which has been proposed for both the Tagus and Ebro rivers. As indicated in the Study, in Spain the water-related issues have frequently no political or social dimension but the territorial significance. This Study tries to illuminate problems and issues related to the river basins management in Spain while considering the applicable EU legislation.