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How Sustainable is the Increase in the Water Footprint of the Spanish Agricultural Sector? A Provincial Analysis between 1955 and 2005–2010

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  • Ignacio Cazcarro

    (Basque Centre for Climate Change (BC3), 48008 Bilbao, Spain
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Rosa Duarte

    (Department of Economic Analysis, Faculty of Economics and Business Studies, Universidad de Zaragoza, 50005 Zaragoza, Spain
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Miguel Martín-Retortillo

    (Department of Applied Economics and Economic History, Faculty of Economics and Business Studies, Universidad de Zaragoza, 50005 Zaragoza, Spain
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Vicente Pinilla

    (Department of Applied Economics and Economic History, Faculty of Economics and Business Studies, Universidad de Zaragoza, 50005 Zaragoza, Spain
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Ana Serrano

    (Department of Economics, Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences, Universitat de Girona, 17071 Girona, Spain
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

Abstract

In the context of a relatively scarce water country, the article analyzes the changes in 50 years in the water footprint (WF) in Spain evaluating its sustainability. For that purpose, firstly we make use of the regional information of the water footprints and crop production to estimate the WF of production over the 50 provinces in Spain, looking at the variation between the years 1955 and 2005–2010. The detail in the information of crops (more than 150 of them) statistics allows us to examine the types and origin of changes (in volume produced, shifts towards more or less water intensive crops). Secondly, we estimate sustainability indicators also at the provincial level, which let us evaluate whether this change has created or incremented the risk of physical and economic water stress. Thirdly, we introduce the economic perspective, providing evidence on the infrastructures built and public sector expenditure, as an approximation to the costs of the increases in WF, particularly meaningful for those water stressed areas.

Suggested Citation

  • Ignacio Cazcarro & Rosa Duarte & Miguel Martín-Retortillo & Vicente Pinilla & Ana Serrano, 2015. "How Sustainable is the Increase in the Water Footprint of the Spanish Agricultural Sector? A Provincial Analysis between 1955 and 2005–2010," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(5), pages 1-26, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:7:y:2015:i:5:p:5094-5119:d:48783
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Duarte, Rosa & Pinilla, Vicente & Serrano, Ana, 2021. "The globalization of Mediterranean agriculture: A long-term view of the impact on water consumption," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 183(C).
    3. Hailiang Ma & Chenling Shi & Nan-Ting Chou, 2016. "China’s Water Utilization Efficiency: An Analysis with Environmental Considerations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(6), pages 1-15, May.
    4. Sesma Martín, Diego & Rubio-Varas, Mª. del Mar, 2017. "Freshwater for Cooling Needs: A Long-Run Approach to the Nuclear Water Footprint in Spain," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 140(C), pages 146-156.
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    6. Yiding Wang & Yaning Chen & Weili Duan & Li Jiao, 2022. "Evaluation of Sustainable Water Resource Use in the Tarim River Basin Based on Water Footprint," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-18, August.
    7. Arjen Y. Hoekstra & Ashok K. Chapagain & Guoping Zhang, 2015. "Water Footprints and Sustainable Water Allocation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(1), pages 1-6, December.
    8. Rosa Duarte & Vicente Pinilla & Ana Serrano, 2018. "Income, Economic Structure and Trade: Impacts on Recent Water Use Trends in the European Union," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(1), pages 1-13, January.
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