01/1998
Baix Llobregat Agrarian Park was created in 1998 as a joint initiative to counter the pressure on agricultural land resulting from the urban and industrial expansion of Barcelona and neighbouring towns in the River Llobregat Delta. It covers a total area of around 3,490 hectares, spread over 14 municipalities of the Barcelona Metropolitan Area.
Contact details
E-mail : francestg@diba.cat
Website : http://parcs.diba.cat/web/baixllobregat
08820, El Prat de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain
Stakeholders
∙ Barcelona Province, Baix Llobregat County, 14 local authorities, Catalonia’s Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Action, Baix Llobregat Agrarian Park Consortium
∙ Unió de Pagesos (Farmer’s union), which is also member of the Consortium
∙ Agricultural cooperatives, 3 Associations for Vegetal Defence (ADV) and 8 Farmers’ markets
∙ Baix Llobregat Tourism Consortium and 42 restaurants for the Sabors de l’Horta project, which promotes Baix Llobregat products
∙ Various NGOs such as Fundació Sigea, Som Bici and Hand Made Theatre for educational activities
∙ 17 public libraries for the L’Hort a la Biblioteca project (the Garden at the Library)
∙ R&D projects with Fundació Miquel Agustí and Agrarian training centres
Objectives
∙ Consolidating and developing the territorial base of agriculture in the Barcelona Metropolitan Area
∙ Developing specific programmes to promote a sustainable agriculture, integrated into its territory and in harmony with its natural environment
∙ Promoting the productive, ecological and cultural values of the Baix Llobregat Agrarian Park
Legal framework & Budget
Baix Llobregat Agrarian Park is based on 3 instruments: the Special Plan, an urban planning tool that delimits the Park area, regulates its use and defines its general infrastructure; the Management and Development Plan, which sets the strategy, specific objectives and resources for the operation of the Park; the Managing Body, which manages the entire agricultural area and supports farms in their development. The Consortium employs 11 full-time workers.Activities
The main missions of the Managing Body are to improve the road network, the drainage network and the quality of irrigation water, to ensure security inside the Park, to promote new agricultural techniques, especially environmental friendly ones and to support farmers in production and marketing activities. Farmers’ markets are organised with 8 different municipalities. The Park also implements various projects to educate children and the general public on agricultural, food and health issues, as well as to promote Baix Llobregat products to consumers.>Innovation & Outcomes
Thanks to its successful public-private model and to the strong political will of the local authorities involved, the Park achieved to maintain agricultural land and production in the Barcelona Metropolitan Area. It also contributed to foster sustainable farming practices (over 80% of the Park production is under “integrated agriculture”), to develop short marketing channels such as farmers’ markets and to raise citizens’ awareness on the importance of local agriculture.34 900 000
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Main obstacles & Next steps
The main obstacle is the availability and price of land. The Park created an instrument to put buyers or tenants in contact with sellers. It also prepares plans and reports to inform stakeholders on land uses, construction permits, business licenses, etc. Another key role of the Consortium is to mediate and build bridges between agents with competing interests. Generational renewal is another important issue. The Park works with an Agrarian Training Centre to create links between agricultural students and farmers.More on :
http://parcs.diba.cat/web/baixllobregat
