The Vall d’en Joan is located in the Garraf Natural Park, within the municipal terms of Begues and Gavà in the Baix Llobregat region. Originally, the site was one of the many narrow and winding valleys that formed the Garraf massif. The beginning of its use and exploitation as a landfill dates back to 1974, and since then it has accommodated most of the urban waste of Barcelona and the municipalities of its metropolitan area. At the time its closure began, it occupied an approximate area of 85 hectares and had been covered up to two-thirds of its original height.
The situation of the deposit before the refurbishment corresponded to a large terrace with steep slopes where a layer of 20 centimetres of soil which covered the waste but which did not involve its definitive sealing had been placed. In addition, the higher parts of the valley were still being mined. The image of the valley occupied by the deposit contrasted with the orographic and vegetal richness of the landscapes of the natural park that surrounded it.
It currently takes up an area of 60 hectares, 20 of which have been restored as part of the "Executive Project for Closure and Restoration of the Controlled Deposit of Vall d'en Joan", in zone 1-2 and the access to this area.
The rehabilitation project is determined as a global proposal for action, defining topographical criteria for the configuration of terraces and slopes, a drainage network for the collection of internal water independent of the external, Biogas extraction network, routes and revegetation to apply by phases. The overall goal of the project is the reintegration of the Controlled Deposit into the Garraf Natural Park, which is carried out using the resources of the nearby agroforestry mosaics and enhancing the development of the primary ecosystems established there, which over time will evolve into situations adapted to the environment.
The process of planting the vegetation is carried out from indigenous, resistant species with little water needs and adapted to the natural environment. The plantation is organised in plant structures such as brambles, thickets or Mediterranean maquis, shrub species and trees and crops of indigenous, leguminous species.
The restoration of the Deposit aims to enhance the character of the open space that this area can recover due to its proximity to several metropolitan towns, the ease of access and the possibility of parking make it an accessible space and a new access to the Garraf Natural Park in connection with the long-distance GR trail.