Exemplar Interim Report for Exemplar

Barcelona’s hybrid dunes

Dunes are complex systems

Most sand beaches at Catalunya are intensively visited and

managed, so are “urban” .

Dunes are complex systems

Economic, cultural and ecological hotspots.

Dunes are complex systems

With multiple and often conflicting administrations.

Provide strong ES

Flood and erosion protection, water infiltration, symbolic,

aesthetic, recreational and a lot of money!

But dunes are also complex ecological systems

Wind is now unable to construct dunes and we even do not know

how to cope with stabilization processes.

1908

2014

Fortunately 2 conceptual silver bullets!

Why not add to the ES/NC concept the idea of “hybrid dunes”?

Fortunately the metropolitan administration of Barcelona embraced the concept

Sand burial of Carpobrotus edulis and differential response of

psammophile vegetation.

Marram grass dies after 6-8 yrs because of nematodes and probably

excess of nutrients on soil. We tried to avoid decay by sand burial.

Finding problems with semi-stabilized dunes

Wind do no construct dune relief, but is able to uproot planted

marrams and to show de difficulties of “semi-stabilized” sands.

Looking for opportunities elsewhere

50 km south Barcelona. Transforming a sediment accumulation

process in an opportunity for dune and lagoon ecosystems.

Communication as a central point

Asymmetric response to communication. Signals and prohibitions

doesn’t work at all!

Kentish plover close to extinction due to dog walking

Dog walkers are a big lobby and there are no initiatives to

explain their impact. Strong need of social marketing!!

So a fresh exemplar

• With a lot of fresh information from the construction process (and it’s

budget).

• With an administration deeply involved (AMB – Area metropolitan de

Barcelona) and willing to organize an international workshop on 2016.

• With fast and efficient access to people.

• Improving ecosystem functioning knowledge.

• Strong demand of ES. Evident and complex trade-offs. Clear

opportunities for policy & governance improvement.

And in a strong need to start interacting with you!

• Strong need of methods 4 quantifying ES.

• Needing advice to to build stakeholder involvement (mainly non

administrative, and economic activities!).

• This is probably the moment to start CBA!

• Embarrassing need to understand what epistemic uncertainties are!

And at the point to start to use and propose some tailoring on TESSA,

DSS and other instruments.