Spanish Agricultural Landscapes: Transformation and Modernization
Land Use and Explanatory Factors
Major Types of Land Uses
- Arable Land: Over 16 million hectares across basins, inland valleys, and the Mediterranean coast. Scarce in northern and mountainous regions.
- Grassland: 8 million hectares for cattle feed, occupying wetter areas or those with poor soil. Three types:
- Permanent grassland (beef cattle)
- Seasonal pastures (wet and dry periods)
- Tall grasses (nomadic livestock)
- Forest Areas: 15 million hectares of deciduous forests in humid regions, enabling logging.
- Remaining Land Uses: 8.4 million hectares including unproductive areas, urbanized zones, water infrastructure, and other spaces.
Factors Explaining Land Use Distribution
- Natural Conditions:
- Atlantic Domain: Wet weather, forests in the north and west.
- Mediterranean Domain: Dry summers, predominantly arable land.
- Subtropical Domain (Canary Islands): Aridity limits crops and forests.
- Historical Evolution and Land Structure: Subsistence economy focused on crops, pastures, and forests for food. Market economy led to farmland abandonment and increased pasture for livestock.
Diverse Agricultural Areas and Development
Agriculture Spaces and Contrasts
- Woody Crops: Olive groves, vineyards, and fruit trees. Positive evolution with increased surface area and income.
- Arable Crops: Cereals, pulses, potatoes, vegetables, and cash crops. Large area but low productivity and competitiveness issues.
- Irrigated Areas: One-fifth of cropland, maximizing intensity in areas with high insolation and no winter frosts. Water scarcity leads to groundwater extraction, transfers, and desalination.
- Rainfed Areas: Dominant but with lower, variable productivity due to drought, rain, and freezing. Mediterranean trilogy predominates. Fallow periods used to avoid soil depletion.
Modernization of Farming Systems
- Crop Specialization: Shift from polyculture to monoculture increases profitability but also risk.
- Increased Capital Investment: Machinery, chemicals, and modified seeds reduce labor and increase yields, but chemical waste can contaminate soil and water.
- Irrigated Area Expansion: Yields multiplied by six compared to rainfed, but leads to aquifer overexploitation.
- New Farming Techniques: Sanding and growing under plastic (hydroponics).
Main Spanish Agricultural Landscapes
Rainfed Cereal Landscape
Vast, open spaces in the Castilian interior and Ebro valley. Cereal plots alternate with fallow, legumes, and oilseeds. Wheat is the most abundant cereal, followed by barley, corn, rye, and rice.
Olive Grove and Vineyard Landscape
Predominant in the southern half of the peninsula, Balearic Islands, and sunny northern territories. Olive groves characterize the gentle slopes of Guadalquivir, Jaén, and Andalusia. Spain is the world’s largest olive oil producer, with increasing demand driving new plantings and quality improvements.
Meadow Landscape in the Western Peneplain
Pastures with low-density oak and cork oak forests. Poor soil and humid climate. Supports cattle, sheep, and Iberian pigs.
Horticultural Landscape of Mediterranean Irrigation
Coastal plains and valleys of major Mediterranean rivers. Requires substantial irrigation infrastructure. Small plots with vegetable crops and fruit trees.
Moist Spain Livestock Landscape
Coastal plains and mountainous areas of Galicia, Basque Country, and Pyrenees valleys. Natural meadows alternating with forests.
Activity and Agricultural Areas at Present
The Primary Sector and its Development
- Primary Sector: Agriculture and extraction of natural resources (e.g., fisheries).
- Secondary Sector: Industry, mining, and construction.
- Tertiary Sector: Services (e.g., education, health, leisure).
Until the 20th century, the primary sector prevailed. Industrialization shifted importance to the secondary sector. Recent decades saw rapid tertiary sector growth. Spain transitioned from a rural society in the early 20th century to a deagrarianized, postindustrial society. Agricultural production is 30% higher than 25 years ago.
Regional Differences in Deagrarianization
Decline in primary sector workers due to: varying historical importance of agriculture, natural conditions, and farmers’ capacity for modernization.
Current Importance of the Primary Sector and Agricultural Areas
: primary sector activities still have a great strategic value and meet the following objectives:
- Ensure the population a minimum of food self-sufficiency, in order not to depend on other countries.
- Provide various resources used as raw materials for industries.
- Keep population and employment in rural areas.
- Preserve cultural heritage in the form of quality local produce agricultural livestock or fisheries or through agricultural landscapes.
- Contribute to better planning.
- Preserve the environment.