Spain Faces Severe Desertification Threat as New Atlas Reveals Over 40% of Territory Impacted
The first national Atlas reveals that over 40% of Spain is threatened by desertification, driven by climate and agricultural pressures, demanding urgent integrated resource management.
- • Over 40% of Spain's territory, about 206,217 square km, is affected by desertification.
- • Regions like Murcia, Albacete, and Almería show desertification rates exceeding 80%.
- • Agriculture uses over 80% of freshwater on 42% of the territory, driving degradation.
- • The Atlas uses AI-driven mapping and calls for holistic water and soil resource management.
Key details
The recently published first Atlas of Desertification in Spain reveals a stark environmental challenge, with over 40% of the country’s land severely affected by desertification. The report highlights a total of 206,217 square kilometers — approximately 40.9% of Spain’s territory — threatened by the degradation of land due to a blend of natural aridity and human impacts.
Regions such as Murcia, Albacete, and Almería stand out with the gravest rates, each exceeding 80% land degradation, particularly Murcia with an alarming 91%. The atlas, spanning 360 pages and including 66 detailed maps, employs advanced artificial intelligence techniques to provide precise data on soil degradation patterns across Spain. This comprehensive study was carried out by a consortium of more than 40 experts from the University of Alicante and the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC).
Key drivers of desertification include climatic factors such as low rainfall and high temperatures, but crucially, human activity—especially agricultural practices—exerts considerable pressure. With agriculture consuming over 80% of Spain's freshwater resources on just 42% of its land, the sector is a major contributor to unsustainable resource exploitation and soil degradation.
The authors, Jorge Olcina and Jaime Martínez Valderrama, emphasize the urgent need for integrated management of soil and water resources to sustainably address the problem. They advocate for a holistic approach that balances economic needs with environmental care, underscoring how desertification exacerbates climate change impacts and challenges Spain’s food security and economic stability.
The Atlas concludes that combating desertification is not only a technical or economic issue but requires a fundamental transformation of societal values and consumption patterns. It calls for collective action and policy innovations to safeguard Spain’s ecosystems and agricultural productivity for future generations.
This article was synthesized and translated from native language sources to provide English-speaking readers with local perspectives.