Ocean Acidification

The automated station, resulting from a participatory budgeting process and an agreement with the Barcelona City Council, records currents, pH, temperature, and real-time meteorological data off this iconic Barcelona beach.

The buoy has been moored approximately 1.5 kilometres from the coastline / ICATMAR.

The Institute of Marine Sciences (ICM-CSIC), in collaboration with the Catalan Research Institute for Ocean Governance (ICATMAR), has deployed a state-of-the-art automated oceanographic buoy off Barcelona’s Somorrostro beach. This new infrastructure has been designed to monitor a wide range of essential marine parameters in real time, including currents, temperature, salinity, and water pH. Additionally, the device features an integrated weather station that will continuously measure various atmospheric variables directly at the sea surface, serving as a key tool for studying climate change along the Catalan coast.

The action addresses a strategic need to expand permanent observation systems and stems directly from the prior experience gained by ICM-CSIC technical and scientific staff. The institution already had a solid background in this field, thanks to the instrumentation of a signaling buoy in the Medes Islands marine park (Girona) and the installation of a complex mooring system next to the Casablanca oil platform (Tarragona). These prior experiences were fundamental in refining the logistical and technological aspects of this new station, tailoring the design to its specific location to overcome the battery, communication, and security limitations detected in previous infrastructures.

An institutional push driven by public engagement

The feasibility and acquisition of the buoy’s instrumentation were made possible through an institutional collaboration agreement signed between the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), the Barcelona City Council, and the public company Barcelona Cicle de l’Aigua S.A. The origin of this agreement dates back to February 2020, when the city council launched a pioneering citizen participation initiative within the framework of municipal participatory budgeting. Among the winning proposals submitted by residents in the Ciutat Vella district was the initiative titled “BCN pel Mediterrani. Canvi Climàtic” (BCN for the Mediterranean: Climate Change). Aligned with the Climate Emergency Declaration issued by the city of Barcelona in January of that same year, the proposal received a dedicated budget allocation of 200,000 euros, fully earmarked for deploying a buoy to comprehensively monitor coastal acidification in Catalonia.

Since this project fully aligned with the strategic plans of both ICM-CSIC and ICATMAR to roll out permanent coastal monitoring stations, both organizations formed an alliance to pool their resources, infrastructure, and expertise. A multidisciplinary team of technical and scientific staff from ICATMAR, the ICM-CSIC Oceanographic Engineering Service, and other institute departments participated in the development and assembly of the infrastructure. Thanks to this collaborative effort, ICATMAR funded the physical structure and the complex mooring line; the scientific instruments were financed through funds from the City Council and Barcelona Cicle de l’Aigua; and the internal electronics, real-time communication systems, and safety devices were provided directly by ICM-CSIC.

Acidification Monitoring

The location selected for the buoy is no coincidence. It has been moored approximately 1.5 kilometers offshore, directly in front of Somorrostro beach. This point holds significant scientific value for ICM-CSIC, as the research center has been conducting monthly oceanographic sampling here uninterruptedly for over 25 years. The arrival of this automated device represents an extraordinary qualitative leap forward, turning periodic site visits into continuous, automated data collection. The main objective is to establish a high-resolution time series on water acidity off a major metropolitan area like Barcelona, allowing immediate assessment of human impacts on the marine ecosystem.

Due to its geographical proximity to the shipping lanes entering and leaving the Port of Barcelona, project leaders carefully adjusted the buoy’s technical specifications and its electronic and optical signaling systems. This process was carried out in strict compliance with the legal requirements of the Port Authority of Barcelona and the Directorate-General for Coastal Policies of the Catalan Government, ensuring full safety for both commercial and recreational navigation in the area.

With the deployment of this equipment—now integrated into ICATMAR’s meteo-marine observation network along the Catalan coastline—the scientific community gains an unprecedented technological ally to decode how the Barcelona coastline responds to the challenge of the climate emergency. 

Institut de Ciencies del Mar (ICM), 11 August 2026. Article.