Ripoll River
Encyclopedia
The Ripoll is a river in the comarca
of Vallès Occidental
, Catalonia
, Spain
. It covers the vast majority of the shire, crossing it from north to south, and flows into the river Besòs, near Barcelona
.
, at 640 m of elevation
, and it discharges in Montcada i Reixac
, at 35.5 m. It has a length of 39.5 km
, with a total of 181.5 km
, once its tributaries are included. It covers the vast majority of the comarca
of Vallès Occidental
, passing through the municipalities
of Sant Llorenç Savall
, Castellar del Vallès
, Sabadell
, Barberà del Vallès
, Ripollet
and Montcada i Reixac
. Throughout the comarca, it crosses alluvial clay
terrain
s, which erodes easily, causing the river to carve a deep path into the soil.
built an irrigation system that is still used today to work the orchards along the riverside and mills to produce flour
.
As modernization also reached the area
, most of the mills were reconverted to produce paper
. However, by the 18th century, the production of paper
had ceased to be a dominant industry along the river.
During the 19th century, the mills of the riverside were reconverted again, this time into textile
factories, which lasted until the late 20th century. Due to the dyes and chemicals used in the textile industry, the water of the river became heavily polluted.
More Recently, because of the Catalonia
n textile
crisis, most of the factories were abandoned or reconverted for other uses, lessening the strain on the river's water quality. Recently, there have been initiatives to recover the Ripoll for community recreation, by restoring the river, which had deteriorated due not only to industrial pollution but also to the shanty towns made by immigrants who came to work in the mills from Southern Spain
during the 1960s.
In 1962, the Vallès Occidental
suffered a period of strong floods, followed by a period of windfall
s, which devastated the shire and caused hundreds of deaths. The immigrants from the southern Spain
who were extremely poor had settled in the riverside were who suffered the worst consequences.
Comarca
A comarca is a traditional region or local administrative division found in parts of Spain, Portugal, Panama, Nicaragua, and Brazil. The term is derived from the term marca, meaning a "march, mark", plus the prefix co- meaning "together, jointly".The comarca is known in Aragonese as redolada and...
of Vallès Occidental
Vallès Occidental
Vallès Occidental is a comarca in Catalonia, Spain. It is unique among the comarques in that the two cities Sabadell and Terrassa share the role of comarcal capital...
, Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. It covers the vast majority of the shire, crossing it from north to south, and flows into the river Besòs, near Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
.
Geography
The source of the river is located in the Serra de GraneraSerra de Granera
The Serra de Granera is a mountain range located between the shires of Vallès Occidental and Vallès Oriental in Catalonia, Spain....
, at 640 m of elevation
Elevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface ....
, and it discharges in Montcada i Reixac
Montcada i Reixac
Montcada i Reixac , often referred to as simply Montcada, is a municipality in the comarca of the Vallès Occidental inCatalonia, Spain. It is situated at the confluence of the Ripoll river and the Besós river, and very close to the northernmost neighbourhoods of the city of Barcelona and is...
, at 35.5 m. It has a length of 39.5 km
KM
KM, Km, or km may stand for:*Kilometre *Kernel methods*Kettle Moraine High School*Khmer language *Kuomintang , a centre-right political party in the Republic of China on Taiwan...
, with a total of 181.5 km
KM
KM, Km, or km may stand for:*Kilometre *Kernel methods*Kettle Moraine High School*Khmer language *Kuomintang , a centre-right political party in the Republic of China on Taiwan...
, once its tributaries are included. It covers the vast majority of the comarca
Comarca
A comarca is a traditional region or local administrative division found in parts of Spain, Portugal, Panama, Nicaragua, and Brazil. The term is derived from the term marca, meaning a "march, mark", plus the prefix co- meaning "together, jointly".The comarca is known in Aragonese as redolada and...
of Vallès Occidental
Vallès Occidental
Vallès Occidental is a comarca in Catalonia, Spain. It is unique among the comarques in that the two cities Sabadell and Terrassa share the role of comarcal capital...
, passing through the municipalities
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
of Sant Llorenç Savall
Sant Llorenç Savall
Sant Llorenç Savall is a municipality of the shire of Vallès Occidental....
, Castellar del Vallès
Castellar del Vallès
Castellar del Vallès is a municipality of the comarca of Vallès Occidental located 7 km from Sabadell and 11 km from Terrassa, the two comarca's capitals...
, Sabadell
Sabadell
Sabadell is the second largest city in the comarca of the Vallès Occidental in Catalonia, Spain. It is in the south of the comarca, on the River Ripoll, 20 km north-west of Barcelona...
, Barberà del Vallès
Barberà del Vallès
Barberà del Vallès, also known as Santa Maria de Barberà, is a municipality in the comarca of the Vallès Occidental inCatalonia, Spain. It is situated in the valley of the Ripoll river to the south of Sabadell, about 17 kilometers from Barcelona....
, Ripollet
Ripollet
Ripollet is a municipality in the comarca of the Vallès Occidental inCatalonia, Spain. It is situated on the left bank of the Ripoll river. The town is served by the AP-7, C-58 andC-33 highways, the N-150 road and a RENFE railway line.- Demography :...
and Montcada i Reixac
Montcada i Reixac
Montcada i Reixac , often referred to as simply Montcada, is a municipality in the comarca of the Vallès Occidental inCatalonia, Spain. It is situated at the confluence of the Ripoll river and the Besós river, and very close to the northernmost neighbourhoods of the city of Barcelona and is...
. Throughout the comarca, it crosses alluvial clay
Clay
Clay is a general term including many combinations of one or more clay minerals with traces of metal oxides and organic matter. Geologic clay deposits are mostly composed of phyllosilicate minerals containing variable amounts of water trapped in the mineral structure.- Formation :Clay minerals...
terrain
Terrain
Terrain, or land relief, is the vertical and horizontal dimension of land surface. When relief is described underwater, the term bathymetry is used...
s, which erodes easily, causing the river to carve a deep path into the soil.
History
Throughout its history, the river was used by the inhabitants of the surrounding area for irrigation. Irrigation has been in place from at least the mid-10th century, when priests of Sant LlorençSant Llorenç Savall
Sant Llorenç Savall is a municipality of the shire of Vallès Occidental....
built an irrigation system that is still used today to work the orchards along the riverside and mills to produce flour
Flour
Flour is a powder which is made by grinding cereal grains, other seeds or roots . It is the main ingredient of bread, which is a staple food for many cultures, making the availability of adequate supplies of flour a major economic and political issue at various times throughout history...
.
As modernization also reached the area
Vallès Occidental
Vallès Occidental is a comarca in Catalonia, Spain. It is unique among the comarques in that the two cities Sabadell and Terrassa share the role of comarcal capital...
, most of the mills were reconverted to produce paper
Paper
Paper is a thin material mainly used for writing upon, printing upon, drawing or for packaging. It is produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets....
. However, by the 18th century, the production of paper
Paper
Paper is a thin material mainly used for writing upon, printing upon, drawing or for packaging. It is produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets....
had ceased to be a dominant industry along the river.
During the 19th century, the mills of the riverside were reconverted again, this time into textile
Textile
A textile or cloth is a flexible woven material consisting of a network of natural or artificial fibres often referred to as thread or yarn. Yarn is produced by spinning raw fibres of wool, flax, cotton, or other material to produce long strands...
factories, which lasted until the late 20th century. Due to the dyes and chemicals used in the textile industry, the water of the river became heavily polluted.
More Recently, because of the Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
n textile
Textile
A textile or cloth is a flexible woven material consisting of a network of natural or artificial fibres often referred to as thread or yarn. Yarn is produced by spinning raw fibres of wool, flax, cotton, or other material to produce long strands...
crisis, most of the factories were abandoned or reconverted for other uses, lessening the strain on the river's water quality. Recently, there have been initiatives to recover the Ripoll for community recreation, by restoring the river, which had deteriorated due not only to industrial pollution but also to the shanty towns made by immigrants who came to work in the mills from Southern Spain
Andalusia
Andalusia is the most populous and the second largest in area of the autonomous communities of Spain. The Andalusian autonomous community is officially recognised as a nationality of Spain. The territory is divided into eight provinces: Huelva, Seville, Cádiz, Córdoba, Málaga, Jaén, Granada and...
during the 1960s.
1962 disaster
Vallès Occidental
Vallès Occidental is a comarca in Catalonia, Spain. It is unique among the comarques in that the two cities Sabadell and Terrassa share the role of comarcal capital...
suffered a period of strong floods, followed by a period of windfall
Windfall
Windfall is a serial drama television series about a group of people in an unnamed small city who win almost $400 000 000 in a lottery. The series premiered Thursday, June 8, 2006 on NBC, taking the time slot occupied by ER during the rest of the year.On August 31, 2006, NBC announced the show's...
s, which devastated the shire and caused hundreds of deaths. The immigrants from the southern Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
who were extremely poor had settled in the riverside were who suffered the worst consequences.
See also
- List of rivers of Spain
- Serra de GraneraSerra de GraneraThe Serra de Granera is a mountain range located between the shires of Vallès Occidental and Vallès Oriental in Catalonia, Spain....
- GraneraGraneraGranera is a municipality of the shire of Vallès Oriental....
- Sant Llorenç SavallSant Llorenç SavallSant Llorenç Savall is a municipality of the shire of Vallès Occidental....
- Castellar del VallèsCastellar del VallèsCastellar del Vallès is a municipality of the comarca of Vallès Occidental located 7 km from Sabadell and 11 km from Terrassa, the two comarca's capitals...
- SabadellSabadellSabadell is the second largest city in the comarca of the Vallès Occidental in Catalonia, Spain. It is in the south of the comarca, on the River Ripoll, 20 km north-west of Barcelona...
- Barberà del VallèsBarberà del VallèsBarberà del Vallès, also known as Santa Maria de Barberà, is a municipality in the comarca of the Vallès Occidental inCatalonia, Spain. It is situated in the valley of the Ripoll river to the south of Sabadell, about 17 kilometers from Barcelona....
- RipolletRipolletRipollet is a municipality in the comarca of the Vallès Occidental inCatalonia, Spain. It is situated on the left bank of the Ripoll river. The town is served by the AP-7, C-58 andC-33 highways, the N-150 road and a RENFE railway line.- Demography :...
- Montcada i ReixacMontcada i ReixacMontcada i Reixac , often referred to as simply Montcada, is a municipality in the comarca of the Vallès Occidental inCatalonia, Spain. It is situated at the confluence of the Ripoll river and the Besós river, and very close to the northernmost neighbourhoods of the city of Barcelona and is...
- Vallès OccidentalVallès OccidentalVallès Occidental is a comarca in Catalonia, Spain. It is unique among the comarques in that the two cities Sabadell and Terrassa share the role of comarcal capital...
- Barcelona (province)Barcelona (province)Barcelona is a province of eastern Spain, in the center of the autonomous community of Catalonia.-Overview:It is bordered by the provinces of Tarragona, Lleida, and Girona, and by the Mediterranean Sea....
- CataloniaCataloniaCatalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
- SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
- List of rivers of Catalonia
- BesòsBesòsThe Besòs is a river flowing through Catalonia, Spain, formed by the confluence of the Mogent and Congost rivers. It ends in the Mediterranean. Its full watershed includes the following cities: Aiguafreda, La Garriga, Sant Fost de Campsantelles, Canovelles, Granollers, Montmeló, Mollet del Vallès,...
- List of major cities with notable rivers
External links
- Pictures of the floods and the snowfall of 1962
- Sabadell City Council's website, which contains some pages with information about the river and its history
- Website talking about the floods of 1962 in Terrassa
- A section of the Ripollet City Council's website dedicated to the floods of 1962
- Digital newspaper of the Cerdanyola City Council