Desertification of coastal sands of south-west Spain

Merino, J.; Martín, Ángel Puerto; Granados, Monica; Merino, O.

doi:10.1016/0167-8809(90)90240-e

Cited by 6 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…The end of the LIA in Andalusia (Castro-Díez et al, 2007) at the end of the 19th century is associated with a gradual lowering of the water-table, affecting the stenohydric plant communities of the study area. The correlation of the historical climatic data (Barriendos and Martín-Vide, 1998; Granados et al, 1988; Merino et al, 1990; Rodrigo et al, 1999, 2000) with the reconstruction of the area occupied by peat bogs in the zone and of the extinct large lagoons suggests that this was a process with a marked point of inflection. The dry phase that occurs after the end of the LIA (at the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th) coincides with the desiccation of some wetlands in the southern (Martín-Puertas et al, 2008; Sousa et al, 2009a; Valero-Garcés et al, 2006) and central-eastern (Romero-Viana et al, 2009) Iberian Peninsula.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Furthermore, the results in Figure 7b show an increase in the disparity of the precipitation of the SW Iberian Peninsula, which could increase erosional and colmatation processes by mobilising sediments that would eventually be deposited over the lowest areas (lagoon basins and peaty areas). Granados et al (1988), Merino et al (1990) and Sousa and García-Murillo (2003) have studied this process, known as secondary dunification, in some areas of the Biosphere Reserve of Doñana. According to these authors, this process, whose origin is associated with changes in climate trends, would overlap with the impacts resulting from changes in land use.…”

Section: Impacts Linked To Climate Trends In Peat Bogsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Changes in theErica ciliarisLoefl. ex L. peat bogs of southwestern Europe from the 17th to the 20th centuriesad

et al. 2012

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This paper analyses a reconstruction of changes from the 17th to the 20th centuries in peat bogs with Erica ciliaris Loefl. ex L. heathlands in southwestern Europe. The reconstruction is performed by means of a multidisciplinary method based on photointerpretation, the examination of historical sources (documentation and maps), and an analysis of microtopography. Historical sources and aerial photos from 1956 and 1987 have also been used to reconstruct the impacts of anthropic activity. In the study area, Doñana Natural Park (SW Iberian Peninsula), peat bogs currently occupy slightly more than 8% of the area that they covered at the beginning of the 17th century. A parallel analysis of anthropic activity in the area over the last four centuries reveals the key role of humans in the disappearance of these peat bogs. This drastic reduction of peat bog area during the 20th century is due to a lowering of the water-table as a result of the impacts of anthropic activity, primarily the establishment of monocultures of Eucalyptus spp. and Pinus pinea. An earlier lowering of the water-table, before these plantations, is attributable to a process of aridisation associated with post-‘Little Ice Age’ warming. Therefore, the impacts associated with climatic trends are synergistically superimposed on those derived from the intense anthropic activity that occurred during the second half of the 20th century. This synergy resulted in a reduction of the surface occupied by the studied peat bogs and their associated E. ciliaris heathlands by 91.1% in SW Europe.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Impacts Linked To Climate Trends In Peat Bogsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changes in theErica ciliarisLoefl. ex L. peat bogs of southwestern Europe from the 17th to the 20th centuriesad

et al. 2012

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“…The beginning of this process seems to be linked to the alternation of wet and dry periods in the southern part of the Iberian Peninsula during the LIA, and especially after the 18 th century (average annual regression rate of 113 m•year-1), in what some authors have called secondary dunification (Granados et al 1988;Merino et al 1990). This process temporally coincides with a pulse of eolic activity in SW Portugal approximately 1710 AD (Costas et al 2012) and seems to be linked to climatic variability, particularly rainfall.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The regression of the small Atlantic coastal brooks is a process that has possibly occurred in other coastal areas of southwestern Europe that have similar geomorphological characteristics. Devereux (1982) To associate directly and unequivocally the accumulat ion of sand with drier periods or wetter periods is a complex problem because it may be affected by regional climatic variations (Costas et al 2012) and by changes in land use (Merino et al 1990). Grove ( 2001) studied the effects of the LIA in Mediterranean Europe and confirmed that the same climatic conditions that induced the advance of glaciers during the LIA were also responsible for an increase in flood frequency and sedimentation.…”

Section: Brooks As Indicators Of Anthropogenic and Climatic Impacts I...mentioning

confidence: 99%

The use of changes in small coastal Atlantic brooks in southwestern Europe as indicators of anthropogenic and climatic impacts over the last 400 years

et al. 2014

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Unlike other aquatic continental ecosystems such as lakes, small coastal brooks have not been used as indicators of anthropogenic or climatic impacts. Our study addresses reconstructing the evolution of coastal brooks in the southwest of Spain from the early 17 th century to the end of the 20 th century using fieldwork, remote sensing, historical sources and microrelief.These brooks have had a continuous regression, losing 84.7% of their length since 1630 AD.From the 17 th century to the beginning of the 20 th century, climatic factors were responsible for the filling and siltation of the thalweg of brooks with sandy sediments of eolian origin.The alternation of dry and humid periods during the Little Ice Age in southern Spain favoured the mobilisation of sandy sediments in a process of secondary dunification, which was initiated during the 18 th century and prominent at the end of the Little Ice Age. This process has coincided with a loss of water availability or an increase of aridity in some lakes and lagoons of southwestern Europe at the end of the 19 th century. However, during the second half of the 20 th century, the average annual rate of thalweg regression almost quadrupled to 432.2 m•year -1 mainly due to anthropogenic impacts associated with logging. These changes coincide with the mobilisation of sandy sediment and the erosion of coastal brooks in southwestern Portugal and other continental aquatic ecosystems in southwestern Spain.Therefore, we believe that changes in small coastal brooks can be used as indicators of anthropogenic and climatic impacts and, in the future, as sentinels to study the effects of climatic change just as lakes, reservoirs and rivers are considered.

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“…A composite of precipitation records for the southwest Spain region (Figure 4) shows that similar duration droughts are not unknown. There are Merino et al (1990) have gone further back in their analysis, placing contemporary patterns into a context of increasing frequency of drought in the period from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries, and some later amelioration. However, even within the better documented period from 1949 onwards, locally there have been similar drought occurrences, and this, combined with the possible impacts of climate change, suggest that some caution is needed in inferring that the event of the early 1990s was notably unusual.…”

Section: Drought In the 1990smentioning

confidence: 98%

Drought management in the Río Guadalhorce region of Andalucía, southern Spain

Roberts

2002

Land Degrad Dev

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The Guadalhorce catchment is characterized by hydrological extremes, severe flooding which has intermittently devastated the coastal conurbation of Málaga and riparian settlements upstream and periodic droughts of several years' duration. The region is also affected locally by high levels of salinity in soils and water. Attempts to manage this situation to permit economic development through agriculture and industry over several centuries seemed to have ameliorated the worst excesses and during the 20th century a series of major dam projects offered the potential for sustainable future economic growth. However, rapid population growth and shifting patterns of agriculture have brought the question of sustainability back on to the agenda.This paper analyses the hydrological characteristics of the severe drought of the mid-1990s, in terms of its impacts both on water quantity and water quality in the region. The strategies adopted to maintain domestic and tourist water supplies in the face of high demands from irrigation, particularly looking at the conjunctive use of groundwater, and the development of regional water grids are evaluated. The pressures on water quality, which developed in various parts of the Guadalhorce hydrological system, including in the main water supply network for the city, are also explored.The paper concludes that the demands on the water supply system are unlikely to be manageable through current strategies and that ecological and water quality issues will probably prove more critical than water volumes in determining approaches to management of future droughts.

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Desertification of coastal sands of south-west Spain

Cited by 6 publications

References 3 publications

Changes in theErica ciliarisLoefl. ex L. peat bogs of southwestern Europe from the 17th to the 20th centuriesad

Changes in theErica ciliarisLoefl. ex L. peat bogs of southwestern Europe from the 17th to the 20th centuriesad

The use of changes in small coastal Atlantic brooks in southwestern Europe as indicators of anthropogenic and climatic impacts over the last 400 years

Drought management in the Río Guadalhorce region of Andalucía, southern Spain

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