THE Doñana National Park in southern Spain has one of Europe's biggest wetlands, which is endangered by intensive farming.
According to scientists, water supplies to the park have decreased considerably as a result of climate change and over-extraction of water by nearby strawberry fields, which is commonly done through illegal wells.
This issue has created a significant schism between those who want to save the park and those who want to grow strawberries.
'Save Doñana' representative Juan Romero said, "If no drastic reforms are made, groundwater overexploitation would devastate Doñana's wetlands. Stopping the overexploitation of the aquifer and shutting wells are two dramatic reforms that the administration must make. Instead of extracting as much water, they should limit their present extractions and cut them in half."
Manuel Delgado, a representative for the Doñana Gate Farmers Association, emphasized, "The crops require the water they need." "We have almost 4,000 hectares of irrigated land in the municipality of Almonte, and if they cut the water allocation in half, we'd have to cut the crop in half, which would mean 2,000 hectares of cultivation would be lost. That's a complete shambles."
Rafael Segovia, the President of the Spanish far-right VOX party, refutes assertions that the nature reserve is in jeopardy and provides solutions that environmentalists oppose.
"There isn't a water problem in Huelva; it's a fraud, an artificial problem which has been created," Segovia remarked. "If we complete these tasks, Doñana will not be jeopardized. The problem has a simple solution: move water from the El Chansa river to the Condado; that's all there is to it."
WWF Doñana Coordinator Juanjo Carmona stated, "It's a solution, although its days are numbered since it's everywhere when there's a shortage of rain. Climate change has an impact on humans, as well as on water levels. In Doñana, we need to reconsider the model."
The park should really be covered with water and home to pink flamingos at this time of year.
It comprises about 100.000 hectares of lagoons, woodlands, and marches and is home to hundreds of species of flora and animals. However, due to human activities and questionable political decisions, the world heritage site's existence is uncertain.
