Irrigation engineering in Spain and how it has changed the country’s landscape

Irrigation is a rural development technique widely extended in, and affecting the landscape of, areas of Mediterranean climate. In Spain, irrigation accounts for ⅔ of all water use. The country has over 3.5 million ha of irrigated land, some 15% of all its agricultural land. Valley bottoms and river...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:European countryside 2017-03, Vol.9 (1), p.211-229
Main Authors: García-Asensio, José M., Ayuga, Francisco
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Agricultural land
Coastal plains
Drainage
Engineering
Environmental impact
Irrigated lands
Irrigation
Irrigation engineering
Landscape
Landscape architecture
Lowlands
Mediterranean
Rural areas
Rural communities
Rural development
Spain
Storage
Transportation
Water
water engineering
Water use
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Summary:Irrigation is a rural development technique widely extended in, and affecting the landscape of, areas of Mediterranean climate. In Spain, irrigation accounts for ⅔ of all water use. The country has over 3.5 million ha of irrigated land, some 15% of all its agricultural land. Valley bottoms and riversides are the landscapes most commonly associated with irrigation in Spain, followed by peninsular coastal and interior plains, basins, hollows and depressions. This paper describes the engineering infrastructures associated with irrigation, the structures involved in water capture, transport, storage and distribution, and water use and drainage in the irrigated lowlands of Spain. It also examines the environmental impact of such water use. Several descriptors are proposed to describe its association with the landscape. El regadío ha sido una técnica de desarrollo rural ampliamente extendida en los climas mediterráneos determinando sus paisajes. Es el principal usuario del agua en España, su consumo supone 2/3 del total. Con más de 3,5 millones de hectáreas representa cerca del 15% de la superficie agrícola útil. La principal asociación de tipos de paisajes bajo riego son vegas y riberas, seguida de llanos litorales peninsulares e interiores, campiñas y cuencas, hoyas y depresiones. Presentamos las principales infraestructuras de ingeniería, con obras de captación, trasporte, almacenamiento, distribución, aplicación a las tierras bajo riego y drenaje. Revisamos su consideración en la evaluación de impacto ambiental. Y proponemos diversos descriptores sobre su consideración en el paisaje.
ISSN:1803-8417
1803-8417
DOI:10.1515/euco-2017-0013