The Estuary of Bilbao (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

: ''Ría de Bilbao'' /

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

: ''Bilboko Itsasadarra'') lies at the common mouth of the rivers Nervion,

Ibaizabal The Ibaizabal (''wide river'' in Basque) is a river that drains southeastern Biscay to the Estuary of Bilbao. It is long from its source at Elorrio to the Nervión, and it passes by the towns of Durango and Amorebieta and joins the Nervión r ...

and

Cadagua The Cadagua or Kadagua River drains the Biscayan area of Encartaciones (), from the Castilian valley of Mena to Barakaldo and Bilbao, where it forms the border between these municipalities and ends at the Estuary of Bilbao. Another important ...

, which drain most of

Biscay Biscay ( ; ; ), is a province of the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Autonomous Community, heir of the ancient Lordship of Biscay, lying on the south shore of the Bay of Biscay, eponymous bay. The capital and largest city is Bilb ...

and part of Alava in the Basque Country,

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. In this instance, the Spanish word estuario is used to describe what in English would normally be called part

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...

, part

tidal river A tidal river is a river whose flow and level are caused by tides. A section of a larger river affected by the tides is a tidal reach, but it may sometimes be considered a tidal river if it had been given a separate and another title name. Gene ...

. The estuary becomes a tidal river which extends into the city of Bilbao, starting from the

Bilbao Abra The Bilbao Abraabra
is Spanish for a small bay. is a

bay. It hosts the

port of Bilbao The Port of Bilbao is located on the Bilbao Abra bay, and along the Estuary of Bilbao, in Biscay ( Basque Country). The main facilities are in the Santurtzi and Zierbena municipalities, approximately 15 km (9.3 mi) west of Bilbao. Als ...

throughout its length, although the Port Authority has recently restored most of the upper reaches to Bilbao and other municipalities for their

urban regeneration Urban renewal (sometimes called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address real or perceived urban decay. Urban renewal involves the clearing ...

. The port is now being transferred to the seaboard on the coast at

Santurtzi Santurtzi (; ) is a port of Bilbao, port town in the province of Biscay, in the autonomous community of Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, Spain. It is located in the Bilbao Abra bay, near the mouth of the Nervión river, on it ...

and

Zierbena Zierbena is a town and municipality located in the province of Biscay in the autonomous community of Basque Country, northern Spain. Ferry port The ferry port in Zierbena (which is known to some as Bilbao Ferry Port) has two departures and arr ...

. Downstream from Bilbao the river divides its

metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region consisting of a densely populated urban area, urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories which share Industry (economics), industries, commercial areas, Transport infrastructure, transport network ...

into its

left bank In geography, a bank is the land alongside a body of water. Different structures are referred to as ''banks'' in different fields of geography. In limnology (the study of inland waters), a stream bank or river bank is the terrain alongsid ...

(

Barakaldo Barakaldo (; ) is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality located in the Biscay province in the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country in Spain. Located on the Left Bank (Biscay), Left Bank of the Estuary of Bilbao, the city is pa ...

Sestao Sestao is a town and municipality of 27,296 inhabitants located in the province of Biscay, in the autonomous community of Basque Country, northern Spain. It is in the left bank of the Estuary of Bilbao and part of Bilbao's metropolitan area. Se ...

Portugalete Portugalete is a town lying to the west of Bilbao in the province of Biscay in the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country, northern Spain. The town has 45,294 inhabitants as of 2021 and is part of Bilbao's metropolitan area. It is located ...

and

) and

right bank In geography, a bank is the land alongside a body of water. Different structures are referred to as ''banks'' in different fields of geography. In limnology (the study of inland waters), a stream bank or river bank is the terrain alongsid ...

(

Erandio Erandio is a town and Municipalities of Spain, municipality located in the province of Biscay, in the autonomous community of Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, northern Spain. History In 1415, during the War of the Bands, the ...

Leioa Leioa () is a municipality in Biscay, Basque Country, in northern Spain. It is located south of Getxo and Berango delimitating east and south with Erandio, Portugalete and Sestao. Today it is part of the Bilbao conurbation. Its population in 2019 ...

and

Getxo Getxo () (Spanish: ''Guecho'') is a town located in the province of Biscay, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, in Spain. It is part of Greater Bilbao, and has 75,430 inhabitants (2023). Getxo ...

The recovery of the estuary

The estuary and tidal river of Bilbao have always been a significant part of the city.

Bilbao Bilbao is a city in northern Spain, the largest city in the Provinces of Spain, province of Biscay and in the Basque Country (greater region), Basque Country as a whole. It is also the largest city proper in northern Spain. Bilbao is the List o ...

was born 700 years ago on the banks of the Nervión river as a trading village. It gradually expanded downstream until arriving at the sea. Unfortunately the river reached high levels of

contamination Contamination is the presence of a constituent, impurity, or some other undesirable element that renders something unsuitable, unfit or harmful for the physical body, natural environment, workplace, etc. Types of contamination Within the scien ...

because of the industrial activities during the past century. In recent years work has been undertaken to restore the condition of the estuary.Bilbao en Construcción!
Bilbao recupera su Alma: Plan Integral de Saneamiento de la Ría
published 6 July 2010, accessed 21 March 2021

References

External links

Bilbao Ria 2000
{{Coord, 43, 22, N, 3, 03, W, type:mountain_source:kolossus-frwiki, display=title Geography of Bilbao Estuaries of Spain Bodies of water of the Basque Country (autonomous community)